why are wikis great?

Likewise, I am adding to this as ideas come up. I'm new to wikis so may not initially be so inspired. Wikis are great because:

- they are free
- easy to set up and use
- accessible from networked computer
- anyone can edit them
- settings can be altered to allow specific users to edit
- all changes are tracked**
- can format as desired (not as dull as they first appear to be)
- encourage mutual sharing of information**
- encourage contributions
- seem like they are ideal for education since most of them are used for sharing of information (FAQs, and how-to's)
- encourage collaborations (working on the same page, til you all get it right)**
- requires little or no admin
- changes page can be made into an RSS feed
- encourage 'stickiness' because content is edited by many people
- community-based**
- concept of community, knowledge-sharing and trust**
- collaborative writing tool**
- organised around topics not authors
- great for drafting ideas or documenting projects
- can create headings for other people to fill in

** These features are not found in blogs. In summary wikis differ from blogs by being community-based, by encouraging collaborations and having changes tracked.

Uses for wikis within learning environment:
- a collaborative writing space for group projects
- sharing project notes or practical class notes required by students preparing individual reports
- compiling shared resources from a course or project
- generating FAQ information