[HP4GU-FAQ] Re: Catching up & cataloguing

[eloiseherisson at aol.com]

This sounds even more stupid and I'm even more behind times because I wrote 
this and was about to post it just before going out to class and then no. 1 
child had a homework crisis and I forgot to hit send and.................


OK. I've just read Eileen's questions (which weren't in the least obvious to 
me) and Cindy's reply and I'm going to up the stakes in the who asks the 
dumbest questions competition. Bear with me; I'll get there in the end, but 
all this computing stuff's a bit of a steep learning curve for a 
non-technical oldie like me!
(Oh those innocent days somewhat less than a year ago when I didn't even know 
how to send an e-mail!  I'm not much furyther on now! How did I get myself 
into this mess?)

1) Where is the archive of posts which Cindy told me is available? Or do I 
just work from the webview posts?
2) How do I download/create a document in which to work? (I don't do 
spreadsheets - yet!)
3) How do I upload what I've done?


Please remember that I only have MS Works available (not having had the 
foresight to ask my husband for software for *my* wedding anniversary last 
week! Actually, I've been married so long that I apparently don't qualify for 
anything until the next 'significant' anniversary, which in my case will be 
20 years. Yikes!)


Regarding keywords...

I've been thinking of topics that I might have difficulty classifying, or 
which seem to tie into a larger theme.

Do you think we should have a keyword for posts which deal with Wizarding 
culture and attitudes? For instance, 'Toughness', 'Real Wizards Don't 
Apologise' or the current 'Shades of Godric's Hollow thread'? These could 
then have a second descriptive key such as Housism, classism or attitudes to 
Muggles, etc., if appropriate. (Presumably topics that relate to the 'Social 
Issues' FAQ).

I'm kind of aware (for obvious reasons) of there being a number of posts on 
quite varied topics explaining British cultural issues. 
Some of these are likely to be classified primarily under other keywords, 
OTOH others are merely a matter of exchange of cultural information 
(explanation of vocabulary, phraseology, history, various recurrent whinges, 
like 'graduation', etc). Would it be useful if these had a common key? 

Then, of course, there's the recurrent theme of edition differences, both 
UK/US and differences between different printings within the same country, of 
which a number more have turned up recently. 

Oh...what about threads on reader attitudes? (Do readers like sychophants? 
'Bent women'?) 
Do they come under lit. theory?

Or, even worse, reader opinion (What would you do if you were headmaster of 
Hogwarts?). What do we do with those? 

And just to get this clear, from what Cindy said to Eileen, we're only 
cataloguing posts which say something significant, yes? If they say something 
worthwhile on the thread?

To be honest, no matter how carefully we try to plan this, I'm sure that as 
we go along, we're going to find some posts that are harder than others to 
catalogue. As long as we bring these things to the attention of the group and 
share our solutions, the guidelines can be updated as we go along, can't 
they? 

Eloise
(who would love to have a go at the Character Names FAQ when we have time to 
get round to such abstruse things, if no-one else has bagsied it first!)