A Field Critic is an unofficial, volunteer position that any h2g2.com Field Researcher can opt to become. A Field Critic is required to spend as much of their h2g2 time as is feasible, fair, and comfortably possible reviewing and offering critique to fellow field researchers.

What are the requirements to become a Field Critic?

It is possible this will change in the near future, but at present there are no official requirements for being a Field Critic, because Douglas Adams, h2g2.com or the Digital Village does not officially sanction the title.

Generally, a Field Critic would be an individual who already has three or more submitted Field Researcher User Pages under their belt. They do not necessarily have to have accepted Guide Entries, but obviously that will give them more clout. People will no doubt take more seriously the input of an individual who has successfully written accepted guide entries than someone who has not.

A Field Critic should be familiar with the basics of grammar, punctuation, spelling, and general essay writing. Age should not be a prerequisite, but unless one has achieved the equivalent of an American high school education (or no doubt in Europe a little more than half that much schooling), they will find h2g2 field criticism difficult. At the very least, h2g2 Field Critics should know how to structure a five paragraph essay. Understanding the rules also allows one to understand when it's proper to break them.

Field Critics should be confident in what they like to read. They should know what they like and what they don't like and be unafraid to speak their minds. However, they should also have very good people skills, and exercise politeness and caution in how they communicate their opinions and criticism. They should be confident enough in themselves to admit when they have made a mistake, yet know how to stick to their guns when faced with something in which they believe strongly. They're gonna be bruising egos and they're gonna be getting their ego bruised. They should be able to both dish it out and take it, with both the respectable chivalry of old and the corporate-evolved detachment of the modern age.

Field Critics should be very familiar with the interface of h2g2.com as well as its limitations, and understand how websites work in general. They should have at least rudimentary knowledge in html and other Net-oriented schtuff (email, usenet, irc, etc). They should have troubleshooting mentalities: an acute ability not only to see a problem but also see possible ways to resolve said problem.

Though not a requirement, it will be helpful if they are members of the Unofficial h2g2 Yahoo Club, at least until we find a better place to do chats and other communiqués outside the h2g2 realm.

How does one become a Field Critic?

Predominantly, your title will come to you by your deeds. You can call yourself a critic all you want, but until you actually begin offering proper criticism, others will not call you a Field Critic, and so therefore the title is only valid when others bestow it upon you.

After one has confirmed they meet all the unofficial requirements stipulated above, one simply goes out and begins critiquing other Field Researchers' potential guide entries. A good Field Critic would operate in a way similar to that which is described below:

First, choose a user page that has been submitted by a fellow Field Researcher. Perhaps a piece written about a subject which is dear to your heart or which you feel competent and confident. It is not recommended you criticize the works of friends or individuals you know well. Perhaps if you are shy or feel you need practice that might be a good way to start. However, one of many reasons to be a Field Critic is to participate in dynamically expanding the potential growth for sharing experiences and knowledge which h2g2.com so obviously offers as potential. When possible, criticize the works of complete strangers, or choose your targets randomly.

Read through the article at least twice before jumping to posting a review. Perhaps make notes for yourself in a small word processing program or on paper. Take note of both positive and negative points about a given piece.

In h2g2.com, at the bottom of every page is an option to discuss a given entry. Start a NEW conversation and give it a name that includes the words "review" or "criticism" in the title. It is strongly suggested not to add a review or criticism to the bottom of a thread that is already begun, if you want to insure the given entry's author can easily see your critique.

In the body of your response to the given entry, politely and competently spell out what you noticed about the piece. What did you like about it? What did you not like? How could the author have improved their piece? Does the piece seem to be in keeping with the Submission Guidelines as dictated by Mark Moxon and the h2g2.com Editing staff?

As a good rule of thumb, for every negative thing you have to say about a given entry, have something positive to say as well. Try not to lavish praise alone, or condemn the piece alone. Give a concise and objective perspective on the piece. Invite the author to feel free to respond to you if they have any questions, and make sure they understand you are volunteering your review: that you do not work for h2g2.com, and your opinion is freely given and meant to be helpful. Please refrain from criticizing a particular guide entry more than once, unless the author specifically invites you back the second time.

Theoretically, after you have done this a dozen or two times for different field researchers, provided you have been fair, impartial, constructive and helpful in your criticism, you will achieve a reputation that may encourage people to approach you and ask for your opinion on their potential guide entries. It is strongly requested and recommended that you do not go around calling yourself a Field Critic until you notice other people doing so: people with which you were not necessarily friendly prior to the beginning of your efforts to become a Field Critic.

What standards do Field Critics use?

At present there are no official rating systems or procedures for Field Critic activities beyond the guidelines and requirements described above. Predominantly, a serious re-examination of the Submission Guidelines provided by the h2g2.com Editing Staff will be a good measuring tool to start from. It is requested that you do not invent your own 'ratings system' at this time, as it may conflict with some standard rating system which the h2g2.com Editing Staff invents, or the Field Critic Syndicate accepts in the future.

What is the Field Critic Syndicate?

Nothing, yet.

If the Field Critic concept does well in h2g2.com, I envision a time when there will be several h2g2.com Field Critics who are good, consistent and dependable at what they do. They will no doubt have questions, aversions, and perhaps even animosity regarding others who claim to be Field Critics but are not. I have seen this sort of thing happen before.

The Field Critic Syndicate will be an attempt to separate the undependable from the dependable, so that Field Researchers may be able to deduce which individual critics are more respectable; which ones are worth their salt. The syndicate may operate like a combination of a guild and a Masonic order, or it may just be a formal listing of consistently dependable individuals. I would recommend that the Powers That Be behind TDV and h2g2.com keep such a listing, as opposed to a listing being forged by just anybody. Eventually, the Field Critic Syndicate will need to be moderated by the Powers That Be in some way. It is still too soon to tell exactly how the Syndicate will be formulated. I submit that one will be needed, provided this idea works at all.

Is there a good example for a perfect guide entry to use as a measuring tool?

Well, there is no such thing as the perfect guide entry. RhymeMe once remarked that this entry about Australia is one of the better ones out there and I happen to agree, but critics don't often agree on everything, so your mileage may vary.

Are (were) you the Field Critic in Chief, Zach?

Nope. I'm Zachsmind. I initiated the Field Critic idea, and with the help of people like Mark Moxon, Jim Lynn, JediSlider, Vegiman, Monshari, John the Gardener, Fenchurch Mercury, The Wisest Fool, RhymeMe, and others, I hope to see it achieve some resemblance of a reality. :-)

For More information:
Those Who Can't Edit, Critique