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

The internet, you might say, is big. Vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big. But nothing on it seems to last for very long (with the obvious exception of anything you’d rather people didn’t see). So if a website is going to celebrate its fourteenth birthday, it’s probably going to need to be the work of a complete genius.

Fortunately, Douglas Adams was a complete genius. So when he launched “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition” (also known as the snappier h2g2) in 1999, it was clearly destined to be an unbridled, catastrophic success, right?

Although h2g2.com might not yet quite be a complete guide to Life, The Universe and Everything it is a thriving online community, where Hitchhiker’s fans and many other creative folks can work on The Guide and help fulfil Douglas’ vision of a real-life, mostly useful, Earth Edition of his fictional Guide (not, incidentally, a real-life version of the Encyclopedia Galactica).

Today we welcome everyone, active and returning researchers, new researchers, visitors and viewers, to celebrate.

Thanks to Douglas Adams, who saw a way to bring his idea of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy into an actual Guide, the Earth Edition, we have been around for 14 internet years! (They say that's like 146 Earth years...)

Join us in a toast to our favourite place on the web: h2g2!

Milla, for h2g2 Communications

Woohoo!

Happy birthday to us!

*brings in a huge basket of mufflewhumps*

*decides to bring the definition, for once*

A mufflewhump is whatever you want it to be, but it's always very wonderful. Therefore, mufflewhumps are the best gifts... They stay in their balls-of-unrealized-potential state (looking like sparkly rainbow dustbunnies) until taken up by (or given to) someone who has a definite want, either conscious or unconscious. Mufflewhumps can become nearly anything--the only limitations are that they can't become something sentient or something that can be used against the interests of the giver. They're quite handy, as well as being great gifts--I've often picked one up while concentrating and gotten things I need here on h2g2.

*brings Elton to the party*

http://h2g2.com/create/Elton_A4.jpg

*gives Elton a mufflewhump*
There ya go lil fella.
I'll just take these crisps if ya don't wan' 'em.


~jwf~

Is 'Create' going to have somewhere we can upload photos and stories to?

I'll be in A431263 for the day, and shall be taking appropriate photos, with Elton, and Hooter the lost, who had his towel, and was rescued at the 2011 London Meet. Keep your eyes peeled. Monclef may even appear!!!

Happy Birthday.



And bigger and better celebrations next year?

MMF

*Jasm trots in and sniffs the Mufflewhump basket.*

And here's a link to my comrades, last seen at the Manchester Mini-meet.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/madfiddler/sets/7215763335185506MMF

*adjusts her paaarrrtttaaayyy 'at, and wanders in with her Matt on her arm*


Happy Buffday, everyone!! *hic*


Ooooh! Shiny, new mufflewhumps

Wayhey, partaaaaaay!

Bit early for a conga line and some singing just yet, I'll have a mufflewump and a for now.

Happy Birthday to us!

I'm making pancakes! Who wants some?

Oh, some for me please!

Happy Birthday to us!


Geggs

MMF, you can also email the pictures to [email protected] and we'll make sure they get up.

Good oh! Would you like nutella, peanut butter, condensed milk or all three.

I must say I am disappointed that the pancake recipe page is not in the top 14. My Sunday frequently goes, wake up, decide to make pancakes, forget how to make the batter, check the proportions on h2g2. A727256

14 years is a very long time for any website to have been around. And of those that have, they've changed considerably from what they were, you'd barely recognise them now from how they started.

Google was launched (sort of) in 1998 (properly in 99) but was so different from what it is now, it was just a search engine for a start.

Wikipedia launched in 2001 and looked a lot more like a newspaper than it does now.


I can't think of the top of my head of any website that's been around as long as we have, and has stuck to what it does, without having to change drastically to keep going. Yes, we've got this new skin, and a new version of the site still to come. But we're adding and improving, and hopefully building on Douglas' vision.

Which is definitely worth raising a glass to!

*Jasm tugs on Amy Pawloski's pant's leg. Then he looks up at her with big, adorable eyes.*

It looks like Amy has fallen asleep on her feet... No wonder being here and in California at the same moment.
*digs in the mufflewhump basked for Jasm*

Here you go!

*takes one for self too*
Oooh, a lovely Sunday Brunch! Thanks Amy!

I'll take Nutella! I suppose I should take a pancake as well...

*the 5'7" printer-paper paper doll feels her leg being tugged, and hands a mufflewhump to the *

Quite a long-duration for such a short post

But yes, something's pulling me away--I think it's that mythical person behind the equally-mythical screen needing to go to bed.

DAN DAN DAAAAHHHH!!!!



Morning, folks!

Happy Birthday Hootoo!
Thought I'd just stick my head in for a moment. I'm nipping out to the local car boot sale, does anyone want anything?