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

Aggggggagggggg! Ptoieee!

Aggregate Gallery of Goofballs/Gaily Agrravating the Guide

Accelerated Galactic Goonery/Gallantly Arranging Gourds

A Girl Goes, "Get Away, Gropey!"

Actually, Golden Gate Gas Abrogates Goiter.

Hi jwf,

"are we having fun yet?"

SIR, YES, SIR!

I wanted to explicitly list "things we're looking for," but wasn't sure if I would only be expressing "things _I'm_ looking for." Not sure if I have a grasp on the consensus here. Grasping a greased pig might be easier. [insert double entendre here.]

Styles unsuitable for the Edited Guide include fiction, poetry, journalism with a poetic license (aka "gonzo journalism"), opinion pieces, topics too vast or controversial (such as "God" or maybe "Intelligence" or "An Objective History of Israel and Palestine"?), first person perspective, interviews.

Basically I think at AGG/GAG we're looking at the Writing Guidelines for the Edited Guide http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/Writing-Guidelines, and tossing out all those rules except that we still want quality writing, and we don't need to endorse breaking laws like plagiarism, defamation, etc.

PS - I can help with links and GuideML if anybody needs help.

THE NAME GAME
Are we voting yet? shazz and her art-lackey are in a corner somewhere tapping their feet and waiting for an answer. Is AGG/GAG okay with everybody? And we'll come up with variations whenever necessary to fill in what the acronym(s) stand(s) for? I vote AGG/GAG!!!!

But you're keeping AWW as a headquarters? So, AWW/AGG/GAG?

of course, in my own tiny little way,

I think there are way too many acromyms around here.

but that's just the way I feel before the first cup of coffee.

Still nothing on Noddy Holder?

I really liked a couple of paragraphs above from =X and have thrown them in willy nilly. I also now think we should go with something lighter to balance Looneytunes 'Letter' and we save Lucinda's 'laughter' as the anchor piece for our next issue.


Version 2.1

Open your mind and say,"AWW,"

There is a small ripple of activity in a former backwater of the guide known as the Alternative Writing Workshop.
[insert link to h2g2Editors AWW homepage]

This activity is in the form of a little group of researchers who believe that certain entries have not received their due. The entries are those which exhibit a lack of inhibition, a sense of adventure, a tendency toward the non sequitur, and sometimes, even when not absolutely factual, come too close to the Truth.

Styles unsuitable for the Edited Guide include fiction, poetry, journalism with a poetic license (aka "gonzo journalism"), opinion pieces, topics too vast or controversial (such as "God" or maybe "Intelligence" or "An Objective History of Israel and Palestine"?), first person perspective, interviews.

Many feel these rules restict creative writing. The flashpoint was a discussion arising from the debate over Looneytune's PR-rejected entry 'The 27th Letter'. Great pieces like this [link to 27th letter] were being sent to the 'sin bin'. Many thought this was not fair, or just, and a waste of great talent.

As a response to this original debate the h2g2 Editors, thoughtfully and kindly, set up the Alternative Writing Workshop [AWW]. But the old argument for creative freedom heated up again recently. [link to this thread]

There has been some activity at AWW but now the time has come to remove the bushel hiding the marvelous light of these entries. The time has come to glorify the virtues of light-heartedness, curiosity and play. The time has come for the Alternative Writing Workshop [AWW link] to cast off the pallor of rejection and uncertainty and parade through the Guide tanned with the light of confidence and pride!

This week in addition to Looneytunes seminal '27th Letter'[link] we are recommending 'How To Climb Mountains' by 'Alpine Climber from Colorado'. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A617041]

We are AGG/GAG, a posse of persona operating unofficially on the fringes of the AWW. We're looking at the Writing Guidelines for the Edited Guide http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/Writing-Guidelines, and want to toss them out.
We still want quality writing and we don't endorse breaking the laws of plagiarism, defamation or obscenity, but we believe Swift, Twain or DNA himself would find the new AWW regulations still too restrictive.

We will be scouting the Guide for the good stuff. And we welcome your submissions and recommendations. The only criteria are Wit and Wisdom. Yep, AWW - Alternative Wit and Wisdom. [link to AGG/GAG homepage]

We hope to bring you three more AGG/GAG approved entries in each issue of the POST.
Meanwhile, open your mind and say AWW [link].

AGG/GAG
Another Guide to the Galaxy / Galactic Anomaly Group


Please feel free to rewrite and re-post.
~j~

tonsil,
your entries at the Anglophilia thread had me laughing out loud today.
but I'm not sure what you meant by chess and checkers a few postings back. I realise my writing sometimes shifts gears and this is not always attractive to younger and less well educated readers who can't follow a compound sentence especially when scanning excitedly for enlightenment. Its hard for a reasonable and thoughtful wtiter to communicate in a world of instant gratifications. But like I said, some of yours lately have been 'spot on'.

Acronyms are the bread and butter of the web and a source of much fun and silliness at h2g2. If y'can't lick 'em, overdo it I say!
The AWW, as set up by the h2g2Editors, is still the rallying point for anyone wanting to write outside the official Guide. We are not really the AWW. We are just a Galactic Anomaly Group operating on the fringes of AWW.
I will set up a homepage for AGG/GAG once we have a 'mission statement' we can all agree on.
peace
~j~

> "We still want quality writing and we don't endorse breaking the laws of plagiarism, defamation or obscenity, but we believe Swift, Twain or DNA himself would find the new AWW regulations still too restrictive."

Surely the three people named *wouldn't* find them too restrictive, or perhaps would find the *edited* regulations too restrictive?

Pardon my nitpicks...

Lucinda,
Please all nitpicks welcomed!
I was just trying to work in some of the names of some of the writers we agreed earlier were inspirational to the cause.
And also trying to say that AWW, while not as restrictive as Peer Review, was still imposing rules on writing styles and subject matter.
Please help us say these things more clearly. Or perhaps the whole thing is too long now and needs some serious cutting. When I get going, I get really long winded and be-labour what is obvious. I know that but I can't help it. I just want the entry to be comprehensive, to explain why we are doing this, the spirit behind it.

BTW:I hope you understand that I feel your 'recursive laughter' entry is strong enough to anchor the second issue and I don't want us throwing all our best stuff into the first.
~j~

You still have that tense thing going in your revision of my sentence about 'Exhibits'. Go back and read the original sentence out loud. That's what I meant about John Gielgud.

I am pleased that someone read the 'Anglophilia' thread and found it entertaining. Check out the new entry on my space about "Trebor's Rules".

Lucinda wasn't talking about the names, she was talking about the sense of that part of the sentence.

.......windy.

still nothing on Noddy Holder?

Are they laughing at us yet? I thought I heard a snicker from the Thanks For Laughing group over that way -->

Still not sure what the problem is with that sentence. Mind you tonsil, you're the one who kept putting an 'up' in my copywritten (1967) line 'Open your mind and say awe'. So I'm not discounting you're in some sort of dyslexic infinite loop. I did correct my revision so that both verbs are now in the present tense. (In spite of knowing just how terribly wrong that really is, or could be.)

Yes, my 'Awe' has been altered here for convenience to AWW but I guess Lucinda's right, there are no rules at AWW. I just got that impression after following a few threads and reading all the pedantry from the usual suspects.

So give me your revised versions people. We still have a week.

~j~

Suggestions for the intro/mission statement:

"Styles unsuitable for the Edited Guide, but suitable for our purposes, include fiction..."

I was also a little confused at the "regulations of the AWW." Swift, Twain or DNA would find their entries moved to the AWW if they had submitted to Peer Review or hoped to get into the Edited Guide. So that sentence might work better as "...but we believe Swift, Twain or DNA himself would find the Edited Guide too restrictive for some of their greatest material."

or at least not far away.

Been looking at other stuff but I am still actively thinking about this idea. I have dropped a few links to relevant researchers and I am keeping an eye on AWW. Still PD quiet over there, eh?

Spiff *off to earn some cash in RL*

1967?











me be awwstruck.

Yeah, so was I! It was a very great year, 67.
Canada's centennial, Expo67-the World's Fair in Montreal, LSD, the Doors, Sgt Pepper...


=X, how 'bout re-writing the whole thing for us. Y'know, not all new, just rewrite the clumsy ambiguous bits, keep the best of what others have said, but restructure it the way you did with the little sample above. Or at least complete that whole section. Huh! Waddya say, huh. C'mon. There's a good chap! We need your clarity!

~j~

jwf,

Here's a little reminder of how old you must be: my father attended the '67 World's Fair when he was a sophomore in high school. And I'm already 29. What were you saying about Jurassic happenings?

Won't be able to do any serious work on anything until I get off work (darn bosses always looking over shoulder), and even then, only if I can tear my wife away from the web for a few hours.

Later,
Deidzoeb

We still have a week.
~jwf~ the really reallyold hippy guy

Okay, try this version. I don't think I changed much of it, just snips here and there, added the proper Guide ML to get those links in place. For the link to AGG/GAG, I just gave the current Alternative Galaxial Guide for Hitchikers page. We could still use that as AGG/GAG HQ, assuming you're willing to re-write that page. I was also thinking that if you're still planning to make the AGG/GAG logon identity, we could link to that in the "signature" at the bottom of the page by AGG/GAG. (Hurry up and create that logon identity!)

Note: Are the votes in yet on which entries to feature? I don't remember anything decisive about whether we're going to vote on these things like a committee or just suggest them and try to shoe-horn them all into the program eventually. Let's have a vote on whether to vote. Everyone who wants it to be a secret vote, raise your hand!

Now all we need are for Spaceman Spiff and Lucinda to rewrite it and we'll have one fully jury-rigged mission statement.

==============================



Open your mind and say, "AWW."

There is a small ripple of activity in a former backwater of the Guide known as the Alternative Writing Workshop. This activity is in the form of a little group of researchers who believe that certain entries have not received their due. Entries which exhibit a lack of inhibition, a sense of adventure, a tendency toward the non sequitur, and sometimes, even when not absolutely factual, come too close to the Truth.

Styles unsuitable for the Edited Guide, but suitable for our purposes, include fiction, poetry, journalism with a poetic license (aka "gonzo journalism"), opinion pieces, topics too vast or controversial (such as "God" or maybe "Intelligence" or "An Objective History of Israel and Palestine"?), first person perspective, interviews.

Many feel these rules restict creative writing. The flashpoint was a discussion arising from the debate over Looneytune's PR-rejected entry The Twenty-seventh Letter. Great pieces like this were being sent to the 'sin bin'. Many thought this was not fair, or just, and a waste of great talent.

As a response to this original debate, the h2g2 Editors, thoughtfully and kindly, set up the Alternative Writing Workshop. But the old argument for creative freedom heated up again recently.

There has been some activity at AWW, but now the time has come to remove the bushel hiding the marvelous light of these entries. The time has come to glorify the virtues of light-heartedness, curiosity and play. The time has come for the Alternative Writing Workshop to cast off the pallor of rejection and uncertainty and parade through the Guide tanned with the light of confidence and pride!

This week in addition to Looneytunes' seminal The Twenty-seventh Letter, we recommend How To Climb Mountains by Alpine Climber from Colorado.

We are AGG/GAG, a posse of persona operating unofficially on the fringes of the AWW. We're looking at the Writing Guidelines for the Edited Guide, and want to toss them out. We still want quality writing and we don't endorse breaking the laws of plagiarism, defamation or obscenity, but we believe Swift, Twain or DNA himself would find the Edited Guide too restrictive for some of their greatest material.

We will be scouting the Guide for the good stuff. And we welcome your submissions and recommendations. The only criteria are Wit and Wisdom. Yep, AWW - Alternative Wit and Wisdom.

We hope to bring you three more AGG/GAG approved entries in each issue of the POST. Meanwhile, open your mind and say AWW.

AGG/GAG
Another Guide to the Galaxy / Galactic Anomaly Group

... I thought you might like to read this message I just posted. It was off the cuff but when Bossel chimed in I had another look and decided it might be worth showing you guys. http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/F74130?thread=150011 Meanwhile, I'm afraid that the more often I see AGG/GAG written out, the less I like it. Something about it... I don't know exactly what. As much to avoid being critical without trying to be constructive (although, of course, I *do* quite like *my* idea :)), how about 'The Other Place'. It's short, it's English, 'other' gets in the idea of 'alternative' while avoiding the A word we don't like and, for me, it has a more inviting feel to it than our acronyms. Any thoughts? Sp

it just occurred to me that Anything Weird and Wonderful is nice for our acro. Would it still work as All things Weird and Wonderful? Praps not. You don't find any of the really classy acronyms just 'pretending' that one of the words isn't really there, do you?

Sp

Call it what you want!
Actually, that was the name of a column I wrote for a high school newspaper. 'Call It What You Want'.

Also, the first (to my knowledge) double album was intentionally recorded (or released) in 1967. Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention's 'Freak Out'.

Spiff....I have a very suggestive imagination that tends toward the visual ....but reading that fellow's entry had me smelling.....ack,
bleccchhhh. I've been a janitor and a cleaner of grease traps and a father and a dog and cat owner....Ah, Spiff...a little warning next time. Good thing I haven't eaten yet.

'younger and less well-educated' thppptt!