So issues that need to be adressed in NWiki please set it o version 2.0 and we will track it.
Cheers
L.
Rigth now to track Wiki issues in the tracker is very difficult. There are tons of unresolved Wiki issues that NWiki fixes just by its very existence (
) so I get lost tracking the issues affecting just NWiki.
So issues that need to be adressed in NWiki please set it o version 2.0 and we will track it.
Cheers
L.
So issues that need to be adressed in NWiki please set it o version 2.0 and we will track it.
Cheers
L.
Hello Ludo,
Good to see that NWiki will become the default Moodle wiki, though looking at the roadmap I see that this will not be for another year.
So I wonder what you suggest? Should I continue to try and use the standard Wiki activity module (EWiki), which has more and more bugs (e.g. MDL-11816 & MDL-6144), or should I 'take the plunge' and download Nwiki? It seems that every time Moodle gets updated, another wiki function gets damaged. On the other hand, the NWiki module also seems to have a few bugs. I am especially concerned that if I switch to NWiki (which version?), will my present wikis made by students survive the migration?
I welcome any advice you have for this teacher in a quandary over how to proceed with Wikis.
I am using Moodle 1.8.3., Apache 1.3.33, php 5.2.1, & MySQL 5.0.24a.
Good to see that NWiki will become the default Moodle wiki, though looking at the roadmap I see that this will not be for another year.
So I wonder what you suggest? Should I continue to try and use the standard Wiki activity module (EWiki), which has more and more bugs (e.g. MDL-11816 & MDL-6144), or should I 'take the plunge' and download Nwiki? It seems that every time Moodle gets updated, another wiki function gets damaged. On the other hand, the NWiki module also seems to have a few bugs. I am especially concerned that if I switch to NWiki (which version?), will my present wikis made by students survive the migration?
I welcome any advice you have for this teacher in a quandary over how to proceed with Wikis.
I am using Moodle 1.8.3., Apache 1.3.33, php 5.2.1, & MySQL 5.0.24a.
Versions 1.8 and 1.9 are very focussed in core changes (like roles, mnet, gradebook and tags and stability that on new features. Thats why NWiki and other featured improvements are kept to the 2.0 version ... thats ok.
Buy hey, as you say, nobody is looking after the ewiki and this is a problem for those who want to use wikis in their classroom. The current version of NWiki for 1.8 ( that I use in my classes in almost the same environment as you) works fine. This summer we focussed specially in the migration of contents and the old wiki data may survive. You may also do the next thing, will take a half an hour or so:
* Install a fresh 1.8.x moodle in a workstation (it takes minites using the xamp thing)
* back up some ewiki empowered courses from your production server and restore them in the moodle sandboxed on your workstation.
* install in the sandboxed moodle the NWiki last release and see what happens. are the pages still there... now try to enable blocks on activities and use the nwiki blocks... if you dare you may also use the wiki format course and really enjoy...
Then tell us about it. If something does not work, we will be here to fix it.
Ludo
Buy hey, as you say, nobody is looking after the ewiki and this is a problem for those who want to use wikis in their classroom. The current version of NWiki for 1.8 ( that I use in my classes in almost the same environment as you) works fine. This summer we focussed specially in the migration of contents and the old wiki data may survive. You may also do the next thing, will take a half an hour or so:
* Install a fresh 1.8.x moodle in a workstation (it takes minites using the xamp thing)
* back up some ewiki empowered courses from your production server and restore them in the moodle sandboxed on your workstation.
* install in the sandboxed moodle the NWiki last release and see what happens. are the pages still there... now try to enable blocks on activities and use the nwiki blocks... if you dare you may also use the wiki format course and really enjoy...
Then tell us about it. If something does not work, we will be here to fix it.
Ludo
Ludo,
Thank you for your quick reply.
I already have an experimental moodle 1.8.3 system setup, so will do as you suggest. However, before going ahead I'd like to check with you the order in which I should carry out the installation of and migration to Nwiki.
Is this order correct?:
Are there any other steps I should carry out?
Thank you for your quick reply.
I already have an experimental moodle 1.8.3 system setup, so will do as you suggest. However, before going ahead I'd like to check with you the order in which I should carry out the installation of and migration to Nwiki.
Is this order correct?:
- Restore (install) courses containing eWiki activites into my experimental moodle system.
- Via the moodle admin page, delete the eWiki activity module.
- Remove the wiki directory (i.e. eWiki) from the mod directory on the server.
- Install the various directories in the 'wiki_1.8_rev2007061102 Folder' into the correct locations in the experimental moodle directory on the server.
- Access the admin of the experimental moodle via a web browser: at this stage I assume the system will recognise the existence of a new module (Nwiki) and create the relevant MySQL tables, and carry out the 'migration' process etc.
- I will then be able to access the wiki activities in the courses and see that migration has been successful.
- If 1 to 6 is a success I will then do the same with my production site.
Are there any other steps I should carry out?
Hello Peter,
forget about step 2.
If you delete eWiki activity Moodle will delete all content from database so when you install our wiki, it will have nothing to migrate.
DFWikiTeam, Pigui.
forget about step 2.
If you delete eWiki activity Moodle will delete all content from database so when you install our wiki, it will have nothing to migrate.
DFWikiTeam, Pigui.
Jordi,
Thank you for your reply.
I followed the above steps (minus step 2) and had no luck
.
I restored one course into my experimental moodle site that contained one instance of a Wiki activity. I then installed Nwiki following the above steps (without step 2). On re-logging in to my experimental moodle I got the "wiki module needs upgrading" message and then a series of 'success' messages but no [continue] button at the bottom of the page: see attached PDF.
I then reloaded the page, and got these 'messages'
Reloading the page again gets the same messages. The only way to get back to the top page is to remove the NWiki module from the mod directory.
Just to make sure that Nwiki would install correctly into my system, I removed the course that contained the instance of a Wiki activity, so that there were no wikis in my system. This time, the installation was a success, so it seems that there is a bug in the migration process
.
Any ideas?
My experimental Moodle is running on the following system:
PowerBook G4, Mac 10.4.10
moodle 1.8.3 (downloaded 29th Nov from CVS)
MySQL 5.0.24
php 5.2.1
Thank you for your reply.
I followed the above steps (minus step 2) and had no luck
.I restored one course into my experimental moodle site that contained one instance of a Wiki activity. I then installed Nwiki following the above steps (without step 2). On re-logging in to my experimental moodle I got the "wiki module needs upgrading" message and then a series of 'success' messages but no [continue] button at the bottom of the page: see attached PDF.
I then reloaded the page, and got these 'messages'
(mysql): SHOW TABLES
(mysql): SELECT * FROM mdl_modules WHERE name = 'dfwiki' LIMIT 1
dfwiki installed. Upgrading dfwiki (start)
(mysql): SHOW COLUMNS FROM `mdl_modules`
(mysql): UPDATE mdl_modules SET name = 'dfwiki', version = '2006052502', cron = '2007053101', lastcron = '0', search = '', visible = '0' WHERE id = '23'
dfwiki installed. Upgrading dfwiki (end)
wikis to dfwiki (start)->
(mysql): SELECT * FROM mdl_wiki
(mysql): SELECT * FROM mdl_wiki_entries WHERE wikiid='1' LIMIT 1
(mysql): SELECT * FROM mdl_modules WHERE name = 'wiki' LIMIT 1
(mysql): SELECT * FROM mdl_course_modules WHERE module=22 AND instance=1 LIMIT 1
Reloading the page again gets the same messages. The only way to get back to the top page is to remove the NWiki module from the mod directory.
Just to make sure that Nwiki would install correctly into my system, I removed the course that contained the instance of a Wiki activity, so that there were no wikis in my system. This time, the installation was a success, so it seems that there is a bug in the migration process
.Any ideas?
My experimental Moodle is running on the following system:
PowerBook G4, Mac 10.4.10
moodle 1.8.3 (downloaded 29th Nov from CVS)
MySQL 5.0.24
php 5.2.1
Peter,
This is very valuable work, since there are many of us out there who need to do exactly what you are trying to do, ie migrate from ewiki to Nwiki. I'm wondering about another approach to the problem. Given that Nwiki does *not* seem to install properly when there's an existing course with ewiki content, what would happen if you did the following instead:
It seems to me that this has been the Achilles heel for Nwiki all along -- if migration fails then one cannot upgrade Moodle in situ if the new Moodle version substitutes Nwiki and your current system has content in ewiki.
Mark
This is very valuable work, since there are many of us out there who need to do exactly what you are trying to do, ie migrate from ewiki to Nwiki. I'm wondering about another approach to the problem. Given that Nwiki does *not* seem to install properly when there's an existing course with ewiki content, what would happen if you did the following instead:
- Install Nwiki in a clean Moodle
- Create a course backup with ewiki content (do you need user data, or is it just the Activity definition)?
- Restore the backup in the Moodle system with Nwiki.
It seems to me that this has been the Achilles heel for Nwiki all along -- if migration fails then one cannot upgrade Moodle in situ if the new Moodle version substitutes Nwiki and your current system has content in ewiki.
Mark
Hi there,
two days ago Pigui fixed the known bugs in the ewiki migration, there's a new release. Please, can comebody try it (in a safe environment) and tell us hod did it go?
Thanks
Ludo
two days ago Pigui fixed the known bugs in the ewiki migration, there's a new release. Please, can comebody try it (in a safe environment) and tell us hod did it go?
Thanks
Ludo
Do we also put requests for features in the tracker as well? Where do we find out the new features that are planned in 2.0?
Ahh.. now we talkin features 
Basically the new features planned for 2.0 are the ones that implements rigth now NWiki. We discussed with martin dougiamas that maybe some of these would be even removed. So there will be a contrib-extended release with the whole package and the oficial release with the wiki essentials.
Anyway Nwiki has LOTS of more features that the current wiki.
Cheers
Ludo
Basically the new features planned for 2.0 are the ones that implements rigth now NWiki. We discussed with martin dougiamas that maybe some of these would be even removed. So there will be a contrib-extended release with the whole package and the oficial release with the wiki essentials.
Anyway Nwiki has LOTS of more features that the current wiki.
Cheers
Ludo
I certainly agree that it has lots more features! 
I just did a Moodle installation with 1.82 for a small group and promptly upgraded to the NWiki 2.0 beta. (It was annoying to have to google to find the language pack to get NWiki help
--can that be part of the NWiki release?) Works great! As soon as somebody can report that the new beta installation works, for 1.7, I'll ask our host to upgrade to NWiki for our school, or just wait until summer and upgrade to the latest and greatest everything.
But I'm really missing an easy way to put in an "add to the page box" so people can just type and submit rather than editing the page. That solved my problem with large classes in the lab all trying to edit at once. It's also a very quick way to brainstorm using a wiki while f2f, or for different people to record minutes for different sections of meetings while f2f.
And it reduces collisions as updating a page takes a while, sometimes 10, 15, or 20 minutes while a person has it open. That's too long when students are doing homework at night. An "add to the page box" only opens the page on the SQL server for a second, and it doesn't matter that others are contributing as well.
Right now I have to use a totally separate Wiki installation on a different server and create new user IDs for much of the work I do with teachers as they have grown to depend on that "add to the page" box. Not to push too much, of course, since I know everyone has a favorite feature that they can't live without!
Thanks for doing the NWiki!
I just did a Moodle installation with 1.82 for a small group and promptly upgraded to the NWiki 2.0 beta. (It was annoying to have to google to find the language pack to get NWiki help--can that be part of the NWiki release?) Works great! As soon as somebody can report that the new beta installation works, for 1.7, I'll ask our host to upgrade to NWiki for our school, or just wait until summer and upgrade to the latest and greatest everything. But I'm really missing an easy way to put in an "add to the page box" so people can just type and submit rather than editing the page. That solved my problem with large classes in the lab all trying to edit at once. It's also a very quick way to brainstorm using a wiki while f2f, or for different people to record minutes for different sections of meetings while f2f.
And it reduces collisions as updating a page takes a while, sometimes 10, 15, or 20 minutes while a person has it open. That's too long when students are doing homework at night. An "add to the page box" only opens the page on the SQL server for a second, and it doesn't matter that others are contributing as well. Right now I have to use a totally separate Wiki installation on a different server and create new user IDs for much of the work I do with teachers as they have grown to depend on that "add to the page" box. Not to push too much, of course, since I know everyone has a favorite feature that they can't live without!
Thanks for doing the NWiki!
Hi Derrel,
We will put the help files in the next release. Thanks for the advice. We desperatelly need some feedback.
The migration engine for 1.7 works fine for mysql and does not work for postgresql.
About the add to page feature is already there. In the discussion pages. Second tab starting from the left.
Cheers
L.
We will put the help files in the next release. Thanks for the advice. We desperatelly need some feedback.
The migration engine for 1.7 works fine for mysql and does not work for postgresql.
About the add to page feature is already there. In the discussion pages. Second tab starting from the left.
Cheers
L.
Hi Ludo.
I have a clean Moodle 1.9 beta 2 (Debian Etch and mysql)
When I try to update to nwiki, I get the following message:
Upgrading wiki from 2007020200 to 2007111501 FAILED!
Thanks
I have a clean Moodle 1.9 beta 2 (Debian Etch and mysql)
When I try to update to nwiki, I get the following message:
Upgrading wiki from 2007020200 to 2007111501 FAILED!
Thanks
Sorry Jesús,
we have not released the 1.9 version yet. Next week comming up.
Cheers
Ludo
we have not released the 1.9 version yet. Next week comming up.
Cheers
Ludo
Dear Ludo, i have setup the latest moodle 1.9 beta 3 on my site. I am a risk taker and I don't mind if anything had happened good or bad (I have my backup always). I need to use this but I would like to ask if you have released a compatible version for 1.9. 
I don't think the words mean the same. 
By "Add to the page" I mean a real textarea box with a button, like the one at the bottom of this post.
It would be available both in discussion tab and main tab. Why? It does two things--it's a VERY quick way to add comments to a page. Since Moodle is intended for education, we also have to look at how people use Moodle. Examples from real life:
We also have to distinguish between development wikis and production wikis as well. Wikipedia is a production wiki. Each page should always be "complete", with discussion taking place elsewhere, hence their use of the discussion tab. It's "prettified". However, we work in schools. Our wikis are often development wikis. They tend to have intense periods of work, often with multiple people working on them simultaneously. The whole discussion page doesn't have time to develop as work is being done in each page of the wiki when production is due.
Now, that doesn't mean I don't think NWiki is a dramatic improvement over ewiki. It is and you all have done a fabulous job.
By "Add to the page" I mean a real textarea box with a button, like the one at the bottom of this post. It would be available both in discussion tab and main tab. Why? It does two things--it's a VERY quick way to add comments to a page. Since Moodle is intended for education, we also have to look at how people use Moodle. Examples from real life:
- Students create a page together and put an "add to the page" box at the top for the teacher. The teacher, who has numerous ones to look at, can just hit the page, type in the "add to the page box" and press submit. The box, depending on options chosen, time stamps with the user name, and can stay at the top of the additions or move down.
- In-class group work. This is essentially the same as real-time brainstorming. Students quickly add comments and thoughts to pages as they work on them.
- Real-time brainstorming. In meetings, when we have a projector going and everyone has there laptops, we'll take a 1 minute brainstorming session. That is, everybody types in the "add to the page box" and then presses submit at the end of one minute. Since the page is locked only for the very brief update period, all of the comments end up in the page.
- Selections. This is similar to brainstorming, but when I have a 500 photos to sort and we need to choose the best, it's fastest to have everybody at the computer and we just quickly project each picture. If they like it, they type the photo number (I use a renaming program to give all of the photos a sequential number starting at 100), but all in the "add to the page" box on the same page. At the end, I dump the list into a spreadsheet and rank from most votes to least votes. This bring in the "wisdom of crowds".
- Discussions about topics. While the discussion page does exist, you loose the page with content while discussing it. This is good if people when people are only adding two or three lines at a time.
- In class evaluation: We have 20 students in class writing comments on each others work. Editing with page locking just doesn't work.
- Multiple points to add: Sometimes, we must have comments in several places. Placing an "add to the page" box makes that very simple.
We also have to distinguish between development wikis and production wikis as well. Wikipedia is a production wiki. Each page should always be "complete", with discussion taking place elsewhere, hence their use of the discussion tab. It's "prettified". However, we work in schools. Our wikis are often development wikis. They tend to have intense periods of work, often with multiple people working on them simultaneously. The whole discussion page doesn't have time to develop as work is being done in each page of the wiki when production is due.
Now, that doesn't mean I don't think NWiki is a dramatic improvement over ewiki. It is and you all have done a fabulous job.
Hi Ludo,
I can't comment on upgrade as I already did that a while back, but I can't use nwiki right now with my classes because of MDL-11464 which means that I cannot have my students in classes and smaller groups for the wiki at the same time. That's the biggest issue for me.
Matt
I can't comment on upgrade as I already did that a while back, but I can't use nwiki right now with my classes because of MDL-11464 which means that I cannot have my students in classes and smaller groups for the wiki at the same time. That's the biggest issue for me.
Matt
I'm not a developer and don't know code but I have installed the latest build of nWiki 2.0. Things worked pretty well as far as I can see but receive the following error message when I try to get the help file to load in df wiki editing mode:
Help file "howtowiki_nwiki.html" could not be found!
When I check the lang folder for the wiki help files I see that there isn't an nwiki.html file just a dfwiki.html file.
Should I rename the file??
Thanks!
The helpfile did not make it into the last build but it will be added. In the meantime, Download the lang file from http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=75018.
Thank you very much. Didn't know what to do but I've managed so far without it.
Love the Wiki by the way. Works well for new creations but didn't preserve my content from my imported wikis. That's alright for me though. I only had two to fix.
Love the Wiki by the way. Works well for new creations but didn't preserve my content from my imported wikis. That's alright for me though. I only had two to fix.
If you have the course backups of your old wikis that where not migrated we can take a look at it. We need a big fat test ground.
cheers
L.
cheers
L.
I do have back ups of the courses from before the migration - they include everything though, not just the wikis.
I have already gone ahead and recreated the content manually. The wikis were only used by me - so far my site isn't very wide spread.
What should I do to test?
I have already gone ahead and recreated the content manually. The wikis were only used by me - so far my site isn't very wide spread.
What should I do to test?