Final version of the request for contributions - I hope!

[abigailnus]

I've added the URL and e-mail of the FP archive group, and joined the 
group while I was at it - Derannimer, I think you need to approve me.  
I've also added a note telling people not to forward messages to us 
because that'll make us lose the message number.

Dear HPfGU Members,
 
 Hello from the FAQ team! We're in charge of writing the Fantastic
 Posts essays, which can be found at
 
 http://www.hpfgu.org.uk/faq/
 
 These essays collect posts on a variety of different subjects,
 ranging from The Weasley Family to Justice in the Wizarding World.
 They also provide summaries of important and popular theories
 such as LOLLIPOPS or George. The Fantastic Posts are a great
 asset to group members old and new, providing a coherent
 perspective on the ideas that came before us. They also allow us
 to save from Yahoo! oblivion those posts which are truly
 remarkable and worth remembering.
 
 We on the FAQ team are eager to get to work on updating the old
 FPs and writing new ones in the wake of OOP, but we'd like you
 all to help us. Have you read a post recently that really made you
 think? A well-written post, that offered a new perspective or
 submitted a new thoery? In short, have you read a Fantastic Post
 recently? If you have, we'd like to hear about it.
 
 Before you get going, a few words on what makes a post Fantastic.
 You might want to check out some of the posts referenced in the old
 FPs to get an idea of the kind of quality we're looking for. Also, bear
 in mind that a a Fantastic Post should:
 
 1. Be well written and coherent
 2. Present new ideas or offer a good overview of old ones
 3. Have good formatting - good grammar and spelling, capitalization
 and punctuation where appropriate, more then one paragraph, etc.
 
 There are three simple ways to let us know about a Fantastic Post:
 
 1. We've opened the FAQ archive group to posting by the general 
 public. You can e-mail us at
 
 Fantastic_Posts at yahoogroups.com 
 
 Please use the following template when sending us a
 recommendation e-mail
 
 Fantastic Post number:
 Author of Fantastic Post:
 Topic of Fantastic Post:
 Date of Fantastic Post:
 
 Not all fields have to be filled, but we *must* have the message 
 number - finding a message in any other way is all but impossible.
 
 2. You can also reach the archive group homepage the same way
 you might go to the HPfGU homepage and post a message from
 there.  The URL is 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Fantastic_Posts/

 Simply use the 'Post' link on the sidebar. Again, use the
 template above, and be sure to include the message number.
 
 3. A database has been created on the HPfGU homepage. To get
 there, simply go to the homepage and click on the 'Database' link
 in the sidebar on the left-hand side of the screen. Scroll down the
 list until you find a database entitled 'Fantastic Posts'. Click on the
 title and you will be transferred to the database page. From there
 you can simply click on the 'add record' link at the top of the table
 to make your suggestion. You don't need to fill out all the fields,
 but you must include a message number.

 Important note: please do *not* forward a message to the archive 
 group.  A forwarded message will not contain a message number, 
 and that will make it impossible for us to locate it.
 
 Finally, any post you send is only a suggestion. If you look at the
 old Fantastic Posts you might notice how few messages they actually
 reference. This isn't because these are the only good messages in
 over 70,000 posts, but because if we were to include all the fantastic
 posts ever made to the group we would drown, and the very purpose
 of the FPs is to provide brief and concise overviews of ideas on the list.
 We can't promise to use every post you send us, but we do promise
 to read and consider every one with all due gravity, no matter who the
 author is.
 
 Wishing you happy hunting,
 
 The FAQ team
 
If there are no further suggestions, then as soon as we get an OK from 
MEG to create the database, we should post this to the main list and OTC.

Abigail