WISWIKI manual

This is a short manual on how to use the WISWIKI. More extensive documentation can be found here.

Text

Clicking on the edit button at the bottom of the page (or top right corner) allows you to edit the current page. Text can be inserted normally. It helps looking for the structure that is already there to learn about the syntax.
To structure text headings and lists can be used. They are created by preceding the text by # , * and ! (multiple ! and # for multiple levels of heading, see this text)

Links

There are internal and external links. For an internal link the following syntax is used ((link_target|link name)) , which would create a link to the wiki page "link_target" and name the link "link name". This is a link to the WISWIKI homepage

External links are done with [link_target|link name] . This is a link to the WMO mainpage

A link to an file attached to the name page is done with {FILE(name=>myfile.doc, desc=>Custom link text)}{FILE} . This is a link to an attached file

Attachments

Attachments can be uploaded using the attachments button at the bottom. The file will be attached to the page and visible to users depending on the access rights.

Every attached file has an "attachment identifier" (attId) that is shown in the first column of the list of attachments. You can link to the file using http://wis.wmo.int/doc=### where ### is the "attId". It is not possible to change the file without uploading a new version with a new attachment identifier - so any link you have emailed will always point to the old file.

File Galleries

It is often useful to use a file in links from several pages. File Galleries provide a way of managing files that are held in the wiki. They are more complicated than attachments, but are more flexible. You can assign access permissions to individual files, and also replace a file while retaining the file identifier. You can link to files in File Galleries using http://wis.wmo.int/file=### where ### is the fileId listed when the file is uploaded to the File Gallery.

If you need to use a File Gallery, send an email to wis-help@wmo.int to ask the wiki administrators to set one up.

Permissions

Different users have different permissions. The actual permissions depend on the section of the WIKI. Chairs have mostly editing rights in their sections and selected pages are writeable by all members of the Expert Team. There are also rights to upload attachments and add comments to a page.

Developing complex pages in the wiki

Although some changes to the wiki are straightforward and can be completed in one session, others are more complex and may need consistent editing between different pages. In that case, authors will need to avoid publishing part-completed pages to avoid confusion. Another situation in which authors may need to create documents before they are published is when they are preparing something that has a particular release date.

The wiki provides a mechanism known as "staging" to allow documents to be edited before they are published to their final locations, leaving the original wiki page visible until the edits have been approved.

The Secretariat can designate wiki pages as needing to be "staged". When an author tries to edit a staged page, they are directed to a "staged" copy of that page that shows any editing of that page that has not yet been approved; authors can then add their changes to that copy. Only when the editing is complete and the copy is approved does the copy replace the original on the wiki. When editing staged pages, authors should make sure that any internal wiki links refer to the final locations for the pages rather than to the addresses of the staged working copies.

Although staging is a method to avoid publishing inconsistent or incomplete information during the publishing process, knowledgeable users with authority to view the original page will also be able to view the staged versions of pages. It it is important to prevent users seeing the content of pages under development the Secretariat will need to make special arrangements for the pages concerned.