Random Ramblings
Created | Updated Oct 8, 2008
Wer soll das bezahlen, wer hat das bestellt,
wer hat soviel Pinke-Pinke, wer hat soviel Geld?
Who is going to pay for this, who ordered this?
Who has so much lolly, who has so much money?
The above quote of a German song is probably something most people ask themselves all over the world, what with the current economical and financial crisis. However, I haven't sat down after the long break to write about a global monetary crisis, I'll leave this to those who know what's going on.
A lot has happened since I wrote my last RR, and I hardly know where to start. Some of these events have been covered in my editorials when I was guest editor during summer, others have been written about elsewhere, so I'll concentrate on the events which haven't been mentioned in the h2g2 Post so far.
You will have noticed that the Top 20 conversations have found their way back to the Front Page. It is a feature which used to be there when I was still new to hootoo, then vanished during the time when the servers were down more frequently than they were working, and, as happens with most things, after a while the server problems as well as this feature were forgotten. However, its re-occurrence on the FP was not welcomed by everyone. Not only does it list community threads like Ask h2g2 or Miscellaneous Chat, but people's message centres (ie journals and conversations) alike. Just how the 'Most Popular Conversations' are chosen remains a mystery. At times, my journals and conversations occupied six of the 20 conversations linked to. If I was to believe that this list does indeed reflect the 'most popular' conversations, that would mean that my place is something like 'the social hub of hootoo' (to say it in the words of a friend). What's even more interesting: the one of my journals which is the busiest at any given time (with nearly 65,000 posts at the time of writing), didn't make the FP list once, nor did the popular 3N thread of the Thingites, to mention but a couple of the most active threads. This led to some speculation as to whether there is a limit to the number of posts any one of the listed conversations can have to appear on this list. Another mystery is the fact that even conversations which haven't been posted to for up to five days still used to appear in the FP top 20. I think this has changed recently. The only conclusion I can draw of this is, that hootoo used to be dead quiet during the past few months but has now picked up again.
About a month after the FP feature was back, our italic Derek founded an official h2g2 group on Facebook. So far, it has 52 members. However, it is just as mysterious as the way in which the FP conversation list is selected. Nothing has happened in the group, there is zero activity, and we have never been told what exactly the purpose of the group is. I have wondered more than once whether to 'leave' the group again, but part of me is still hoping that all will be revealed. It doesn't really matter to me in so far as it is a rare event that I get aware of what's going on on Facebook anyway. I only use it to play Scrabble and
do some jigsaw puzzles, so I log in, click on either of the links for my games, play, and log out again. I very rarely notice any of the activities my friends are doing, so I seldom comment on photos or things, or write a 'note' - which is in theory the equivalent of a journal here. I say 'in theory', because unlike here on hootoo, nobody talks to you on Facebook. Maybe that is because all my friends on there are friends from h2g2 with whom I talk here and in emails anyway?
If you thought that's enough mysteries, then here's the most annoying thing: about two weeks ago, the Eds made an Announcement telling us that all Researchers under 16 years of age were banned from h2g2 (and MOST other BBC sites) with immediate effect. Now most of us know at least one, if not more Researchers who are affected by this ban, so various journals and threads popped up all over hootoo, with upset Researchers discussing this. TRiG created an A page called What have the kids done? to collect material to present the BBC in the hope that this ban will be lifted on h2g2. So far, I seem to be the only one to have found it, so please, post your reasons there, and go and spread the word. Most of us are quite fond of 'our' U16s, and we miss them.
I'm sorry, but I can't let you off just yet. Lots of other things happened, most of them concerning our own (Post) business. The last issue saw three of our Regular columnists leave, but fortunately, things are never as bad as they seem, so I am happy to say that GB will go on contributing her fine Astronomy column after all, Smudger said he'd go on writing, and although Mu Beta will definitely not go on with the Entry of the Month column, all is not lost because Icy North has agreed1 to take over and you can find his first version here. Please, go and read it carefully, (especially the small print), then make your choice and vote for the best entry. In case you've missed the latest Announcement: The h2g2 Front Page as well as three Edited Guide Entries will be linked to from the BBC homepage from now on. This is very exciting and encouraging for all the h2g2 writers. You can help with this by either writing, or at least reading the entries and voting for your favourite new entry of a month, such giving some recognition to the author/s!
After all this exciting news, the recent changes in Post Team staff may not seem so significant to you, but I'm sure they are for Beatrice, our new Assistant Editor Regulars, and I know they are for me. I've never before been 'promoted' in my life, so I am still quite excited (and proud, too) about my new position as Content Editor. I think it is only fair to say that the Post has gone from strength to strength ever since it saw the light of day nearly nine years ago. Still, we don't rest on our laurels but have plans to make the Post as good and as interesting as we possibly can. This means, that I will now browse hootoo for articles I think should find a wider audience, and we've already featured two of my finds. No corner of hootoo will be safe from my prying eyes from now on, so don't be surprised if the Post comes a-knocking on your door, asking whether we're allowed to publish a journal or an entry you have written. However, this does not mean that you now just lay back and wait for us to call instead of submitting your articles like you've done before. It is just an excuse for me to lurk everywhere 'for job-related reasons' really. One of our readers who didn't wait for us (a clever decision) but sent in his own idea for a new column, is h5ringer, whose Musical Notes you will find in this issue.
I will stop rambling now, but I felt the need to get up to date. Next time, I'll tell you a bit about the upcoming h2g2 London Autumn Meet, Saturday 1st November 2008. Make sure you mark the date if you haven't already done so!
