I know of at least two cases of people who know of and have been using this Wiki, but then did not update it when they received an offer. I'm guessing that by now many offers must have been made yet there seem to be very few updates regarding offers on the Wiki. Are some people not updating when they receive an offer? Perhaps they are waiting until they accept or decline the offer? I'm just curious if this is a trend or only a few isolated cases. (And I hope that if other people hearthrough colleagues, the school, etc.about an offer being extended but notice a few days later that there is no update on the wiki, they will update it for other people's benefit.)
I have done this. I currently have an offer (which I likely plan to accept) and I'm in negotiations right now. In my case, I haven't updated because I don't get a contract or anything legally binding until I've given the verbal yes after negotiations. It has been my plan to update the wiki as soon as I get & sign the contract, but not before then. The reason is that I just don't want to take the chance of possibly messing up anything at this point. I don't know how the institution views sharing this information, and this (an offer at a place where I'll likely accept and hope to get tenure & stay for a very long time!) is important enough to not risk anything reputation-wise for me at this point.
For the record, I've been on the other end of this (didn't get a job I really wanted) and the person who received the offer did this (didn't update until the contract was signed). I still think it's an ok thing to do even after being on the other side of it.
I encourage others who have heard about offers that are not updated on the wiki to update (if you think it's the right thing to do). The person with the offer can be conservative but others can make their own decisions about what & when to post.
And honestly, the most important thing is knowing when the offer has been accepted, so people know that line has been filled. Until then, pretty much anything can happen from a hiring freeze, negotiations falling through and no other offers going out, or new interviewees from the short list being invited.
I love and used the wiki during my job search; however, it's risky to post news of an offer for the reasons given by others; also, it is not necessarily your news to share with the world. It's the university's responsibility and obligation to inform the other candidates about the job. The most important thing (if you accept the offer) is to start off on a good foot with your new department. Posting on the wiki may irritate or anger them. And within days of accepting an offer, someone else will post it and you can say with a straight face that it was not you.