Maintainers

Context:

When people work together using a wiki, they are often uncertain about what they should do; many people are uncomfortable editing somebody else’s work might, or they may simply prefer to leave the work to the person who originated the document. 

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If everybody is uncertain about what somebody can do, it is possible that nobody will do anything, and the wiki will be neglected.

Documents produced on a wiki are meant to be produced using an open, free-from editing style, where everybody has equal rights in editing a document, and the concept of a final, polished product or an individual author who is associated with a piece of work is often discouraged.  This ideal is fine in theory, but very few people are used to working in this way - most people prefer a more structured approach.  The diagram on the previous page shows a typical sequence of events where ‘anybody can edit anything’ which frequently leads to a situation where people who make large contributions (as Yellow) can become demotivated and will stick with making only small investments of time (as Blue).

Therefore:

Transfer responsibility to an individual who will maintain a page, space or section of the wiki.

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The Maintainer will work as part of a team – refer to the patterns Champions and Facilitators