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

}I think that it's as the Italic said: some people like a particular feature than you do.{

}And if you don't like it, set it to 'Classic GOO' on your user options. That's what I did.{


}It's just a thought, but Mew seems happy now. And as for the entry editing thing, I'll do better: I'm going to set it to HTML!{

(Quote from a Star Wars book: "I hope they gave us a scratchpad to do backup calculations! That might be faster /and/ more accurate!" --Han Solo, regarding an obsolete navicomputer)

It's funny - when *I* visit someone's home page, I want to see the Journals first of all, then the postings, then the approved Guide entries, then the normal guide entries.

Q: How can h2g2 ever satisfy everyone's preferences?
A: It can't. Not yet, anyway, although I expect they have *plans*.

Let's face it - everyone wants something different to the next person, and it would be ridiculous to attempt to please everyone. You'd end up with a Disnified 'Lowest Common Denominator' site.

Or is that Highest Common Factor? I can never remember...

Further down the line you'll have more control over what appears on your home page, and where (at least, we hope that will be the case). If you look at most people's home pages in the goo, then those with long journals end up with lots of wasted space, a problem solved in Alabaster.

If you hate the colours, then feel free to pop back to using the goo. I think we're even more distinctive now - name me one other website that gives you a skins feature like this... and of course this colour scheme wasn't used because nobody could agree, it was chosen because it proved popular. As the general feedback on site has backed up, to my relief.

(Remember, too, that this is just that start; we can now add skins simply be designing a new set of style sheets, whereas tweaking the old goo was a considerable effort. We're giving you more *choice* here, not taking away any toys...)

Jimi

Thank you for the links, they were most informative. I was unable to locate these using the search as you suggested, but rest assured I did not ignore your advice

Mark and Peta

I would like to apologise for my behaviour over the last couple of days. I have been ratty for other reasons, but that does not give me an excuse to vent my frustrations on you guys, so for that I am sorry. I also decided that I was by no means the one most qualified to play devils advocate in this instance since I hardly use a fraction of the capabilities of this site, and was therefore one of the least affected.
I promise to try and keep any criticisms I may have in the future entirely constructive, and unfailingly polite. If I cannot do that, I will follow the Thumper principle and say nothing at all.
Thank you for remaining calm with me during what must have been a tough time for you, I remember only too well the push to get upgrades out on schedule, and I appreciate that you will fix any apparent bugs as soon as you can, while still trying to please all of the people all of the time (a thankless, if not impossible task).

Olive Branch?

Shade

Olive branch? Of course, Shade. Thanks for taking the time out to see it from our point of view. Have a good weekend. Best wishes, Peta.

Aint she lovely?

Absolutely - olive branch most welcome! Thanks for appreciating our side too.

Besides, if h2g2 is one thing, it's a happy, forgiving community... and it's not like you were talking *rubbish* at any stage, which would have been far worse!

Take it easy, Shade.

Awwwww, sweet!

And having a good moan on here sure helped me get over splitting up with my ex. I had one long weekend of h2g2ing and ICQing on the side. It's a caring community.

[Vekura] {Yeah, we get together well, too} [puts arm around Mewtwo's shoulder]

Frankly Shade, I'm slightly shocked and quite disappointed at the tone of many of your posts. I've just returned to h2g2 after a long absence and was surprised to see all the changes therein, but more upsetting than the new skin or workings of the site is reading this sort of persistent whining.

Are you paying h2g2 or its staff? Are you helping them build this gentle community? I think not.

Well, poop. Slap me with a wet noodle as a reminder to read the ENTIRE forum before adding my own silly indignities.

Beautiful apology Shade. I'm quite a bit more red-faced than a bad sunburn. Have a great weekend!

I do appreciate that with the amount of Java script floating around you felt vulnerable and so needed to change and certainly the speed is much, much better. I was certainly aware by reading your guidance that you were likely to eliminate Java when I first signed up a few months ago, so no-one should be surprised that you've done it. I must also admit that when I first got into designing my homepage I kept cursing you, wondering why the hell you hadn't started from a white background.....but here's something to ponder for future skins - I only got into beginning to understand HTML through GuideML and I only got into GuideML because of the great look of many peoples pages and I wanted to do the same. Part of the real hook for me was the quirky 'unofficial' bits like the H2G2 Space Centre and other such establishments. People had taken a lot of time and trouble over the look and it encouraged me to do the same and as a result gain confidence to build my own website. My concern is that had I only today signed up I'm not so sure that that 'distinctive' look would be anything like as striking, will the incentive be there to encourage people to design such visually interesting pages. I know all about using the old goo but will new users bother? Time will tell I guess.
Now another point - you knew you were implementing a new look which would visually harm pages which people had spent a lot of time and energy creating - so much so that you retain the old look, you then provide something called a feedback forum asking people what they think and then come across as extremely sensitive when everyone doesn't say WOW that's great. It may not be meant that way, but that's how you're coming across. You shouldn't be surprised that people criticise change, because it challenges their routine. It doesn't make the change bad. It doesn't mean they suddenly hate you. Let's face it we are all of us choosing to continue to visit you. If you had really got it wrong you'd all be sitting around saying: 'Where's everyone gone?' I have to say that despite all I've said, the new look is growing on me. Remember that most families love each other but sometimes dislike what other people do. We all still love ya that's why we're here, maybe just think about what people are saying once it all calms down. ... Phew, one of my longest ever forum posts, I feel much better for getting all that off my chest.

"Are you paying h2g2 or its staff?"

Well, since I'm watching the banner ads, yes. h2g2 aren't in this for love, you know...

Not in it for love? I'm shocked...

It's not appropriate to equate viewing banner ads to paying for a specifically requested service. They aren't the same thing. In one case, there is a clear customer who has deemed a service valuable enough to pay their own money specifically for it. This puts the customer in control. There is a clear outline of what is to be provided and so forth.

In the other case, a service is in place. It is funded by various means including advertising. Advertising is valuable because of the people who see it, but it matters which people and why they see it. The people who use the service pay nothing, but put up with some advertising in return. In this case, the service provider is in control. You have no obligation to them, so they needn't have any specific obligation to you. Obviously, if they want to keep ad revenues, they need to keep traffic high, which means they need to have something that appeals to a lot of people. But if they hear from advertisers that it needs to be a different demographic, there's nothing to stop them from targeting that group even at the cost of disappointing some current users. It happens all the time.

So yes, h2g2 stands to gain revenue because you as a user view ads on the site. But you are not paying them. It may seem like a small distinction, but it is important here.

BTW I like the way the new skin allows me to be all of myselfs at once in IE5.

Bruce is great.
Up the Bruce!

}They should have a "Jump to last post you made," so you can see responses to it.{