Pottermore Walkthrough: The Basics of Navigation

Pottermore is a gift from J.K. Rowling where Harry Potter fans can step into the magical wizarding world all with the click of a mouse.

Users have the opportunity to be sorted into one of the four houses at Hogwarts and sift through interactive moments from the novels. It truly is a magical place.

For those who are interested in joining Pottermore, and unsure how to get started, here is a quick crash course following my journey as a new user:

Step One: Sign in:

You can sign up by clicking on "Sign up" on the right side of the page. Pretty simple stuff. You are then directed to a main page with banners depicting the steps of the sign up.

Pottermore has a simple sign in asking questions such as birthdate, name, location, email and password information, the works.

After getting that out of the way, users are then able to choose their own username from a list of names. Here's what I was offered:

*ProphecyUnicorn20322
*MistLeviosa20186
*QueenEcho29275
*GalleonSpirit17048
*HallowWild1695

I went with HallowWild1695. It seemed the least lame out of all of the other choices. Not having the ability to choose your own user name is one of the site's downfalls.

Step Two: Gringotts:

So, once you have your user name and are all signed in, you can get to work. You are taken to the homepage that resembles a map with all different locations sprawled across. These locations include The Great Hall, Duelling Club, Potions Class, Gringotts, and Daily Prophet. These are pretty much the only locations you'll need to click on.

The site encourages the user to go straight to Gringotts Bank (the location flashes so the new users can see it) where they can collect their galleons. Generously, all users start with 500G. High rollin' over here.

Step Three: Diagon Alley

Users are then directed to go to Flourish and Blotts where they can purchase all of their school books. Readers: if you are a college student, or recent graduate, don't be alarmed: these prices are nothing like college textbooks. Books range from one to two galleons.

New students are also provided with their first-year school list, and you can access your list in the right hand corner. Pottermore already sets users up with their uniforms and some school equipment.

Buy all of the books on the list; it's on the first page of Flourish and Blotts.

After buying school books, users can then buy their own pet at Eeylops Owl Emporium & Magical Menagerie. Users can choose between a cat and an owl. They range from nine to 15 galleons. Diagon Alley is simple to navigate, it's all on one page, and users can hover their mouses over the stores they want to enter.

Users can also go to the "south side" of Diagon Alley and visit Ollivanders to get their wand. You'll find that a lot of the stores are locked, which is disappointing, but earning points will unlock them.

Upon entering Ollivanders users find out that he is not there, and due to popular demand, witches and wizards are asked to answer seven questions to determine what wand they will receive.

The questions involve height, eye color, day of birth, worst fears, and more. After answering some tough questions about my life goals, my wand chose me. I was given an ash wand with a phoenix feather core, 10 3/4 inches, hard.

Lovely.

Step Five: Sorting

Students are then directed to a page where users can watch a video of J.K. Rowling congratulating them on joining Pottermore, and wishing them luck on their house sorting.

*Screams* Users are then brought to The Great Hall to answer another list of questions to determine what house they will be sorted in.

I got Hufflepuff. Sigh.

First-year Hogwarts students are then directed to the Common Room where users can see where their house stands in the competition for house points, talk with other Hufflepuffs, and more.

The right side of the screen has three banners where students can track who has the most house points, the most points in the dueling club, and the most points in potions class.

Step Six: Good to Go:

Students can now navigate through the website. At the bottom of the screen, users can go to The Great Hall to see which house is in the lead.

Currently, Slytherin is in first place with Hufflepuff in last place. The bottom banner also hosts Common Room, Duelling Club, Potions Class, and other locations in Diagon Alley.

Users can also turn to the top banner and click on the "Pottermore" to be directed to the home page. On the bottom of the screen, there will be a list of panels with tabs underneath, representing the seven Harry Potter books.

Starting at the beginning, users can delve into moments seen in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Here, Pottermore users can search for tokens, writings, and other interesting items to collect in their trunks.

Once you dive into Pottermore, it is a simple site to navigate. There are some confusing areas that could snag the user, but sticking to these guidelines can help new users successfully start their journey on Pottermore.