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

Hi Christian! You should make up a name for your self or other members will have to hunt you down as if your name was "Hello" or by your real name. You don't absolutely HAVE to, becuse you still appear in the "on line" window as Christiana. But its fun to make-up a h2g2 name and some sort of lead-in on your page (notice I have never really mastered this so I have simply "Hello Out There"). I am Micheal J. Mole ACE. Welcome to h2g2! My page is not as well designed as most others because hard as I try I cannot master HTML. You might want to visit Archangle Galaxy Babe, she really knows her stuff. Princess Buttercup does also. Don't miss Rockin Granny (also known as Weatherwax, she is a trip and a must). There are a ton of others I have not named, and I hope they will forgive me. Don't wait for folks to come to you. Get right out there and let us hear from you. Join any conversation (check the history of it first) and visit the museum and the forum. And never be afraid to hit the HELP! button. We are here to make your presence more enjoyable and we hope to enjoy you. Again, welcome to h2g2 .

Micheal J. Mole, Minister for Subterranean Lifeforms and ACE.

Please excuse me for asking any stupid questions...what exactly is the purpose of picking a new name? I know you already explained this to me, but I'm a tad confused. (Perhaps I should have added "and I'm blonde" to my page. ) Does it matter what name I change to? Meaning do I need to change it someplace specific so that it's more easily accessible? Thanks for your help, and once again, forgive the silly questions. (Oh, and also, I've noticed that some people utilize special symbols on their pages. How does one go about creating these?)

Its okay. I'm not quite sure what he means by a new name either, and I've been here since January! don't worry 'bout your name, you've changed it already anyway cos you're not a 'researcher no:...' anymore. Its fine.
Don't know what you mean by the symbols thing though, you obviously don't mean smilies though do you?
You see, the other stuff's called Guide ML and I'm just getting to grips with that myself, so I'm not the person to ask. If its Guide ML you mean, (with the posh graphics, orange subheadings and stuff)you could ask Clive the Flying Ostrich at U113478 He's an ACE and seems pretty clever with this computer stuff. I've recently asked him about it myself.
You can leave a message on his space, or you can talk to other aces from there if he's not around, (there's a big list on his space) as I gather he's quite busy with work at the moment.
Hope that helps
See ya around
Kaz.

Thanks for your help Kaz!

Yes, thanks Kaz. All I really meant is that often folks don't want to use their real name. Cristiana actually did fine; she did almost exactly what I did 3 years ago when I titled my page "Hello Out There". You can title your home page any way you want. Actually, I would folow Kaz's advice before I would follow my own. I may be a grey -beard around here but there is much I do not know. See, I am next to unemployeed and this has been my first opportunity to sheck hh2g2 every day. When summer school starts and I begin teaching you all will see much less of me. I have made a promise to Archangel Galaxy Babe to be regular and have promised Amy the Ant to learn the emoticons (I'm going to have to make old fashioned flash cards; God I'm old).

So, thanks again Kaz. I don't want to confuse anyone with my ignorance. Micheal Mole newbie ACE

Thats ok.

hi!
cristiana, you can find out how to use the smilies by clicking on one of them in any conversation. that will take you to the smiley page which tells you how to put them in your conversations or on your page.

any of the aces would be thrilled to show you around. no question is too 'blonde' i remember how overwhelmed i was when i joined! if you have questions about using features on your page and none of us aces know how to do it, you can find out more by touring the <./>GuideMLClinic</.>, or you might find one of the <./>gurus</.>. the best way to find out how to make things work is when you see it somewhere get the code. if you see something you like on my page for instance, in your browser bar you could type http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/testuserpage155058 (it normally looks like this U155058 ). if it's on a regular non-researcher page just leave the 'userpage' bit off like this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/test441596 shows you the code for the keepers page (which looks like this A441596 ).

you mentioned being in the u.s., you might be interested in one of our regional researcher groups, you can find them all here A660313

there are also lots of great things to be had in <./>thepost</.>

micheal, it might help you to get a little notebook and keep notes in it, i actually started doing that before i became an ace, but it helps me immensely when i'm greeting i'm using it right now, as a matter of fact

some other things you all might enjoy:
A53650 is an article on australia that i love.
A139501 is an article on international driving etiquette, the first article i ever read and what made me want to join the site.
A657579 is a very useful article on the wonders of wd-40

happy meanderings!

Thanks very much broelan! I really appreciate all the helpful suggestions and support I've been getting since joining. Makes everything so much more fun. Thanks again!

"Glad to be of service." We are all here to help each other. I am still learning and have been treated just as kindly as you have been. All the h2g2 members have been wonderfulto me. You will find h2g2 to be addictive. Hang on for the ride!

MJM ACE

Wonderful idea about the note book st. broelan! I have been using "post it" notes and bits a scrap-paper to keep track of all the folks I have met and greeted. My desk looks like a shreder was emptied on it. Amy the Ant just taught me the smiley "click". It was not that easy 2 or 3 years ago. h2g2 is becomming quite sophisticated.

I started late with computers. When writing my thesis my computer had only 5000k memory. Guide ML is a mystery to me. I get to a point then hit a intelligence blank: I don't know what the jargon means. I will keep trying!

Expect a visit st. broelan and stick with it cristiana!

MJM ACE

This is kind-of an unrelated question, but how do I go about putting a graphic into my page? I've noticed that a lot of people have them but can't figure out how to put one up. Thanks for your help!

Its called GuideML. Sad to say I have never mastered it. I recommend you contact Archangle Galaxy Babe, tell her I sent you, and she will gladly help. Or you could go to h2g2's Home Page and there should be a hyperlink for GuideML which gives instructions.

Are you enjoying h2g2? I think it a lot of fun. Lots of good people here. Good luck Cristiana. ps You might try Kaz too!

MJM ACE

No good asking me, I'm afraid, I haven't got a clue about guide ML.

OK. Hit the "Help" button. There should be a hyperlink about GuideML. Or, use the search engine. Key in GuideML, click it, and a list should pop up. Click the subject with the greater % number, its probably a direct link to the GuideML page. That not working, put ACE in the search engine and a link to the other ACE's should pop up. Of course, any member who has ACE after their name can help. Find one who has a page you admire and ask them how they did it. Thats the best I can do. Hope its some help.

Let me know if you find the help you need. If not, I'll search down the exact link for you, OK? If you figure it all out, please tell me how to do it.

MJM ACE

Thanks, Micheal, I seem to be slowly figuring out what I'm doing...still tinkering with and working around the tags, but having fun at it. I do have one sort-of related question, though, and then I promise to stop bothering you--can we put links to websites (outside h2g2) within our pages, or is that not allowed?

I should think so as long as it is research/h2g2 related. I mean, as long as it is an informational site and not something objectionable. I would check the house rules first however (I'll give them a double check). Never worry about asking questions Cristiana! Thats the reason I am here; that and the enjoyment I get visiting h2g2.

Keep the questions coming!

MJM ACE

hey again!
sorry, i've been out for a few days, i'm generally here for four days in a row, then you don't see me for a few. in answer to your questions:

the good news is that i knew absolutely *nothing* about GuideML or html when i joined h2g2, everything that's been done on my page i've learned to do here from other researchers.

about pictures:
unfortunately you can only put pictures or 'graphics' on your page from the h2g2 graphics library here: C809 . in order to incorporate these your page must be formatted to guide ml. if your page is already in guide ml you can simply copy and paste the code from the box to the right of the graphic you choose to your edit box on your page. occasionally you will find a userpage or an entry that appears to use a personal photograph, these are photos that the towers have added to their database, so the source for the photo is hosted on h2g2 servers. unfortunately individual researchers can't store photographs on h2g2's servers.

about links:
links are allowed on h2g2, you can use them on your userspace, in entries, and in postings. they don't have to be h2g2 related, on my personal space i have links to newsoftheweird.com, weirdal.com, reddwarf.co.uk, stlblues.com, none of which have anything to do with h2g2 other than they are my personal interests . we only ask that you keep in mind that this is a family site, and we have researchers as young as ten years old (or younger) who may stumble upon your links and follow them. also, as the bbc doesn't allow advertising, any links whose sole purpose is to advertise may be taken down.

when you use a link in an entry the moderators will test the link to make sure it is not broken and that the site on the other end does not contain objectionable material. if there are any problems found with your link they may temporarily fail your entry and will notify you of the situation by email. alternately they will simply replace the link with [link removed by moderator]. if this happens you can simply re-edit your entry and fix or remove the link.

following both of the above guidelines, if you wanted to show others a picture you've taken of your rosebush that's just bloomed (or anything else) you could store it on another site - fotango is a popular one - and then place a link to your photo page here in an entry or posting. you'll see alot of this right after community meet-ups.

have i cleared anything up, or just muddled the waters more?

and i've only just discovered that you've already figured all of that out. great job! please forgive my redundancy .

Thanks for the assist st. broelan. I did read your suggestion on the forum: I was not aware my replies did not contain the text to which I was replying. Is this what is called a "blind foreward?": or a "reply to all?" Some ACEs still have a lot to learn Cristiana (IE: me).

MJM ACE

OK, time for another "out o' the blue" question: How long have you all been using H2G2, and how did you become ACES? However it works, I'm really glad there are friendly experts around to help us confused newbies; it makes the guide that much more accessible. My thanks to you all!