h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The following are my nitpicks for the entries approved on 7/10/2000.

Rocks, Stones, and Pebbles
http://www.h2g2.com/A331967

The first sentence is quite clearly gramatically incorrect. Quartz is spelled wrong in the list of igneous rocks.

Madness
http://www.h2g2.com/A311149

This entry describes a band, rather than a mental condition. The entry could be renamed to 'Madness, the Band.'

Vinyl Cobwebs
http://www.h2g2.com/A313273

The last paragraph waxes poetic on the program's web-site, but the URL to visit the web-site is nowhere in the entry.

Thanks for this - I have alerted Anna et al.

These are my nitpicks for the entries released on 7/11/2000.


How to Polish a CD
http://www.h2g2.com/A337295

The last sentence before the Polishing section includes a typo. The word 'bu' should be 'but.'


Synchronomancy
http://www.h2g2.com/A325775

In the second-to-last paragraph, there is a typo. The word 'occurences' should be spelled 'occurrences.'


The Theory and Practice of Washing Dishes
http://www.h2g2.com/A337006

There are several grammar problems. Otherwise, it's quite an awesome entry.

In the second paragraph, there is an exceptionally long run-on sentence. 'Washing-up is time-consuming and excruciatingly boring but reading this may ensure it is no longer mental torture and you may end up finding that it doesn't take anything like as long as it used to.' I would recommend breaking this into two or three sentences. Use a comma in any remaining compound sentence.

In the 'Washing Dishes the Easy Way' section, there is another run-on sentence. 'Use the brush to rub off any traces of food residue, rinse everything under a tap.' This one could be corrected by inserting the word 'then' before the word 'rinse.' Otherwise, break it up into two sentences.

Finally, an EXTREME nitpick. The word 'hob' is used in the Emergency Techniques/Cleaning Stubborn Dirt Off Pans section. I know the Guide uses British English, but many Americans don't know what a hob is. Could this be clarified? A footnote would be very helpful.

I hereby apologize for being the pickiest member of h2g2. Please note I wouldn't bother with the nitpicks if I didnt' think this was the best site on the internet.

Thanks again. I should point out that this page is for technical bugs rather then spelling mistakes. The best way of bringing errors to the attention of the editorial team is to post a new thread off the offending article. Threads are checked every morning and any changes made.

Thanks for the vote of confidence too!

I assumed I was in the right place due to the following:

'Bug Reports - Life isn't perfect, and if you've discovered a problem with the site, whether it's a strange error or a typing error in a Guide Entry, then please let us know. That way we can strive to make things better, for everyone.'

I thought it was nice to have a single place to post them all. However, I can understand a preference for reports at the bottom of the articles. I will use that method in the future.

You are of course right - the method I suggested is the one Anna & Co prefer.

They are very impressed by your proof reading abilities incidentally!

I do sometimes leap in rather too enthusiastically.

Tell Anna & Co thanks!