Remember:
- If you’re posting a question please make the title of your thread informative and not just ‘question!’ or ‘help!’
- If someone has asked a similar question to yours, you can respond as a reply to that thread.
- Please only use this board for important questions you need answers to, not just because you’re curious about something.
- Only Prefects, Head Students, Post Graduates and Professors are allowed to answer questions on this board.
Q: How and when do I sign up for classes?
You do this by visiting the Classes tab. Class sign-up will open at the start of each of the two terms (September 1st for autumn and February 1st for spring) and will remain open through most of the term (closing on December 20th and May 20th respectively). Professors do have the option to close sign-ups early but you can still send a message asking (politely) if you can be added to a class. You can filter for classes that have open sign-ups. You may take no more than 5 classes per term.
For a more in-depth look at classes, please visit the dedicated section in the Handbook.
Q: I joined late, can I still take part?
Yes. Plenty of people join late in the term. If in doubt, politely message the professors of classes you're interested in to see if you can still do enough work to pass the class. If it's too late or you join between terms, there will still be activities and projects to participate in while you wait for the next term to start.
Q: What are Quills/House Points/beans/awards and how do I get them?
Quills – What you earn for passing classes (earning at least 2 will allow you to advance a year at the end of the spring term, though you may only advance one year no matter how many extra you earn).
House Points – Earned for classes, activities etc and contribute towards the house cup
Beans – The currency on HOL
Awards – Trophies earned in classes, activities or houses for various reasons
Detailed descriptions about all of these and what they mean can be found in the respective sections of the Handbook, linked above.
Q: What is HOL time?
HOL time is the standard time on HOL. It will be used for all your class deadlines, activity deadlines and to schedule events like Quidditch Matches. HOL time corresponds to the time in the UK (GMT/UTC or BST/UTC+1, depending on Daylight Savings), as this is where Hogwarts is located. You can find the current HOL time on the Calendar Page
Q: How do I submit work for classes?
This is done via email unless something else is specifically stated. We strongly encourage you to make a separate email account for HOL with your HOL name. You can do this for free with gmail or another provider. This is for the sake of your privacy and safety, though it also helps teachers or activity organisers keep track of who sent in what.
Q: I have a problem with a class, who do I speak to?
Try to get in contact with the person teaching the class or their assistant. Do not post here asking about a particular class, professor or student teacher. If neither the professor nor the assistant, if the class has one, answer within a month, please contact Prof. Kyrie Adderholt.
Q: I’ve received points but they aren’t counted?
Points must be validated by a member of the Head Office (the Headmistress and her deputies) before they count. This should happen within a day or two of your professor awarding them.
Q: I haven’t received points for classwork yet, what should I do?
Be patient. Some teachers don’t award points until the end of term. If it’s getting towards the end of term and you’re concerned the teacher of the class isn’t around, this is a matter for the Class Committee, whose primary contact is Prof. Kyrie Adderholt. They will ensure you get points and quills for the work you’ve completed; keep an eye out for a message from them and a thread on the forum with instructions.
Q: I should have gone up a year/the forum is showing my year wrong/I think I’ve found a bug, what do I do?
This is a matter for the HOL Groundskeeper, Professor Dario Brighton. Please (politely) make him aware of the issue and be patient while he looks into it.
Q: I’ve seen people referring to greenhouses/Hogsmeade/items, what are they?
They’re features that are undergoing renovation and will be added in at a later stage.
Q: How do I get pets and what do I do once I have them?
It is currently not possible to purchase new pets, though you will be able to do so with beans once that feature is released. Once you have one, you can feed and pet your new companion every day to keep their mood up. Neglected pets will run away if you let their stats get too low. You can also interact with the pets of other people by feeding them beans.
Q: What is IRC?
IRC is the HOL chat. A detailed section about the rules and how to use it can be found in the Handbook. Once you’ve read it, you can access IRC from this page
Q: What is Quidditch and how can I get on my house team?
Quidditch is back and better than ever! Go here to check out all the rules, changes, and information regarding this most exciting sport!
Q: I want to teach a class, organize an activity or start a club, what do I do?
There are teacher applications every term: you must create a class (a website with lessons and assignments) and fill out the form. For activities, features, clubs and initiatives, please communicate any ideas you have to your House prefect or a head student (via private message). Keep in mind that ideas have to be very well thought out to even be considered.
Forums
Q: What are avatars and signatures and how do I get one?
Avatars and signatures are pictures you can use to customize your forum presence. First you’ll need an image that either you have made or someone has made for you: you can alter or customize one from the internet but direct copying is not okay. To add it, upload the image to an image hosting website (such as Imgur or Postimage).
On the forum, go to your ‘User Control Panel’ and select the ‘Edit Signature’ or ‘Edit Avatar’ options under ‘profile’. For an avatar, choose the option to add one from a URL, then input the URL to your uploaded image in the box. For a signature, you’ll need to use image tags in the main field (remove the spaces): [ img ] image URL here [ / img ].
Avatars must be no more than 100x100 pixels and signatures no more than 250 wide by 100 high. If your image breaks these size rules, is inappropriate or is found to be plagiarized, we will remove it. Your signature can also contain text but no more than 4 lines is permitted.
Q: How do I customize my posts with fonts and the like?
The forum uses BB code to achieve these effects: there are plenty of guides on the internet to teach you how to code the effect you want. Do not abuse this function though or we may have to edit your post so it’s easier for people to read.
Q: What constitutes spam?
You can find a comprehensive guide on how not to spam in the Handbook but in short: posting one word responses, replying repeatedly in a short space of time or using obnoxious colors or fonts can all be considered as spam. The same goes for posting short and pointless messages like ‘I agree’. Please put time and thought into your posts and try to bring something to the discussion.
Q: How do I get a broom below my name?
You get a broom for being active on the forum. Each time you reach a certain number of posts, your broom will level up.
100 posts: Oakshaft 79
200 posts: Moontrimmer
300 posts: Silver Arrow
500 posts: Cleansweep One
750 posts: Comet 140
1000 posts: Cleansweep Two
1300 posts: Cleansweep Three
And then: Comet 180, Tinderblast, Swiftstick, Shooting Star, Nimbus 1000, Nimbus 1001, Nimbus 1500, Nimbus 1700, Twigger 90, Nimbus 2000, Nimbus 2001, Firebolt...
If you spam just to increase your post count, you will lose House Points.
Q: Do I have to register separately for the Common Rooms?
Yes. You have to make a separate account to access a House’s Common Room Forum. It may also take time for you to be approved by an administrator so please don’t post here or bug them if you don’t get in within a few hours. That being said, you are welcome on all of the Common Rooms regardless of what House you’re in: it’s a very good idea to sign up for all of them so you don’t miss out on socializing and special events.
Q: I can’t get access to a House’s Common Room, what do I do?
Message an admin (usually a HoH or DHoH) of that particular forum or failing that, a prefect of the House. While someone checking here might be able to help you, you will get a faster response if you approach them directly.
