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

What's the approved method for submitting new and improved entries? In other words, you look out into the Guide and find that someone has beaten you to the punch and published an edited entry out there for a subject you are very interested in. But you don't think the entry is up to snuff -- or, at least, you think you could do the subject much more justice. But you don't want to appear rude, gruff, or Vogonian.

One approach, I guess, would be to post something on the same topic but with a different subject? But that would seem to clutter and cloud the otherwise crystal clarity of the Guide.

Another would be to post a response to the article that is there, suggesting improvements. That might work for adding or questioning facts, but not as an inducement to a major style upgrade.

What are your suggestions?

The way I got the Scottish Slang one upgraded (it was really pitiful) , was I started posting in the forum, and after doubling the number of words decided to chase up the sub-ed to update it. I was told to write another Entry and they would be combined, and indeed that is what happened. However, I am not sure if this was a one off. I would start writing your Entry, and I will go and find out for you Back soon....
BCNU - Crescent

Thanks! Look forward to hearing back from you. In the meantime, I'll get to work...

Would that count for the un-edited guide, too? I mean... okay, I found this very blatant mistake in one of the un-edited guide entries and the issue has been adressed in the forum, but nothing has happened... I think the guy took a permanent lunch break or something. (By the way, 'Riven' is the entry in question. It's not like it couldn't be an edited entry, there are other games referenced in the edited guide...) It's just that I don't know if a non-edited entry would warrant the attention. Your thoughts?

If the gadgee doesn't want to update it, or if he has disappeared off the face of the site, then there is not much to do. However, you could recommend it on the Peer Review page if you think it is good enough, and follows the rules for becoming an Edited Guide Entry. Then when the sub-ed gets it it will be corrected Until later....
BCNU - Crescent

Hey TheDabbler - OK TPTB got back to me, here is how it works. We take your Entry and add it to the original, you then get added as an Author, and the old Entry goes into your Edited Entries bit in your Homespace. The one that you wrote is cancelled (though still available under Guide Entries and to anyone through the search engine, or your homespace). I hope this explains it, tho' it is probably a bit garbled. If you have any other questions, or would like me to explain this in a better way, just yell Until later...
BCNU - Crescent

No, it's really not worth it. It's pathetic, really... I kind of wish I had gotten to the topic first. It consists of about five lines that no one would understand unless they were already familiar with it. (That defeats the purpose, doesn't it? It's supposed to be in a sort of "this is what this is about" format, right?)

Thought: Is it really bad taste for me to go ahead and say "forget this lazy bum" and do a slightly more coherent entry on the subject? One worthy of The Guide, regardless of an 'edited' status?

Anytime you feel you can add something to an existing entry, go ahead and write it! That's part of DNA's dream of creating a collaborative guide - everyone can add a bit of information on a topic or everyone can work together on a given topic like the meteor shower pages.

And if the Riven entry is a stinker and not in the Edited Guide, go ahead and write up a new one for submission. Edited Entries are usually the first ones to turn up in searches - that's one of the perks!

- X

By the way, about the search... I wrote up an entry for Myst, (the game that came before Riven,) and just for kicks went to the search, typed in 'Myst' (w/ no prerequisites) and my entry didn't even turn up! (notably, though, 'Riven' did...) Is there a rule that an entry has to be X time old before it will turn up on the search? I had the word 'Myst' in there twenty or more times, and I can't see why it wouldn't... (By the way, you are being EVER so helpful...)

There *is* a time lag for things to appear in the Search Engine. But I don't know how long that time is.

What's the entry number of Myst? I'll pop along tomorrow and check it out!

A415388, and I even went through the trouble of learning GuideML

Search seems to be having problems right now. Currently 4 days since last update. Probably a bug.

Bugs... That's always something of an uneasy relief...

On the original topic...

What happens if you add information via the forums to an unedited guide entry, then it gets Edited, but the information you added is still not in the Guide Entry? This happened to me once, where I noted that the original researcher had gotten one or two minor facts wrong, but even though my notes were in the forum, the facts were still wrong in the Edited version.

Heh. I didn't understand your explanation at all... but that may be the fault of the receiver rather than transmitter. I will work on an updated entry, and get back to you when I've got something concrete to talk about.

Thanks!

TheDabbler - when you get done, come and talk to me, I will explain it better (or at leasst give it a damn fine shot

jqr - There is one sub-ed who is going through all the Edited Entries and the fora, updating. The quicker way to do it is to write an Entry correcting the mistakes and then submitting it. When it comes to getting sub-edded it gets absorbed into the original Entry.

BCNU - Crescent

Especially since that Subbie is taking a break from the updating to help finish off the queue. But I'm sure he'll be getting back to it soonish!

BTW: That Sub is going through in numerical order, so recent things are close to 2,000 entries down on his list. Even working at an ambitious 10 entries a week, it'll be half a year before he gets to today's entries and by then there will be 500 new ones tacked onto the end of the Guide.

He'll never be able to get caught up at that rate!!

(And yes, I *am* that foolish Subeditor)

LOL!

I did volunteer for this, right?

Yes, I think you did
BCNU - Crescent