Wiki Architecture

Contents:

  1. How to design your wiki architecture with PmWiki.
    1. 1.1  Groups
    2. 1.2  To have more than one hierarchical level
    3. 1.3  Categories
    4. 1.4  Example(s)

How to design your wiki architecture with PmWiki.

Most wiki's are build upon page ensembles without hierarchical structure.  PmWiki proposes more possibilities about general organisation.

Groups

It exists a hierarchical level defined by Wiki groups. Each wiki group allows:

  • To have a unique menu (sidebar) for this group.
  • To define access rights and specific page layout for the group.
  • To have a unique 'namespace' for the group where pages call themselves by OnePage or [[one page]]. To go to pages outside the group, you have to declare the given group like: ThatGroup.OtherPage or ThatGroup/OtherPage (the second syntax don't display the group name on screen).

Though, one can wish to use groups to make a hierarchy and get menus without wishing to separate namespaces, and building what is called a 'flat' namespace. This is described in CookBook.PagePaths .

To have more than one hierarchical level

Inside one group, it is possible to navigate from one page to another with wiki trails. This trails are handed by commands looking like << previous page | pages index | next page >>. You can have multiples wiki trails for one group and each trail shall have its own index page. This allows building multiple pages ensembles inside one group or to have cross-group page organisations.

While it is not possible in the basic PmWiki distribution to create a second hierarchical level, it exists a possibility to name pages quite alike a second level, this is described in Cookbook.SubpageMarkup .

The possibility to have subgroups have been multiple times discussed intensively in the mailing list. A motivation not using them is readable in HierarchicalGroups .

Categories

A non hierarchical organisation, allowing linking pages while defining their belonging to a category is proposed. One page can be member of multiple categories. Each category have its own group (but pages can be part of any other group). This is a functionality in developpement, but it can be used yet by following the recommendations of using categories.

Example(s)

You can find an example (not representative) of a wiki architecture organised with a unique 'flat' namespace: http://www.pmwiki.org/wiki/Sites/CNCLoisirsArchitecture

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