January 2007 – Page 2 – PBworks Official Blog

Who's using PBwiki? (Part 1)

Check this out: one of our PBwiki users. We’re always thrilled when we see pictures of actual people who are using PBwiki. It makes our day! So stay tuned for more pictures of real PBwiki users. To be featured here, email pics@pbworks.com! One lucky person will win a free lifetime Platinum wiki. -Ramit

For Educators: Q&A on PBwiki

Here’s a special 2-page PDF that answers basic questions about PBwiki, specifically for educators. Some questions answered: What’s the difference between a wiki and a blog? Who controls the content? Is it easy to use? What about safety? What are examples of successful educational wikis? This might be perfect if your IT administrator or principalContinue reading “For Educators: Q&A on PBwiki”

Introducing the PBwiki Library

The PBwiki Library is an ever-growing collection of resources about PBwiki that we’re launching today. If you’ve been looking for a PDF to give to your co-workers outlining exactly how PBwiki works, you’ll find it here. We’ll also include wiki case studies, videos, and more. If there’s something that would make your life easier, pleaseContinue reading “Introducing the PBwiki Library”

PHP OO pitfalls

I should have picked up on this earlier, but PHP does some crazy stuff with objects. Because they’re not objects. Take the following: function _init_storage($options) { if(!$se = $options[‘storage_engine’]) { trigger_error(“Error instantiating MetaStash – no storage_engine” ); } $this->engine = $se; } That looks fine, we’ve got some options defined at our constructor and it’sContinue reading “PHP OO pitfalls”

Under the hood

What makes PBwiki tick? For stability: – Debian Sarge Linux – rock solid with very good package management – grsecurity – paranoid security, the small overhead is worth the peace of mind – MySQL – just works – Apache – a known quantity For speed: – PHP – it’s fast and dead simple – memcachedContinue reading “Under the hood”

PBwiki loves Core2Duo

We’re working behind-the-scenes to seriously ramp up our server fleet. When David started PBwiki the core servers were a bunch of 2001-vintage VA Linux boxes from Craigslist — Essentially “San Carlos: 400 pounds of 2U servers $10 OBO, you pick them up tonight”. Since those heady days of off-brand ramen and Mountain Dew we’ve accumulatedContinue reading “PBwiki loves Core2Duo”

"The problem is not access controls!"

Sometimes I get a funny reaction when I talk about PBwiki to people: “But…what about access controls? Who controls the content?” Our response is always the same: “The problem is not access controls! The real problem is figuring out how to get people to contribute to a community.” Whenever I start a PBwiki, my biggestContinue reading “"The problem is not access controls!"”

What PBwiki templates would you like to see?

We’d love to hear what templates you want to see on PBwiki (e.g., plan a trip, run a group project, etc). Also, if you’ve built a template and think it might be useful for others, we’d love to see it. We’ll keep an eye out and add the best template submissions PBwiki-wide for thousands ofContinue reading “What PBwiki templates would you like to see?”