Douglas Adams' sci-fi satire The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and its four sequels chronicle the interstellar exploits of a hapless human who is helped along on his journey by the novel's namesake-an ingenious handheld gadget that offers advice about almost any place, object, entity or event in the cosmos. The electronic handheld Guide, regularly updated by its users, is a forerunner of today's emerging e-books and wireless Internet access rolled into one.

Once totally fictional, Adams' concoction has led to the quite factual Earth Edition of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy on the Web. Launched in May 1999 by the London-based new media firm h2g2 Ltd. (formerly The Digital Village), it has grown into a community of more than 30,000 registered participants in 85 countries. These "researchers"-including Adams himself-post entries on all aspects of living on the planet, ranging from the quirky to the truly useful. Topics include alcoholic drinks, the world's best beaches, English, American and Australian slang, and the question of whether intelligent life exists on Earth. For fans of Adams' writing, among the most noteworthy finds are his wry entries on "Festive Hangover Cures" and "International Driving Laws."