Maybe post that as a separate question so people see it.

I think part of it depends on the region you are in because each region has a different leader. My region held a info session on how to use Scrivener that I found very useful, but most didn't. The regions have virtual write-ins, speakers, and other forms of help and encouragement. The main thing I don't like, and this is being picky, is that it's almost like there are 2 sites--the main NaNo site, then all the forums. The reason it seems like 2 different sites is that if you have notifications from your region, they don't appear if you are in the forums. And the forum notifications don't appear if you are in the main NaNo site.

However, I LOVE the Adoption Society threads where people post ideas for you to take and use however you want. You can adopt as many ideas as you want and as many people as want can adopt the same idea. You can also leave your own ideas as well. That's how I got my NaNo project this year and a lot of the ideas for it--posting ideas for others, then thinking, "Hey, that's a really good idea and will fit my story. I should write that down!"

There are also basic socialization threads and threads where you can offer information on something you know about (for me, I've offered to answer questions about PTSD, TBIs, being a female in the military, making soap, and quilting) so that others can ask you questions to make their stories more realistic. And, of course, you can also ask them questions...or post a question, if you don't see anyone offering to answer questions about something you need to know about for your story. There are other thread types as well, but those are the ones I know most about.

You can award yourself badges for certain things like telling a teacher about NaNo or doing self-care. They award you badges for things like updating your word count daily for X days (7, 14, 21, etc.) in a row. Your word count is all on the honor system. You don't type into the website and can really get away with just being on the main site with your profile, region, and word count and never wander into the threads, if you don't want to. Not sure why you'd want to miss the BEST part, but whatever. You can do just basic stuff--join and update word count. It's nice if you complete your profile and add some buddies like me, though. I'm Schnujo on there as well.

If you "win" (write 50k words), you get discounts on some products as seen in the offers section. Even if you don't, some offer smaller discounts for participants who don't win.

That's the basics. The main point is that even if you don't make the 50k, there's no penalty. Lots of honest people don't make it every year. And probably some dishonest ones make it, I'd guess. Anyway, there are people there that actually publish every year and there's been quite a few folks who published their first novel from a NaNo project.