This page contains information on Peer Review and the Entry Approval process on H2G2. If you have any questions that aren't addressed here then please send them to us via our Feedback pages.

Contents

1. What is Peer Review?

2. How do I submit an Entry to Peer Review?

3. How do I comment on Entries in Peer Review?

4. What happens after my Entry has been Picked by a Scout?

1 What is Peer Review?

Peer Review is one of the most important parts of H2G2, as it is the collaborative hub of the site. It is the place where users submit Entries that they think are ready to be considered for submission into the Approved version of the site (see What are Approved Entries?). It is in Peer Review that the Community can make comments and suggestions about the Entries, helping authors to get their work into a good enough state to become Approved by the H2G2 Editors. The Editors will sometimes also make comments to assist this process.

Once a consensus has been reached that an Entry is finished, it can be Picked by a Scout for sub-editing (see quesion 3 for details of what happens next and the H2G2 Volunteers page for an explanation of the role the Scouts play on H2G2). Scouts generally only pick Entries that have been in Peer Review for at least a week. But Peer Review is technically a Review Forum and functions in the same way as the other Review Forums on H2G2.

2 How do I submit an Entry to Peer Review?

Peer Review works in the same way as the other Review Forums, so please see our Forum FAQs page for more information on this. Please note: if you want to submit your Entry to Peer Review there are some important notes you should read; you can find them on the Peer Review page itself.

3 How do I comment on Entries in Peer Review?

This question is answered on our Forum FAQs page.

4 What happens after my Entry has been Picked by a Scout?

Once an Entry in Peer Review is ready to be considered for submission to the Approved version of the site (see question 1) it can be Picked by a Scout (see the H2G2 Volunteers page for an explanation of the Scout role on H2G2) and it will appear on our Scout Picks page. Here's a blow-by-blow account of what happens next, and how it all works:

• Once a Scout's Pick has been approved by the H2G2 Editors, the Peer Review Conversation is moved to the Conversation Forum for the Entry itself - this is done so so that the Sub-editor can read it. A message is then posted by the Editors to explain that it's been picked for inclusion in the Approved version of the site. (This step can take about a day.)

• A copy is made of the Entry, and the original is left untouched. This copy is given the status 'Picked by Scout' cannot be edited by anyone except the Sub-editor who is allocated it. Please note that once this copy is made, any changes to the original will not be taken into account by the Sub-editors. (This step happens at the same time as the first step.)

• When the copy of your Entry has been edited by that Sub-editor, it is returned to the H2G2 Editors and its status changes to 'Awaiting Approval'. (We ask the Sub-editors if they can return Entries within four weeks; if they take longer we will contact them to offer assistance or to take the Entry 'in-house' to be subbed by the Editors.) Once the Entry is returned to the Editors they will start sourcing a picture for it, or sometimes an image will have been created by the Community Artists. You can also submit your own high resolution images to the Editors for consideration - please see our Entry FAQs for a more detailed explanation of the process.

• Finally, the Editors will change the status of the edited copy of your Entry to Approved and categorise it among our existing Categories. It is at this point that you will be sent an official congratulatory email telling you that it has made it into the Approved version of the site. (This process tends to take a couple of weeks, or sometimes more, depending on the number of Entries in the queue.) Please remember: the version of your Entry that leaves Peer Review is not a final proof and changes will be made to fit in with editorial and style guidelines. Sub-editors and Editors will often correct grammar and spelling, will add or tweak GuideML (see What is Guide ML?) or add in information. To find out more, check out what the Sub-editors do on our H2G2 Volunteers page.

From the moment a Scout Picks your entry, this process can take anything from three weeks to two months. Don't forget, you can track the progress of your Entry on our Coming Up page.

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