Ohio University Libraries

The Ohio University Libraries Biz Wiki

The Ohio University Libraries BizWiki is easy to find, only two clicks from the Ohio University Libraries Homepage through the Research Guides & Finding Aids.

This wiki was created to solve a messy problem of multiple research guides with no search function besides Crtl-F:

“I decided that as I update my research guides this summer, I am not going to rehash the same tried-and-true format that I (and countless librarians before me) have been using. As I go through the list of links, databases, websites, and reference books, I am adding what is worth keeping to what I am currently calling The Biz Wiki. The Biz Wiki will contain the content of all three of my research guides and will be organized by category.” (from A Wiki as a Research Guide, by Chad)

Its stated purpose is to assist business researchers in finding the best resources for their topic. It is full of information: articles about business reference books, databases, websites, and other research guides (BizWiki). However, many of these resources are only available to members of the university community. While this is understandable from the point of view of the index and database companies (eg LexisNexis), it means that this wiki is significantly less useful to the general public.

They are using Mediawiki. Their wiki is easy to use, laid out similarly to wikipedia, which most of the library users would be familiar with, including the side bar and the ever-popular, featured article. I liked the random page feature (as I do in wikipedia), I pulled up Household Spending: Who Spends How Much on What, which I am informed is available both as a paper reference book and as an online book as well.

The Biz Wiki fits well with the Ohio University Libraries’ home page, which includes multiple ways for users to engage: IM (meebo), Skype A Librarian, Business Blog, and on-line video tutorials. The BizWiki librarian and staff have worked hard to make this wiki useful, accessible, attractive and relevant to younger students: Facebook, meebo, and excellent use of multimeda in the Business Database Screencasts, although some of the pages were no longer there.

However, the password lock is a real barrier to sharing this information with people outside the university. Here we see an example of how a library using Web 2.0 to share information runs into the obstacle presented by corporate interests. How can a university library wiki page share information when the database and index companies are holding it as proprietary?

I did notice there doesn’t seem to be anywhere for people to contribute. According to a comment posted on A Wiki as a Research Guide, the author was intending to open the page up to contribution but hasn’t yet done so. I would see that as an improvement and a move towards more open collaboration. One of the most vital aspects of any Web 2.0 application is that it enable collaborative and welcome input (Michael Stevens, from Library Technology Reports, July/August 2006, his blog).

If I were a business student at Ohio University I might well use this wiki because it is full of useful information for business students and is presented in a very accessible way. However, as a member of the public, I wouldn’t have access to many of its resources, and even as a member of the university, I would not be able to contribute to it, therefore my use of it would only be passive.