Datasheet progress

The datasheets are first selected by CABI according to the top world diseases. From the list they send us I choose the most appropriate diseases according to how much, if any, content is already available on WikiVet. The selected datasheets are then copied into a word document. These word documents I share with the team members via Dropbox. This is very useful as it allows us to share a regular looking folder on line. As we all work in different places, it makes our life much easier. I also create or tag the relevant page within WikiVet and put it in a 'To Do' category from where the team members select them to work on.

The work of the team members involves picking out the most relevant information from the CABI datasheets and  putting it into the relevant WikiVet page. If the original WikiVet page already contained some information, this is seamlessly integrated to provide text that is suitable for the veterinary undergraduate or recent graduate level. We do not aim to cover everything there is to know about a disease as there are other online places more suited to this, such as the original CABI datasheets. In case there is some information missing from the datasheets, this is then complemented by other sources.

Another major part of the team member's work is to create flashcards for their pages. This is a question and answer style of a page that encourages students to first think about the question before the answer is revealed to them. It works along the same line as the Manson flashcards but is specific to the information provided by the converted datasheet.

Once the team members are happy with their work, they put the pages into a category for me to review. I then look through them, add links, redirect all the 'also known as' terms so that whichever name of a disease a student searches for they land on the correct page. I also correct any typing errors that become obvious and check that the page conforms to the WikiVet style.

So far there have been quite a few pages completed and I will share a sample with you soon.