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

If you want this column to continue in the future, simply post a reply to this thread. I'll be counting the replies, and will scratch the column if I receive fewer than 10.

Here's one

Here's another!
I always looked for this collum on the Post! Don't throw it away, it's more than just the Queu (I can't spell this!)

Here's yet another one! Okay, the statistics is not as useful as with the old system, but nevertheless entertaining... I even bookmarked this page.

Me too!

It's the first bit of the Post that I read (and sometimes the only bit...) and provides researchers with a valuable sounding board / source of information about the whole business of getting entries into the Edited Guide. Please don't stop!

Me too. Its always interesting even if its not about `the queue'

Another one from here. Checking here is always on my list of things to do on a Monday evening or a Tuesday morning. Keep it up. Appreciate the effort, whatever stats can be cobbled together and the bits at the end.

Look, it's the h2g2 View from the Queue. I've often read it, and you know this because I often comment at the bottom of the page of the View from the Queue articles.
You write well, what you write is informative and fun, and I want you to continue.
So, let the view continue - or else

<BB<

I obviously want you to continue Fragilis! You contribute far more than just the stats to the article... and to the Post!
*Toys with offering Fragilis her own office at the Post, but rejects this on the grounds that her own is probably far more comfortable*
shazzPRME

Thanks for all the kind comments, everyone. *I* haven't even bookmarked the View page.

That's 9 so far...

So this is #10 speaking!
If the statistics become less relevant, how about some forecast on when h2g2 is expected to have the queue (or lump) of entries in the waiting state reduced to some manageable amount? If I start counting away some 25 entries per week to be included in the guide this would happen roughly half a year from now, not counting those that are being put in on the other side or being rejected ...

Well, as the 11th vote this is meaningless, but what the hey.

I also enjoy reading your column, and I'm with Bossel on the idea of changing the sort of things you cover slightly to reflect the new reality, but I'd get away from the numbers completely. It would be a great "View form the Queue" if you could be the voice of aspiring correspondents, describing their feelings as they go through Peer Review and wait to be picked, then wait to be edited.

Are people discouraged when it takes ages to be recognised? Are the Scouts doing a good job (I must declare an interest there)? Is the criticism fair, comprehensible, is there enough of it? The piece you did a few weeks ago on "common mistakes to avoid" was the kind of thing that'd still be very useful. Please keep it up.

Thanks, everyone. It looks like the column will continue.

And Global Village Idiot, nobody's vote is meaningless.

While I've got you all, I'd like to ask everyone a few questions. I'm trying to make some hard decisions on the future of the column.

1) What do you think the column's new name should be?

2) Should the column continue with the weekly statistics, or not?

3) If the statistics are gone, what would you like to see instead?

I personally find articles like the one you had this week - about the community side of the site and how you can act to be a greater part of it (by having your own club etc) to be a good idea, and useful for newbies.

Although sadly not many newbies can find the post that easily.

Dont give up, please. Even without the stats properly organised we need someone to be Queue Monitor, and your other bits are helpful to the more feeble amongst us (Me, on two occasions)

It is a shame that the Post isn't easier to find, there really ought to be a 'Read All About It' advert somewhere.

As for the questions you asked:

1) Perhaps "H2G2 View" or "View From Peer Review" could be names, if you wanted to stay with the "view" theme. The latter, however, would imply that news from Peer Review similar to your queue information would go up. I don't know yet how you'd do that, but I'll think on it.

2) I would like to still see statistics. However, with the new system, I'd be hard pressed to come up with a way of gathering meaningful statistics, other than counting how many Peer Review threads there are and figuring out average wait to get one's entry Edited.

Perhaps one could persuade Mark to automate and post some statistics from Peer Review, such as average age of Peer Review thread, or number of threads in PR, as a replacement from old queue stats.

3) I dunno. I'll think about it.

This post has been removed.

Hi everyone
I am frantically putting all the past editions up on h2g2 atm... the originals were all off site and in html and java, so it's quite a job! Once we have most of them... and our new gifs, the Post will move onto an *A* page, linked to every week from the *U* page we use now. Then we get back our billing on the h2g2 Front Page, which should make us a little easier to find!
I will stay out of the decision making about the new name for Fragilis' column, but will ask MM if there is some way of giving stats to us every week... I am sure that they have counters on all the pages etc!
shazzPRME

When you've got an A page, are you going to ask the Towers for a named link? You know, like we've now got h2g2.com/DontPanic and h2g2.com/WordOfTheDay, we should have h2g2.com/Post
Yes?