Help:Organization
Since the UBC Wiki is being used by a lot of different people for a lot of different reasons, organization is very important. Keeping the UBC Wiki organized will make information easier to find, keep users from overwriting each other's pages, and allow the Wiki to be used for multiple purposes. The primary method of keeping the UBC Wiki organized is through the use of Namespaces.
Namespaces
Pages on the UBC wiki are grouped into collections called "namespaces", which differentiate between the purpose of the pages at a high level. Pages in certain namespaces can also have special properties or behave differently when they interact with other pages.
Namespaces are indicated in page titles by prefixing the page name with "namespace:", so the prefix "Help:" in this page's title ("Help:Namespaces") indicates that this page is in the Help namespace. Please note that namespace prefixes always end with a colon.
Organizing Your Content
The UBC Wiki is organized into different collections to accommodate different needs:
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Organization Policies
Each namespace on the UBC Wiki serves a different purpose and may have slightly different policies:
Main space
The root, or mainspace, of the wiki is primarily a shared community and collaboration space. Titles should be as specific as possible and should not use abbreviations or acronyms. Each article should start with an introductory sentence describing what the page is about. Articles that do not meet this criteria may be moved. Pages in the mainspace belong to the wiki community and anyone should feel free to edit them. The Main Space does not support subpages.
Course space
The course space is for instructors, students, and individuals to post, organize, and collaborate on open resources, course content, and open assignments. Content should be organized under the class number using subpages. While any individual (including the instructor) does "own" any particular class space, this is still an area that can be used as an individual work space for class projects, collaborative work, and the like. Outside editing of articles in this namespace shall be minimal.
Documentation space
The documentation space is for open resources, toolkits, documentation, support and other similar content. Outside editing of articles or pages in this space should be minimal.
Sandbox
The Sandbox is is a personal notebook space that can be used for building draft pages, working on personal or group projects, or just playing the wiki. It is a casual, unofficial space and you should not edit a page there if you have not be invited to do so.
In addition, the UBC Wiki includes a few other semi-reserved namespaces:
- User: Every UBC Wiki user has a personal user page. You can add subpages to your user page - it's a great place to add pages about personal research, projects, presentations, etc.
- Help: In this namespace you can find all the help articles on how to edit, add, and contribute to the UBC Wiki.
- eLearning: This namespace is the reserved space for creating and managing eLearning-related content. Contact CTLT if interested in contributing.
- Learning Commons: This namespace is for content contributed by the various Learning Commons colleagues around campus. This includes content from the Research Commons which has a specific focus for graduate students and Faculty.
- Library: This reserved namespace is for library content contributed by library staff.
- Science: This reserved namespace is for faculty and staff of the Faculty of Science to manage wiki projects.
- LFS: This reserved namespace is for faculty and staff of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems.
Please join the discussion on UBC Wiki policies at UBC_Wiki:Community_Policies.
Adding a page to a UBC Wiki namespace
To add a page to namespace, prefix the page name with the space name and a colon (such as either "Course:" or "Documentation:"). For example, the page name ABCD123 would be added after the space name "Course:" to make Course:ABCD123. You can create the new page by searching for this full title or browsing to the extended url, for example: wiki.ubc.ca/course:ABCD123.
To add an already existing page to the course space, use the move function and rename the page with the "Course:" prefix. For example, a page named ABCD123 would be renamed Course:ABCD123.
Examples of What Type of Content Goes Where
| Type of Content | Proper Namespace Location |
|---|---|
| Encyclopedic article focusing on specific topics | Main |
| Assignment | Course |
| Information about student group or club | Main |
| Open Educational Resource | Main, Documentation, Course (if related to a specific course) |
| Presentation | Documentation, Course, Sandbox, User Name Subpage |
| Course page or course project | Course |
| Guide or help page for online educational tool | Documentation |
| Planning document | Sandbox |
| Workshop, Conference page | Sandbox, Documentation |
| Individual Project | Sandbox, User Subpages, Course (if course related) |
| Group Project | Sandbox, Documentation, Course (if course related) |
| Course or research related project | Sandbox, Course (if related to specific course) |
| Course Project | Course, Sandbox |
| Meeting notes | Documentation, Sandbox |
| Student paper or project | Course, Sandbox |
| Faculty Description | Main |
| Map of specific places at UBC | Main |
| Test page | Sandbox |
| Personal page | Sandbox, User Page, User Subpage |
| Student Discussion on a Course Topic | Course, Discussion Page related to specific Course page |
See Also
- Learning_Commons:Namespace_Orientation: screencasts on Namespaces, adding subpages, and using DPL.
- Help:Using the UBC Wiki for Course Work: tips and suggestions for using the Course namespace