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

Hi and welcome to h2g2, or hootoo as we sometimes call it!

I'm Elentari and I'm one of h2g2's <./>ACEs</.>. I'm an ordinary researcher like you who spends some time welcoming new members. So if you have any questions, please feel free to ask me by hitting the 'reply' button at the end of this post.

The main reason this site was set up was to create a guide to life, the universe, and everything. Accordingly, lots of us here (including me) write entries for the edited guide, which become h2g2's definitive entry on that subject. If you're interested in doing the same (don't worry if you're not, it's by no means compulsory! ) please have a look at A53209. We do encourage it though!

This is the basic sections of h2g2:

The Edited Guide (EG)
- this is the "Guide Proper", with interesting tidbits on everything from nuclear physics and biochemistry to football and Pot Noodles. Anyone can contribute by writing a piece to fill in a gap in the guide (of which there are many!) that fits the writing guidelines, sticking it in Peer Review, battling the critics and getting it picked by a Scout.

The Underguide (UG)
- this is where fiction goes, I'm not very knowledgeable about this side of things, but if you find anyone with a purple Underguide badge, they'll fill you in.

The Community
- this is everything else. Where we all chat, relax, debate, argue, discuss, laugh and other such things. Askh2g2, MiscChat, your personal space and journal, everyone else's PS and journals... Basically anything you can reply to or post on.

h2g2 can be confusing even for old timers, but here are some links to help you out! I highly recommend you check out A901829 on h2g2 jargon for an explanation of some of the terms you'll find here. It's also worth taking the h2g2 Tour at A317459 for a quick intro to the site. You could also just use the <./>FrontPage</.> as a starting point for browsing.

If you've had a quick look around already, you may want to know how to do cool smileys like , , , , , and so on. If so, A155909 is the place to visit. If you want to make your Personal Space look snazzy, try A690518.

h2g2 is definitely not a chat room, but we do have areas for light-hearted chatter; try <./>MiscChat</.>.

Finally, one more handy link is a page on hints and links for new researchers at A719840.

Get stuck in, we're a friendly bunch and everyone was new once!

Don't forget to ask if there's anything you want to know!

G'day ashwja,

My name is Feisor and I too am an ACE (Assistant Community Editor) at h2g2, (there are lots of us)

As you are a "younger" researcher I would like to point out some stuff that you should know - it's not too heavy and there's some fun stuff too

Firstly, from the <./>HouseRules</.> ...
"If you're Under Age 16
* Please get your parents' or guardians' permission before taking part in h2g2 or any other BBC Discussion Message Board.
* Never reveal any personal information about yourself (for example, your telephone number, home address or email address) without getting your parents' or guardians' permission first."

Secondly, you might like to check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/chatguide/children/index.shtml
there's some stuff there that's really worth knowing

and finally,
There's a special place for you to chat with people your own age (away from us adults ) You can join The Young Researchers' Club at A983171 and find lots of fun things to do and talk about.

But most importantly,
Have fun