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

OK a non-amusing but probably not-exactly-a-bug-but-more-of-an-annoying-feature report coming up (even though you've probably seen it before)...

1. By default on creation, new pages should be set to not-for-review. It should be a deliberate and knowing act for a user to set their page to be submitted.

2. By default on creation, a user should be subscribed to their own pages. Otherwise they don't see messages left for them by people (even Gurus who should probably know to check).

3. If possible the submit for review button shouldn't even be visible on A-number pages which are actually U-numbers. I know it gets rejected later but it's a bit inelegant.

4. There may be a bug with subscribing to pages but it isn't something I can easily reproduce. I was convinced that I had subscribed to one of my early pages. However, when a message was left by someone it didn't appear on my space and it was a long time before I went back and noticed it. I think there had been a site update in between. I wondered if it was at all possible that newer subscriptions or newer pages (not long-established ones such as U295's connections) had somehow been overwritten in the update.

Here it comes my first attempt at answering a guru question!

Although you are an annoying Bugfinder, you should know that bug reports should be done on <./>Feedback-Bugs</.>. This way all the proper people, like "Jim Lynn" will be subscribed to your report and will see and respond to it much faster.

Yours guruly, Roger.

1. I disagree with this. h2g2 is about making the edited guide. Therefore all pages should be assumed to be intended edited guide entries unless told otherwise. If people are using h2g2 for purposes other than the intended one, then they shouldn't expect the site to help them.

2. This has been mentioned hundreds of times.

3. Good point. Jim will probably say its hard to do though...

4. I expect you forgot to subscribe in the first place. The oposite of the guy that was trying to work out how he ended up subscribed to F1.

Tango

PS Jim, you're right, of course. And just to prove it I'm about to send you an email!

"By default on creation, new pages should be set to not-for-review. It should be a deliberate and knowing act for a user to set their page to be submitted"

I think this has been discussed as a feature suggestion elsewhere... If memory serves me there was some discussion as to whether or not it was a good idea, simply because it then makes it impossible for a genuine entry to be forwarded to PR by a scout or any other researcher if the author leaves the building (or indeed, if they haven't figured out how to change the setting)... Imagine how many bug-reports and cries for help we'd get from newbies trying to submit their first entry to PR and not being able to do it.

"By default on creation, new pages should be set to not-for-review. It should be a deliberate and knowing act for a user to set their page to be submitted"

I think this has been discussed as a feature suggestion elsewhere... If memory serves me there was some discussion as to whether or not it was a good idea, simply because it then makes it impossible for a genuine entry to be forwarded to PR by a scout or any other researcher if the author leaves the building (or indeed, if they haven't figured out how to change the setting)... Imagine how many bug-reports and cries for help we'd get from newbies trying to submit their first entry to PR and not being able to do it.

Ooops simulpost there... anyone else been having problems posting today?

I did! I ended up posting twice in two threads, which looks really silly. The trick is that after a failed posting, to check the thread for a post before posting again.

Yours helpfully, Roger.

When the site is behaving badly I keep a separate window open specifically for checking on apparently failed posts and similar problems. I don't think I've ever double-posted here. However the BBCi message boards have faulty servers/software which sometimes duplicates posts anyway for some time while resynchronising. They also have post numbers being repeated or even going backwards.

As a newbie you need to learn about topic drift, Roger. I didn't really need to report these things in Feedback as they _had_ already been reported, just not actioned. It merely seemed an appropriate time to remind Jim of them as they have some relevance here.

Ah, topic drift, the curse/blessing of h2g2... i think we should leave roger to discover the joys off topic drift himself...

Tango

Am I right in saying that this article showed up in another site's skin, yet was submitted here?

RhoMuNuQ

Nope, as far as i can tell, it's an h2g2 page. You know, that thing you finally told me about is EXTREMELY useful.

Tango

Yes. I didn't really expect it to work. It was part of my multi-layered test which no-one seems to appreciate (except perhaps you, Rho). It is apparently more than just a skin but the name itself was naturally suspicious.

NB This phantom connection which isn't showing on my computer was also not expected to work but I seem to be posting just fine. On the other hand I could just be "singing to my cat"...

I'm sure that you are posting.

RhoMuNuQ

But I might just be imagining you said that, Rho.

This is actually very scary. Almost as scary as having to do the system re-install/repair I was about to attempt without "backup" and with potentially bad consequences for everything else. Everything always dies just when something exciting is about to happen (ie off-site this time) and your tech support friends have gone away on holiday (though a mobile phone call confirmed my opinion of the problem and probable nasty solution).

Talk about topic drift!

I moved the page to h2g2 - it was originally on another site.

Congratulations Jim, you once again succeeded in confusing the hell out of me.

Tango

I assume this was posted on Dev, from the rather familiar title of it. If so, it would have been easy for any Editor to change the site the entry belonged to to h2g2, Tango.

RhoMuNuQ

What has the site it started on got anything to do with? Jim can do what he likes, he's DNA staff, not h2g2 staff. Hmmm... Jim posts and explains what i was confused by, and then you post and confuse me again... maybe i should go...

Tango

I thought you were confused by Jim moving the page between sites.

RhoMuNuQ

That is what confused me... Now I'm REALLY confused...

Tango