View From the Queue
Created | Updated Jun 21, 2003
This week's View admits that things are getting tougher for h2g2 writers, and looks at the best way to submit your entry to the Peer Review process.
This Week's View
As I write this week's View, there are 633 entries in the queue. That's down from 708 last week, a drop of 75 entries. Of those, 27 were approved.1 So about twice as many people were sent rejections than approvals this past week. This is partly to be expected as the h2g2 sub-editors work hard at rejecting or editing the most borderline entries in the old Queue to make ready for the new Peer Review process.
The average number of entries approved per weekday was 5.4 this week. That's the same as last week. It looks like h2g2 is settling on a steady diet of five to six new edited entries per day. It's quite possible that this rate will continue indefinitely. This would seem to mesh with the goals of the Peer Review process. If so, the continuing trend of additional researchers leading to higher totals of submitted entries spells out the future for would-be contributors. The standards for approval/editing will get higher and higher.
This week, there are 1924 edited entries in the Guide. At the current rate, the Guide should top 2000 edited entries within three weeks. Perhaps a celebration will be in order.
Submitting Entries to Peer Review
It was so simple to submit an Entry for review a month ago. You pressed the "Submit" button on the entry's editing screen and waited. Now you must:
Visit the Peer Review page.
Read the directions for submission carefully, and submit your entry. Your post should look like this:
Subject: A410145 - Greta Garbo
Text:
This entry is about a mysterious movie star who made the transition from America's silent films to its "talkies."
Greta Garbo
http://www.h2g2.com/A3967312
Face either a ton of comments or none at all, depending on the response by other members of h2g2.
Avoiding Mistakes
I looked at 25 submissions from the past five days. Avoid the most common mistakes by following these rules:
Include both the number and the name of your entry. Don't forget one, and don't type the wrong number.
Don't forget a brief description of what your entry is about in the body of your post.
Never submit your user page or the contents of a forum discussion for approval. Only an entry will do.
Type out the full URL to your entry within the body of your post.3
Even if you do everything right, this doesn't mean you will receive a lot of feedback. Of the four submissions where everything was done perfectly, only two have received any feedback. There is now some frank discussion going on at the Peer Review page about rescuing good submissions that have slipped from public view.
Other Quirks at h2g2
The What's Coming Up page is still sitting empty. As I write this column, it is still featured prominently on h2g2's front page. This has been the case for about three weeks now. Ironically, the page is becoming a forum for discontent with h2g2 in light of the new Peer Review process.
Also interesting, a new page about advertising on h2g2 states that 2,900 new Guide entries are created each month. It is clear this number includes unapproved entries as well as approved/edited ones. Many are likely connected to the virtual community at h2g2. Even factoring this in, it's astounding that there was only one entry officially approved last month for every 23 new entries added to the Guide. Clearly, the approved/edited Guide is hardly scratching the surface of what's really there.
Next Week's View
Next week, I'll make a guestimate on how long it will take to clear out the old queue once and for all. If you'd like to make your own guess, post the exact date you think the old queue will disappear below. The h2g2 member with the closest guess will get a graphic for their user page to help them brag about their success. You must post by the end of August 21st to qualify to win.
Written by Fragilis the Melodical
Opinions expressed in this column are my own, and do not necessary reflect the opinions of h2g2 or the Post.
Click here to see previous weeks' Views from the Queue.
