Work flow
From Open Source Publishing 2.0
The sections (repositories) of the wiki basically divide the proposal preparation process into natural phases. This is somewhat modeled after the software development process used by most developers. There is an Idea Repository that is a page (or pages) of raw ideas related to the proposal. Entries can be anything from random thoughts about ideas in the proposal to discussions for the focus of the proposal. The Idea Repository is used mostly in the planning phase to converge to a unified vision for the proposal. However, it is also used during the writing phase for any new ideas or directions a PI has developed. Others can consider the information for inclusion in the proposal. The Idea Repository is also used to develop an outline for the proposal.
This outline then becomes the template for the Text Repository. Here, ideas are integrated and the text is filled in to expand the outline. This is analogous to the alpha phase of software development were new features are being implemented. PIs are typically assigned to be the owner of different sections of the Text Repository based on their contribution to the proposal. Little editing is done by PIs outside of the section(s) to which they have been assigned. However, this is possible and everyone can see everyone else's contribution in (pseudo-)real time. The contents of the Text Repository are typically very disjoint (basically everyone's ‘two pages') and rough. Once all the contributions have been made, all the ideas are present, and the focus of the proposal defined, the contents of the Text Repository are moved to the Integration Repository.
The Integration Repository is analogous to the beta phase in software development. Everyone is encouraged to edit and refine each other's work so that the proposal becomes a cohesive document. This is also were text is tightened and trimmed since Text Repository version of the proposal is typically (way) too long. The PI has found that this integration phase is where most of the time is spent and the most editing is done. Like with the beta period for software, the longer the proposal has in the Integration Repository the better the result. Because editing in a browser window is not the most efficient environment, users will typically pull text from the browser to edit offline. The text is then dumped back into the wiki and saved. A user will mark the section header to indicate s/he has checked the section out for editing. This prevents two people from editing the same section at the same time. Recall that each version of the content is saved so that one can readily see what has been changed and revert any change to a previous version. This process has been extremely effective in getting a proposal refined in a very short time (as is often necessary). Once the proposal is essentially ready to be submitted (the release candidate phase) it is moved to the Submission Repository where only minor edits are allowed and any final corrections are made. There is a File Repository where figures, references, draft budgets, etc. can be uploaded and a Reference Repository where citations (in BibTeX format) are added.
