Just (wiki)How Do You Do It?

Nowadays you can learn how to do just about anything, in detail, from the internet. Wikis have taken over the world in providing us with information and are unique because they provide us with collaboration across the world through the internet. Arguably the most popular resource on just how to do everything is wikiHow, a website that provides countless step-by-step methods on everything from baking cookies to preventing Coronavirus. What makes wikiHow so special is, just like the internet, utilizes the power of many and everyday people can write and contribute to articles. Many of these articles provide necessary skills, like changing a tire, or tasks people didn’t know they could accomplish, such as putting together a local concert. 

Not just anyone can post though, with admins acting as gatekeepers to the influx of information, to maintain a high quality of articles. In order to get an article published, there are certain qualitative aspects that must be considered. Most important to the article is that the subject material is comprehended by the reader; through proper communication of what is being taught, whether through diction or images, they are all different ways to communicate through your wiki article.

In order for a wikiHow article to be genuinely helpful and convincing, the author of the article has to have some sort of personal experience with the subject material. Consider if someone were to write a wikiHow article on “How to Make Chicken Tacos” and the person had never made tacos in their entire life. It wouldn’t go too well. The author of the wikiHow article doesn’t necessarily have to be an expert but there has to be some sort of personal experience in the subject matter of the article. To write the article on putting together a local concert, the author had to be a part of a process that put together a show and has learned from mistakes on how to correctly put on a local concert. Personal experience realistically is the most important qualifying factor that decides if an individual can write an article detailing steps on how to accomplish/prevent/do/learn something because plainly put how could someone who never did a certain task or event, how could they even remotely teach another person how to do it? Without personal experience, there is nothing to be taught.

The way that a wikiHow article is communicated not only will make-or-break it for the reader but, if communicated incorrectly or poorly it will likely not be published. The foundation of the wikiHow article is how it is written and communicated. Proper use of diction will result in well-communicated steps and there will be no confusion for the reader. To make sure it is communicated well, writing in clear and concise sentences should make it simple for the reader to understand how to accomplish that “step”. To communicate “Throwing a Local Concert”, the steps must be described in detail, clearly outlining selecting venues, acts and promoting, with all the details that come with it. 

What helps provide more information, supplementing the written instructions are pictures to match. On wikiHow, most articles have images that were provided by wikiHow to match the step that is written about. With that being said, banking on that is a risk one shouldn’t take and is lazy. When coming up with pictures to correctly communicate the steps, take pictures of yourself or someone reenacting the step, or action related to the step. This step is easy to have fun with. Pictures can be difficult if your topic isn’t something simple like a recipe or a knot. To recall the earlier example, throwing a local concert could present some challenges, especially if you cannot recreate the show atmosphere. The best course of action to prevent issues in the picture stage is to plan ahead and make sure everything sails smoothly.

Articles published to wikiHow don’t always get published instantly, which usually has to do with the article “missing additional information” or simply needing further review from the admins. To avoid the hindrance from admins, supplement the article with references that back up what is being said. References can also be used to provide proof of the information that has been provided. References help legitimize the validity of a wikiHow article, providing real traction in getting an article published. References can also be utilized to supplement personal experience, which can’t be directly seen through a wikiHow article. Overall, references provide a nice shine on the article, making it more legit and appealing. 

WikiHow is a super useful tool that can provide access to information that many simply would not have. The experience of writing a wikiHow article is quite reflective and causes one to truly break down aspects of any task, difficult and simple. What comes most of the experience is a continuance of information, continuation of collaboration and a furthering of a connected informative world, where anyone has indiscriminate access to all information on the Internet.