Using electronic environments for drafting, reviewing, revising, editing, and sharing texts

         I feel it necessary to blog on Wikipedia, as our class-wide Wikipedia project has just concluded and I`m "fresh" on the subject. While none of our learning outcomes for English 102 mention Wikipedia at all, Wikipedia has opened my eyes to many truths about research, writing, and editing. Because I won`t get a satisfactory grade writing about any random thing that I feel is important (only English 102 learning outcomes), I`ve found a learning outcome that has been achieved through my exploration of Wikipedia.  The skills I`ve used and applied relating to the website couldn`t be a better example of me learning how to "use electronic environments for drafting, ... editing, and sharing texts."
         Drafting text on Wikipedia is undoubtedly a unique process. Most of the time, I blog about semi-abstract concepts that I have mastered, like using appropriate tone or diction. In stark contrast, drafting text on Wikipedia is a highly technical and specific skill. In order to format text into headings, or cyber-links, you must perform specific actions, like sandwiching the heading text with double equal-signs, or double-bracketing the words you intend to cyber-link. And if you intend to include sources in a bibliography, and link the via superscript to the portion of the text they correlate to, you must perform more specific actions. Drafting on Wikipedia is a very technical and useful tool that I am thankful for learning in the classroom setting.
        Editing text on Wikipedia (what makes it so popular, or unpopular), is not unlike drafting it. In fact, you do the same things in editing a text that you would if you were the original author. What`s important here, though, is not the technical skills required to edit, but simply the ability and acuity in editing so that you can contribute to the massive source of information that is Wikipedia.
        None of this would matter if it weren`t for the "sharing texts" portion of this learning outcome. Wikipedia could not be a better example of a sharable text. Anything drafted or edited on Wikipedia is instantly shared (or made sharable) to the entire world. Through Wikipedia, we can draft, edit, and share to the entire world ideas and facts that might otherwise go unheard or unseen.