Part III: Using the CatWiki

Following up from Part I and Part II.

As already mentioned in the post last week, this is a raw version. A work-in-progress. The layout and menu is basic, at this stage. But we can still work with it. I am not a Techie but I am sure when the Tech Experts take over, the bugs will be sorted and there will be a nice, shiny interface.

There will be a post on the main page to let you know when there is a new topic. CatWiki topics will be marked with the logo displayed below the title, as can be seen in this topic. Unlike the posts on the main page which move on and get replaced by newer ones, the topics in the CatWiki will have a more permanent nature. Once a topic has been posted, it is active, and you can access any of the available topics, at any time. You can go there to read, research from the available content, or add a comment with information.

Finding Your Way Around

Currently, this is still in progress, so the topics are not yet visible. When it is ready to go, here’s how you find your way around.

1.  Click the CatWiki tab on the menu bar.

The dropdown menu will be displayed.
You will see the list of available topics.

If a topic has sub topics, they will be listed to the right side of the topic, as a sub menu.

2. Click the topic, or sub topic that you want to open.

You will see the topic, as you normally see a post.
You can add your comment here, keeping in mind, the suggestions and examples provided in the Part II: Introducing the CatWiki post.

If you come across bugs while navigating between topics, note them in the comments section of this topic, not in the wiki topic.

Searching for Information

The Search feature is very basic at this stage. Use the Ctrl+F option in your browser to search a word/phrase and any related comments can be located. Depending on your browser, the result will be like this:

Helping to Build the Database

You may want to help with this database, but think that you do not have the relevant information. If you do want to participate in this project, you can.

1. Go through the older Open Threads. There is plenty of data there – links, articles, videos – shared by others. Pick the ones appropriate to the topics in the CatWiki, check the links work, read the information to see if it still is valid.
2. Then, copy and post as a comment in the wiki. You will need to reformat the content as the formatting is not retained in the copy-paste process. However, all the formatting options in the Comment Box work: Bold, Italics, Link, Block-quote. The comments may not look nice and shiny while you are typing, but once posted they display correctly in the thread. Some of us are using them. Just needs a bit of patience.

So, if you want to make a difference, it is possible. You can find a way, if you are prepared to spare some time.