This page gives a list with the most frequently asked questions and their answers. We will extend it as we get more questions. If your question is not on this list, please use the contact form at the bottom of the page, choosing “other HUGE questions” as the topic of your question. If you have a user name, please enter it on the contact form.
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How do I get access to the HUGE database?
→ A webform through which you can request access is available on the request access page.
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How does the HUGE database work?
→ We have tried to make the HUGE database as user friendly as possible. But if you get stuck, a user manual is available here.
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I have a publication that refers to the HUGE database; what should the reference look like?
→ Please use the full title of the database “Hyper Usage Guide of English” in your reference. In the main text, use the full title of the database the first time you mention it. After that, feel free to use something shorter, like “HUGE” or “HUGE database”. Your citation in the references section should also include the date on which you accessed it. So, a sample reference would look like this:
Hyper Usage Guide of English. 2014. Leiden University. http://huge.ullet.net. accessed [1 February 2015].
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I have a publication that refers to the HUGE database; can I send it to you?
→ Yes please! We love to see who refers to our work. Please provide us with the full bibliographic information. Use the contact form at the bottom of the page, choosing “I cited HUGE” as the topic. We are not able to receive the full texts directly at this time, but you are very welcome to include a Dropbox™, Google Drive™ or similar file sharing link in your message.
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I have lost my password, how do I get it back?
→ Unfortunately, you can’t. For security reasons, we don’t store any passwords. If you have lost your password, please use the contact form at the bottom of this page, choosing “lost HUGE password” as the topic. Please don’t forget to enter your user name. You will receive a new password as soon as possible.
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My personal information has changed, how do I give you the updated information?
→ Please use the contact form at the bottom of this page, choosing “change HUGE personal info” as the topic, and enter your new information in the message box. Please don’t forget to enter your user name. Naturally this will be treated with the same confidentiality as your original access request.
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I have an account with limited access. How do I get full access?
→ Your level of access is granted based on the information we received on your access request form. If this information has changed in a way that might affect your level of access, please send us a new access request.
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The usage guide I want to investigate is not in the HUGE database; can I send it to you so that you can enter it into the database for me?
→ We would like to hear about titles that are not in the database. However, at present we have only just enough staff to keep up with the daily operation of the HUGE database. But this may change in the future so please send us the information anyway. We are not able to receive the full texts directly at this time, but you are very welcome to include a Dropbox™, Google Drive™ or similar file sharing link in your message.
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The usage problem I want to investigate is not in the HUGE database; can you enter it for me?
→ Unfortunately this not possible. In order to be able to show you the information in the database, we have cleared the use of a certain amount of material with the publishers through very specific licences which limit the amount of text we can use from their publications.
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I have an article on usage guides / problems that I think should be in your list of secondary sources. Can I send it to you?
→ Yes please! Thanks for contributing to our research. Use the contact form at the bottom of the page, choosing “secondary reference HUGE” as the topic. Please provide us with the full bibliographic information, as well as the usage guides and usage problems discussed, including the pages on which they are mentioned. We are not able to receive the full texts directly at this time, but you are very welcome to include a Dropbox™, Google Drive™ or similar file sharing link in your message.
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Why do some usage guides have no entries to show?
→ The database is not completely finished yet, so we’re still adding data. The bibliographic information is all there, but we haven’t entered all the entry texts.
Bridging the Unbridgeable 
Looking for data on have went in the collection British Newspapers 1600-1900, I came across a discussion of what appears to be a nineteenth-century usage guide by a man called Parry Gwynne, called A Word to the Wise (1852). Interestingly, the article mentions other usage problems: you and I, the use of which for that and set for sat, and I done. It would be interesting to look into all this further,