With the various re-workings of the site code taking place, I was wondering if any changes could be, will be, or...have been..made to allow images to be entered into rotation for the front page's two New Image slots.

As it stands now, the selection process is an automated one, based on the image's C~index..or so it had been the last time I remember reading about it.

Thanks in advance for any attention to this issue.

Whew, found it ...

"Will my image have a chance to appear as a 'Featured' image on the front page if I don't participate in the voting booth/process?"

*caedes' response:

"One Featured Image is chosen from the "Main" galleries. That selection is not dependent on the c-index. The other two images are chosen from the "new images" gallery based on the c-index."


Has things changed since the above?

Don't believe so, Rob.

However, I will keep this post as short as possible to let your thoughts expressed left at the top, so to speak, as a suggestion for consideration/change. As I believe that is your intent.

p.s. There is a bit more to read on the discussion thread referenced above ... found here.

Yes, Les. I was offering a suggestion for consideration/change. As for the way things are currently, I was fairly well versed in that already. While I realize it's not *caedes' intent, the end result is a sort of penalization for non-participation in the voting process (ie "don't want to have your pics voted on? can't have them displayed).

While I don't want to come across as a curmugeon, this does bother me. Alot.

Just my two cents, and I know no one asked, but I agree with Rod on this one. I too am aware that there is one spot available. But, why not construct the system based on another parameter. Such as "views" or "downloads."

I would hate to think that there may be artists not featured because the system supports the distribution of "voted on" rather than "not voted on."

What the heck 2 cents isent much,, up my uploads are not voted on, but I dont have a big friends list,with that remark, my work does poorly, I vote on others works whenever I upload.

(( Deleated the voting issue )) Rob got confused

I suspect your addressing a very different concern. I'm not complaining about votes and scores I do or don't get. Simply, since the option exists to exempt an image, or images from voting, and the resulting spots on the front page are based on those scores, some kind of consideration for non-vote images would be nice.

Rob, my apologies. I think I was unclear and confusing the discussion. My suggestion would be to rotate the featured pictures by criteria other than the use of the C-Index. If something else was used, for example, downloads, or views, it would not matter if your picture, or mine, was in the VB or not.

No need, John. I understood the first time, but I appreciate you coming back to furter clarify your thoughts. :o)

I upload with out voting on my work most of the time dont feel I should be given center stage. Rob if there not voted on why the fuss over a thumbnail !! Is that clear an understadable with out any other problems

I'm open to ideas for showing all images (not just voted ones) on the front page, but I'm hesitant to use downloads or views to make that determination because those metrics are so easily manipulated. Maybe views and downloads from only "respected" community members?

well then I just got counted out :p

Since bad quality images are usually archived within a few weeks as part of the filtering process perhaps an age restriction could apply? Eg an image must be 3 weeks old before it can be included as a featured image?

A 3 week cap would work, since most new images seem to have about a 2 week shelf life, in terms of viewing. Placing them on the front page after the third week week would provide more exposure in terms of time.

As for views and downloads being too easily manipulated, I agree, if somewhat sadly.

Pre-screening images just from respected, or established members has a drawback. I've seen some really great stuff from new, or relatively new arrivals. I'm not really sure what the ideal process should be...but maybe a shorter time between post and archive..at leaast for the images that clearly..."need" archiving.

Thanks for stopping by and weighing in :o)

I was just in VB and had about six photos to vote on from 2004. Of course, they were excellent, but what caught my eye was that in several cases, their c-indexes were quite low. If they had been submitted now, would they ever have been featured?

Downloads and views may be manipulated. Unfortuately, c-indexes may also be manipulated by the votes of large friend groups.

There is always the possibility of bias in pre-screening by respected or established members. But, having thought that out loud, this may be the best solution. The opportunity of manipulation by the individual or his/her friends is removed. My gut tells me that this group would pick pictures based on photographic or artistic merit. That sounds pretty good to me!

Remember that one of the featured images is selected from the permenant galleries and c-index does not enter into tge equation with tgat one. So if your image is good enough to make it to tge perms it will show up as a feature sooner or later.

I personally favour Sam's idea. Although it is a sort of inverse Mod selection I would rather have that than another system. Some of my pictures hang around for many weeks in the New Images gallery so perhaps extend the time to 5 or 6 weeks to ensure that the good ones are shown. Alternatively have a purely Mod selected mechanism, like an editors choice, where Mods can put forward pictures to a pool of unmarked pictures to be displayed.

*bump*

Any new thoughts, desire..

..or an ice-cube's chance in Hell of this changing?

I gave up and put my images in for voting. Having said that, I now only post images I think will do well on the voting system and have stopped posting more 'avante garde' (perhaps I mean experimental or just plain different) stuff. These images that don't score highly or are not put in for voting never get seen and get so few downloads compared to the same images posted on other sites that posting seems pointless.

I'm open to adding other ways for the featured images to be selected, but so far i haven't thought of or seen a proposal that I think would work.

Oops. Nevermind.

Late to this here, but coram, I'd like to address your comment on the "pointlessness" of submitting images that you know will not score well in the VB or get many views/downloads.

Many times, the value of a thing is in the worth you assess it, or what you *define* as a good result.

Looking at it from this standpoint - not everyone goes *only* to the voting booth to see images. The ones who do so, or are only referenced to an image by seeing it on the front page, are likely "light" users of the site. They are generally the ones who will be most likely to see what people *commonly* define as "beauty" or "special" or "pretty".

So who are you trying to reach with the images that won't be received well by people who generally fall into that category?

Do 10 opinions matter, or does one opinion that really *gets* what you are trying to convey?

I can't speak for others, but personally, when I had time (once upon a time) I discovered far more amazing art and artists by browsing the new images. If something came up that caught my eye, if I wasn't familiar with the artist, I would go check their gallery. There are many artist who had pages of archived images which ended up in my favorites simply because I was the kind of person to go look at galleries and not just browse the new images, or limit my exposure to new images to the voting booth.

Is reaching someone like me who approaches from my standpoint, worth it to you? Yours to decide of course, I simply wanted to point out that there is more than one yardstick to judge "success" by.

Rob, I'd like to address your thought about newbies not getting a shot via *caedes suggestion of pre-screened images from "respected" members.

At some point, all of us were new here. Everyone had to stick around and keep posting to become a "known" quantity.

I think I don't see a problem with saying to a newbie "you have to go through some sort of selection process" to have your images eligible for one of the Featured Image slots. Either shortcut by submitting to the VB, and gaining a CI that give a general ranking, or don't submit, but keep posting and stick around long enough to be become a "known quantity". With the possibility that in the meantime, something makes it into the Perms and ends up featured that way.

I know that not everyone agrees that the CI is an accurate assessment tool, but given the lack of an ideal situation with lots of mods available to personally tag images, I think it's the best that can be put into action at this point. At least it gives a short term route while the long-term one is built if the artist desires to use it.