Getting Started

Go to PB Works: https://plans.pbworks.com/academic

Then click on "Try Now" and follow the prompts to start your own wiki. The basic plan is free, and you can always upgrade later if you need to. You will need to decide on the name of your wiki (the web address) and the email address you want to use for Wiki correspondence. This is an easy step and you should be set up to edit your wiki in no time!

Settings & Customize

Now that your wiki has actually been created, you should see your wiki home page. The home-page is called "Frontpage" and it will initially have PB Works information in it. Notice that your wiki name is in the top left hand corner. You can click on that name at any time throughout the wiki to go back to the Frontpage.

Let's start by changing some initial Wiki Settings. On the top right hand corner, please find the "Settings" link. Inside settings, we can alter the Wiki Colors, description, contact email, we can add/delete users and set their access level, and we can access the wiki security features. You set your wiki to either private or public here.

Adding Users & Security

Under your Wiki's settings, go to Access Controls then Users. If your wiki is for a class or office, you can just type individual emails to add users. At this time, you will also select their access control. Administrator is the highest access level--this is what you are--and Readers cannot edit the wiki. Think about what you want this individual to contribute to the wiki. Wiki viewers can always request access to the wiki by viewing the Frontpage and clicking on "request access".

Under Access Controls then Wiki Security, you can control who can view and edit the wiki. Please consider the security of the information that you are displaying on your wiki. Keep in mind that a wiki is like any other webpage on the internet, and if you select "Anyone can view and edit the wiki" your wiki is completely public and your files are downloadable.

Recent Wiki Activity & Notifications

If you click on the name of your wiki on the top left hand corner, you will reach the Frontpage or homepage. On the Frontpage, at the bottom right hand corner, you will see the "Recent Wiki Activity" box. This will tell you of every change that was made to the wiki, by whom and at what time/date. Simply click on the wiki activity link OR at the bottom click on More Recent Wiki Activity to see the full list of entries and edits of the wiki. This can be used for wiki security and class evaluation of participation.

You will automatically be emailed a notification of any wiki changes by any users. If you would like to disable email notifications, go to Settings at the top right corner, under Access Control click on Notifications and RSS and uncheck Enable Email Notifications for this Wiki.

The Frontpage

The Frontpage is your home page. You can put whatever content you wish here. You can always access the frontpage by clicking on the name of your wiki in the top left-hand corner.

The Sidebar

The Sidebar is located to the right of the frontpage. Think of the Sidebar as your index or list of links you want wiki users to navigate through. At first, your sidebar will have introductory information in it. To edit it, click on "Edit the Sidebar" at the bottom. This will look like you are editing a normal wiki page, but your space is quite limited to the sidebar's small box. First, list links you know you will have available and we can actually put in the links to the wiki pages later.

Folders--inside Navigator

Your wiki's folders are located above the sidebar. Inside your folders, you can store any files or wiki pages you like. For example, see the PB Works Information Folder to the right--I have stored several PDF files inside for reference. To create a folder, just click on "edit folders" below the box. Then select the add button to the right of folders. You can also do this by visiting the Pages and Files link at the top right hand corner of the wiki page. Just click on "New", then Create a Folder. When you view Pages and Files, you can organize your files, pages and folders for the wiki.

Adding Pages & Files

Your wiki will initially be set up with just one page--Frontpage. You can add pages by clicking on "Create a Page" from the frontpage OR go to Pages and Files and click on "New" then "Create a Wiki Page".  When you create a new wiki page, you will be prompted to name that page. This page name will appear on the "View" tab at the top. After you name it, you'll be taken to that blank page. You can either start editing that page right away or SAVE it and come back to it later. If you do not click Save at the bottom of your page, it will not have been created at all. You can create as many Wiki pages as you like--and you can add links to them in the Sidebar.

You can also add files of any sort to your wiki. To upload files to the wiki, go to Pages and Files, then Upload Files. Select your files and click Open. Wikis have trouble uploading files that are larger then a meg. Although you can upload practically every type of file, this does not necessarily mean that anyone else can open this file. Always remember that viewers of the wiki will need the appropriate software application to open certain files. For example, if I do not have Microsoft Word installed on my computer, I will be unable to open a Word document that was added to the wiki.

You can also add files while you are editing a page. Click on the Edit tab at the top of the page and to the right you will see under Inserting Links-- Images and Files. You can either Upload Files OR click on an already uploaded file. If you click on an uploaded file, the link to the file will be added. You can also highlight text and click on the file to add the link to the highlighted text.

Editing Pages

To edit one of your wiki pages, simply click on the Edit tab of the page at the top. This will open up an application similar to Microsoft Word. You can change the color, size, font, alignment of your text here. You can also add tables, links and Plugins here too. If you know html, you can click on Source to alter the html code. On the right of your editing menu, you see an Insert Links box where you can add links to wiki pages and files.

Adding Images

To add an image onto your wiki page, simply go to Insert Links on the right. Click on Images and Files and find the image file you want or upload your file. Just click on the file and it will insert itself one the page. Now you can right click it and go to Image Properties to align it and add a border. You can also just use the alignment tools for right, center, left align that are on the top of the edit bar. You can also link to an image file by highlighting text and clicking on the image file on the right.

Adding Links

In your wiki, you can add links to web pages, other wiki pages, a wiki folder, an email address, a file or an image. Highlight the text or image that you want to have a link. Then click on the globe link logo on top of the edit bar. Here in the drop-down menu you will find options for PB Wiki Page, PB Wiki Folder, URL, and Email. Simply fill in the required information for your option. To link to a file or image simply highlight your selection and click on the file or image file in the right box under Insert Links. Now your wiki contains depth--linking into files, the internet or to other parts of your wiki. I reccommend inserting links into your sidebar so it will act as an index for your wiki and it's pages.

Adding Videos

Adding a video is a great way to incorporate media into the wiki. Adding a video is surprisingly simple: click on Insert Plugin (the logo with the green puzzle piece) and you can either upload your own video located on your computer (in .avi,.flv,.mpeg,.mov,.wmv,.mpg,.mp4 format) or find one on YouTube. If it is a YouTube video, just copy the url and paste into the required box.

If you are unable to make the video player work after uploading your file, you can always add a link to the file by clicking on the file in the Insert Links box to the right. Then the viewer can open it with whatever video player they have installed on their computer.

Adding Plugins & Google Gadgets

Adding Plugins is a fun way to add interactive and informative tools to the wiki. Explore the Insert Plugin box and the options available. You can also look at Google's Gadgets: http://www.google.com/webmasters/gadgets/

You can add lots of fun things like calendars, countdowns, maps, a table of contents etc. Explore and add as much as you like, but remember that adding lots of these gadgets will slow down your wiki.