Blogs vs. Wikis

Blogs and wikis are both current aspects of Web 2.0 and what is considered as new media today. They are both similar in certain technological functions but different in their own way. Both blogs and wikis are used to make communication easier in terms of getting information to internet users, they also create communities where people with similar interests can share information and also get feedback.

Ezra Goodnoe in How to Use Wikis for Business defined a wiki as “the simplest online database that could possibly work”. Wikis are updated constantly as new information becomes available, and this gives users access to current and relevant data. Wiki users not only have access, but are able to edit the information as well, all because of the collaboration involved as well as the level of control involved (decentralized control). Since anyone can contribute this enables idea generation. Blogs on the other hand allows users to have more control over what gets published and there is limited collaboration. Blogs are usually focused on specific issues or topics of interest and shows a lot more passion and voice than a wiki would.

In today’s networked world convergence is important because almost everything has been digitized. Convergence makes it more convenient for users to make the transition from old media to new media without any added confusion. In Consumption Convergence by Deirdre Hynes it states that “A major cause for the convergence of technologies is the digitization of all forms of information, the development of compression techniques, and the convergence of transmission platforms enabling the growing convergence of previously separate media and information technologies.” To me, convergence makes it easier to be creative, to have access and to keep up with the changing technology.