Blogs vs. Wikis

In today's rapidly growing world of information technology, almost everyone is familiar with the terminologies "blogs" and "wikis," or at least heard of it. Both blogs and wikis are information exchange platforms. They are applications available on the internet for everyone; commercial uses, business uses and so forth.

The main difference between blogs and wikis is that blogs are somewhat of a an online diary; except anyone can read it. The author has complete control of his or her own "diary" blog, and chooses what goes on it, be it a picture, a piece of music, an excerpt from a book, a section from a news article, something he/she wrote in his/her own words- you name it. This creates an atmosphere of persona, and entices the sense of ones own color. People who read the blog are welcomed to share their opinions and thoughts, much like a forum, except the author again may choose which comments go and which ones stay. In today's networked world revolving around the internet, blogs promote a sense of convergence, that is people share similar tastes and preferences, characteristics, etc... People are opened to others reading their personal "diary" because of these similarities, and also the fact that the internet is anonymous.

Wiki's on the other hand is an online encyclopedia- a collection of information from various sources. Unlike a blog, a wiki has no central author in charge of what stays and what goes. A wiki is also more information based, and lacks personal opinion such as in a blog because it is an open source; you are not the only one telling your perspective. Everyone can contribute to a wiki- such as adding additional information or simply editing a current page. Sometimes information on wikis are incorrect and rarely do wikis host misleading information; that is because the community depends on the will of good faith, that the majority of contributors do not post unreliable information.

To put into analogy terms, blogs are like open classrooms- opinions are voiced and are usually less informative. Wikis are like libraries- information on just about everything. Both blogs and wikis are used for collaborative purposes, 

In the article Brooklyn Blog Helps Lead to Drug Raid, police were able to detain the suspects of drug dealers in a timely manner due to community blogging. Through this collaborative effort, daily minuscule actions of common everyday bloggers led to action. Not only are blogs useful in the criminal and civil justice network, they also serve a purpose in the retailing industry. According to Wal-Mart Tastemakers Write Unfiltered Blog, the general public gets a stab at both sides of the spectrum on the insiders of Wal-Mart. Employees and employers alike can give a glimpse of what their monthly sales and expectations are to come, while customers can rant about their likes and dislikes on products.

Tying blogs vs. wikis together, one suggestion of new wiki uses would be a musical wiki. To my extent, I don't believe there exists a wiki pertaining musical pieces, something along the lines of a musical library; or a place that holds titles for every piece of music for any entertainment content.