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

Someone just suggested to me that I post what I have been doing this morning, and for the last 4 hours I have been:

updating the shared information between the Artists and the Guide Editors

updating Peer Review threads

Reading Entries in Peer Review

Confirming Scout Recommendations ie selecting Entries for sub-editing

Sending out emails, by hand ( the automated tools the BBC used to use do not work) to both Authors and Scouts

Updating the spreadsheets and noesis to do with this latest batch is going to have to wait.

I still have to write a report of this week's activities before lunchtime, but as I have already missed my lunch and this deadline, well?

Oh, and I have also been involved in a discussion with other Senior Volunteers about processes and information share,

and last but not least, acting as a moderator.

Maybe you will see that we are not defensive, just trying our best to keep this site going forward in the best way we can.

We need you to volunteer, please.

Tavaron, sweetheart, (As an aside, there is more than a bit troubling about a thread which manages to reduce to tears one of the people who have worked on saving h2g2 since 24th January).

Very very briefly, Whisky's post and Peta's both speak to me loud and clear.

Getting more information out is split between my team and the Comms Team, who are doing an amazing job promoting the site off-site as well as putting out regular announcements.

There IS a lot of additional material to write and publish, and urgently at that. Writing it involves getting it right, of course, and that's what takes the time.

This work comprises about 30% of my to do list. I am working my way through it, but only have 3 evenings and one weekend day per week. In practice that is usually 5 evenings and both weekend days, but that way even more madness lies.

If you want to see what I do for h2g2 each week, please subscribe to my journal. That is what it is there for. F1599166?thread=8286398

Effers; try lurking more, you'll find Robbie posting in the forums. He's posted more than once in the thread about Chamberlain for example.



>> Can't someone stop making excuses, just say "OOOOPS!" and start putting notifications all over the place that existing subscriptions to announcements are no longer valid!

No, unfortunately we can't.

Wish I could.

Really wish I could.

We are working hard at two levels, the day-to-day work of getting Entries out, getting new Quotes on the FP every day, providing new smileys, moderating posts and so on. That is all working astonishingly well. The Editorial, Arts and Community teams are s and deserve .

Then there is the more strategic stuff, the do-it-once get-it-right stuff. And Happy Nerd, Lanzababy and Vip in particular have done a great job dealing with the most egregiously urgent updates. (Believe me Whisky, what you are talking about is medium-size potatoes).

But unless you can come up with a Strategic Plan, a full audit of everything which needs doing, then sorry, you are going to have to wait until we have. (And if you can, then come over to the dark side and help me. I am recuiting volunteers for the Process team, probably as of next week.)

We ARE already working on that Plan, and have been for some time. Because patch-work and piece-meal is NOT the way to do it. THere are between 100 and 150 help pages and announcements pages, for example, and you have spotted problems with .... four or five of them? They ALL need reviewing and replacing.

So, like Gnomon, like Z, here's another post from someone who is defensive and doing something about it.



That said, please DO keep saying these things. (But remember, if you cut us we will beeed, it distresses me when reduce hard working, brave and generous-spirited volunteers are reduced to tears).

I won't pretend these posts aren't painful to read, but they are "better out than in" as my grandmother used to say.

If you cut us, we will apparently not bleed, however. Good thing too, considering.

Ben

Right now, I'm borrowing Elektra's laptop to read all of this, as my computer is doing a virus scan for something it probably picked up in the line of duty.

Just to say, if you want to know what I'm doing, read ...oh, read anyway, you know you want to... and the FP, I help with that.

But a vote of confidence to everybody here, content providers, Community volunteers, gurus, everybody who is working to make this site a growing concern.

I see the work. And I appreciate.

Oh, and yeah - volunteer. Lots of opportunities here.

OOhhh, and talking of asking you to keep on saying these things; please do post things in the Feedback page: A87706669.

thanks Ben, and also thanks Peanut for the

Apart from doing the job that I have been payed for I have already commented on the artists forum, read quite a few hootoo-related emails, written some and thought about artwork. Once I'm at home I'll start with uploading and drawing pictures again. This is my usual day.

Ok, I'm sure that the vast majority of us think that in general you're doing a hell of a job - please don't get depressed about it.

This whole process is going to be one hell of a steep learning curve for all of you - and unfortunately for you, you've got a hell of a lot of users (including me) who are probably a bit stuck in their ways and easily forget all that's having to be done behind the scenes right now...
After all, for us plebs, apart from the fact we had to update our browser bookmarks a few weeks ago, and we no longer have a link to the rest of the BBC at the top of the page, it's very easy to forget that anything's changed.

How about we try and be patient with you as you learn what it took Peta/Mark etc. years to learn, and attempt to do in your spare time what people used to be paid 8 hours a day to do.

Whilst at the same time you try to be patient with our general complaining/whining and ungrateful attitude because we've forgotten or don't realise just what you've got on your collective plates...

Actually, you don't have to be patient with us - just remember we're bound to have different priorities to you - and that us complaining is not a personal attack on your hard work.



<- If that smiley doesn't exist it surely should!

Hi all

I'm dropping in here as I felt it was needed. I'm here not to post in my official capacity as one of the owners of Noesis, but in support of your entire team.

Firstly to Effers - Yes, both Brian and I have read all of the HH books. It was Brian's affection for the books which brought us into this project in the first place. Just because we don't scream about our feelings about the books doesn't mean we don't understand what this is all about.

The Noesis forum is still in beta. We delayed the official launch of it because of H2G2 as we didn't want to put it under too much stress during the transition from the BBC. With christmas etc approaching, we chose to delay the full launch until after the new year. That is why there's not much going on with it. Also, the Noesis Chat is also the Lycos Chat. You may have heard of Lycos Inc? While it's white labelled to Lycos, you may feel that "Noesis" is a small fish, however we have more than 1 million active users every month and we're shortly launching in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

This is a massive - and I mean massive site. It has areas which I'm still learning about daily. For those of you who have been on this site for years, it may be logical and easy. But for me, I find it a total maze. Also, the site is so big, that even those of you who have been here for years are still learning about it. All volunteers are now seeing it from a totally different perspective and are learning about what is involved in running it.

Robbie, Brian and I trust all of the volunteer groups to manage the site. After all, you're all the experts. We are here daily to support them all however it would be wrong of us to simply "take over". But please know that at every level, the three of us are fully involved. Some of you have heard from me either directly or indirectly and know that I'm here working in the background. I work 16-18 hours a day with many of my evenings and weekends taken over with both listening to concerns or advising on H2 issues (much to the dismay of my kids!). Just because you can't see it, doesn't mean we're not here.

Finally I want to say what an incredible, amazing, dedicated team of volunteers you have representing you. Please don't criticize them. They are all working very, very hard on a daily basis. While you can of course always give us constructive feedback, please don't simply put them down as they are doing their best. It's a learning process for all. While they will try to consult as much as possible, you also have to accept that sometimes decisions simply need to be made. Some decisions may be based on consultations done a long time ago, however at some point they would have most likely been discussed, and usually in depth. Some decisions will also be made using logic. For me (and again, I'm only speaking for myself here not the NPL board) it seems logical to allow American posters posting about American topics, to do so using American spelling. In fact, I would expect it and consider it out of place if they didn't.

But anyway. I think I've gone on enough now. My point (if I missed it) is two fold; a) the NPL team are fully involved and working hard in the background to support the entire site even if you can't see us. b) we're sorry if you don't personally feel more consulted. The teams are doing their best. If you want to be more consulted, and more involved then please volunteer for a team I'm sure you would be welcomed

Aly

>> Whilst at the same time you try to be patient with our general complaining/whining and ungrateful attitude because we've forgotten or don't realise just what you've got on your collective plates...

When we launched here, I said to Peta I hoped no-one was as hard on me as I had been on her. She just laughed.

Believe me, spiritually I am standing shoulder to shoulder with you Whisky, waving a pitchfork and demanding heads on spikes.

with Aly. And thank you for that post.

Great post, Aly.

"Some decisions will also be made using logic."

I'm glad to hear it.

I'd just like to make an observation. I've been ing this thread for several days and read through the backlog. A bit of perspective might be helpful. While this thread isn't in the most public of areas (Editorial Feedback as opposed to Announcements or Ask) I'm fairly certain there are a significant number of folks lurking. Of the folks participating in this discussion, only a handful, (surely fewer than 10), have been heated in their criticisms. Only one or two of those have directed their criticisms at individuals.

There seem to be two major points of contention, the decision on allowing American grammar and spelling and that the decision was made without an open discussion with the entire community. Obviously both of these points are apt to create emotional responses from some individuals. Personally, I'm not bothered by any of it. As U.S. based researcher I don't mind using British English. I'll stick with whatever standard is standard. I also don't feel that every issue needs to be decided by site-wide consensus. I do think that if a decision is made and if it creates issues after it's been implemented the Editors, staff, volunteers and various slanty ones will act to mitigate those issues.

Basically, I think that there will always be differing opinions and some of those will be loudly and often harshly expressed. There will never be any decisions made that will please every researcher here. Keep in mind all that for every shrill voice there are many more that quietly support the folks that are working for this community.

Thanks for that comment Baron. I resubbed to this thread because people started making sense again.

Making sense...?

We can cure that!

Twas wimpy and the mardy froods
Did snire and snibble in the glade
All glumsy were the volunteers
And the flame-wars out-flayed

Ben, just to appreciate that you are still keeping your little list from the G&S thread. I know a few names that are on mine.

Interesting and coincidental blog comment from Ian Hunter on changes to BBC websites:

"...Decision makers in the BBC weigh a wide range of evidence. Comments and complaints are a useful, and salutary, guide to the mood of our users. We read them, value them and respond to them. However, our services frequently have hundreds of thousands, or millions, of users and they can only be one source of information. Our job is to do the best job we can for all licence fee payers, and sometimes this means taking decisions which are not immediately popular."

I'm annoyed i came back to look at the thread now, insults at the people who spend the most time trying to keep the site going, nice demonstration given with a list of half a days work - maybe only those who give as much time should be permitted to insult the eds

Could I just add that I leave the house at 7.00am. I'm back at 6.00pm. I then go online to mod/ACE/discuss/and anything else that is needed up until around 10pm. Please note that I do this out of my own time. More volunteers would make it so much easier on the rest of us.

Anyone willing to sign up?

Shall we instigate a new house rule?

Anyone who complaints about the service will be considered to have volunteered.



Note this was written from a personal capacity.

I think that would be an awful idea

oh no!...oh wait...

:D

I like it, I think we should instigate it at once