this is something I wrote to a member of Renderosity who decided that after 11 and 4 excellents or greats, respectively, my images needed a HMMM... I swear to God that from now on I'm not letting anyone rank them! I mean, how absolutely dumb can you get??? Hi, First of all, on the marbles render, I don't think you paid enough attention to the work done to make such a judgement. There is a reflection of a picture that I took in Germany plasted all over each and every one of the glasses. Second of all, I am very fond of comments and criticisms, but I do not take them very well when a work that I have labored greatly on is given a NICE or HMM or NEEDS WORK by someone without a clue, when all the other members of this community have given me an excellent. I guess what I'm saying is that I do not appreciate your rankings on my images because they either show that you don't really have a clue of what you're talking about or that you're some master of Bryce previously unheard of in this community. Take a look at the people who have commented on the same images you chose to discuss, at their galleries. Take a look at yours. Basically, I do not take kindly to clueless people making bs rankings on my work. I would also like to thank you. Many a month I have considered not giving people the ability to rank my work because of incidents like these. So starting from now no one will get that priviledge. Don't take this too harshly, it's just that I have no way of knowing how much experience you have when you screw over my ranking for an image I care very dearly about. If you were the God of Bryce incarnate then I wouldn't mind. But since you're obviously a new member -or maybe just decided to keep your talents for yourself, and based on the comment you made on that marbles pic, I choose to think that you're simply ignorant. Please refrain from commenting on my work in the future and withdraw the comments you have made on my work. Thank you Mihnea It IS a privilege if you're trying to learn to have someone of more skill allow you to grade their work, and it is lending a helping hand whenever someone with obviously less knowledge is trying to build something with hard work. I feel like biting someone's head off, literallly. brb Drac

It's probably the way to go, Drac. I stopped allowing rankings a few images ago, and haven't regretted it. I used to wish I could reach through the internet and throttle igmoes like that. Wouldn't it be neat if you found out he lived about a block away from you and you could show up on his doorstep with a Louisville Slugger, a smile, and a "Hi, my name's Draculaz."? That would be a pair of pants he'd never wear again. :^)

LOL! You al know me pretty well to know that I over-react a lot, but this time I swear to God I had excellents on both pics... and it annoys me... greatly. I'm not insecure of my potential or anything, it's just very simple: I think you're better than me at this, then I welcome you with open arms and I allow criticisms and so on -like from someone like you, tjohn. I think you're on the same state of learning as me, I again accept it. You have two pics in your gallery and they're both a couple of primitives called 'Life after the Abissimal Dark' and 'Look what bra size I got in Poser!' I bite your head off. if you're a complete newbie and you observe something that no one else has, then all the more power to you, but this guy seemed clueless. Drac

This is all Bryce ??? and then HDRI'd it ? Frickin amazing image Drac. It would be great without HDRI, and the HDRI pushes it well past excellent. bob

Drac, How do you know what ranking this guy gave you?

unclebob, thanks dude :) gog, i follow up on my images religiously. I get email updates every time someone comments on my pic. I had like 12 excellent comments. to take down that many you need to add the lowest rating possible. that's how i know. someone must have torpedo'ed it. and it was that guy, because i pretty much followed up all the others' comments :)

Well, I reckon your work is excellent Drac, I'd ignore this fool and maybe turn of rankings (not sure though)

Oh..I follow mine, just to say 'thanks' to anyone who comments. I stopped giving rankings, because it just became too much of a hassel..I usually say what I think in a posting. One point, which may or may not have bearing..if you have a mouse with a wheel in it, and you're not careful, the scroll effect rotates through the classifications, and could turn an Excellent to...to whatever's at the bottom. Almost did it once or twice, without meaning to. Your stuff has always been first-rate..even did a tribute pic to you recently..take care.

Without going ott, art is subjective, what one may see, others may and often are very blind to. I have run a successful gallery now for over 30. I have experience both positive and negative comments about artists work. At the end of the day, it's down to you. If you thought the work was excellent fine, if you didn't, then ask questions of yourself. If someone else couldn't appreciate it or didn't care for your type of Art, so be it. Don't behave like a child who expects people in the Art world to drop at your feet, because you produced a piece and sing praise. At the end of the day, you should actually learn to appreciate people's honesty, because, you should have realised by this stage in your life my friend, you need to find the happiness in your work, and not crave for others recognition all the time from others. however the reasoning for that could be another very long story.

dublin, those are really beautiful words, and i understand them completely. however, there is a difference between having someone knowledgeable look at your work -i never made art, i just played around, and say something, and a 5 year old coming in and saying something damaging based on his fleeting and momentary passions. that's my point. it is true that art is subjective, and that we do it for silencing the devils within us first... look at some of my work, i haven't exactly been the poster child of r'osity ;) i haven't tried to appease or appeal to anyone, safe of moments of envy when i wished that i could be as good as you guys... but there's a very fine and straight line between someone who can make a comment and someone who can not based on experience, and that's where I draw it. Sure, we can see the world in a grain of sand, we can listen even to that 5 year old... but we must not expect to find the comments of EVERY 5 year old as groundbreaking. now where's that bat, guy just read my message :/ Drac

What you have to realize is that it's usually not the people who consider themselves better than you who mark you down. I'm guessing people would actually feel frightened of doing that, less people think they're "high and mighty". It's usually the people with the pictures of slightly "lesser greatness" that mark down other people's pictures. Look at the most severe and negative comments, and most of the people who post them don't even have a gallery! I don't know, but it's kind of a nice thought, the only people who say negative things are usually the ones who aren't as great as you. I don't know where I was going with this, but I think I went somewhere.

Getting ratings like 'excellent' is way to good for my ego to turn ratings on my images off. I think your image looks really good. Even if someone would say it's note very artistic he or she cannot deny that it's a great technical achievement. so a low rating would be either trolling or a stupidity. it sucks when something like that happens.

Hey Drac, You are a very talented 3D artist, and you do have a pretty large profile because of your high abilities, and your outspokenness. Personally, I get a kick out of the satiric comments and imagery that you direct towards Renderosity, but some people may not. You are obviously not the sort of guy to "play it safe". I'm not suggesting you should either. The point is, if you stir a stick in an ant- hill, don't be surprised if some of the ants try to sting or bite you. Besides, there isn't a artist, musician, or actor out there who doesn't have detractors, or enemies.

I don't think it has anything at all to do with you, Drac. How egotistical. But I enjoy your perspective, haven't had to think about stuff like that since middle school! If you are here for an ego boost, I'll give it to you right now, and then you can leave if you want, considering that I'm giving you EXACTLY what you want : Drac, you are a great 3D artist, and I admire your work! There. Now go, and quit whining all the time. I mean that in the nicest possible way, ya pansy! (smirks at ya)

Hey DRac - Similar situation on another site - (nameless3d commune) gave my freebie a 5 rating cuz my page was down that day and they couldnt download - this had no bearing on the model - but gave it a shitty rating - not for nothing , they must have liked it enough to want to download, and shit, its free, ... sorry this has been bugging me and had to vent - via your thread I feel better now whew! Drac as usual I love your Rant Posts... Please dont ever stop Bitching or Bryceing, cuz Im sure I speak for the majority here at the forum - I look forward to both roch222

You know what I think drac??? I think that this person gets a kick outta you making such a huge fuss over this, and for the purpose of entertainment, he "torpedos" your work and sits back with a bowl of popcorn and reads with amusement. brholte

I blame the ranking system itself, if ONE single person can have such a influence on the overall ranking. I will not put the ranking system on my next image, either. There are too many members out there (with no gallery, or very little offerings in it) that have more fun giving the low ranking to make an 'excellent' impossible to achieve, even after 15 or more 'excellents' are given. I agree, it is a mean-spirited and nasty thing to do. If there is something technically wrong with my image, by all means tell me about it so I may learn. However, I will never appreciate an undeserved 'hmmm' when the person knows nothing about art, color and design, or Bryce. I'm with you, draculaz, no more rankings from now on. Rankings written out in the comments will be accepted, along with the reasoning behind it.

There's probably an algorithm that would better combat the lone gunman, rather than just a straight average. As for rankings, I never give them. Where is the line between "great" and "excellent"? It's way too subjective and relative for anyone to make real sense of rankings.

As for me, I think the rating system is just fine the way it is. If one "loser" can "ruin" your whole image drac, then it deserved to be ruined. For me, I could care less about your marble image. I don't claim to be a Bryce Master, but to me making the simplest shape in all of Bryce into an actual image is ridiculous. I don't consider that particular image "work" at all. Nor did I even bother to view it, although I know which one you are talking about. If you're gonna be such a baby about your artwork, Drac, I probably will just avoid viewing it altogether. Should I feel obligated to view your images and then feel BAD if I think they suck? Should I withold my comments about your stupid spheres? No way, man. If you can't take the heat, get your ass out the kitchen. Nobody cares about ratings anyway, there's no money involved in it, it's supposed to just be for fun, or criticism.

took a look at the marbles imGE and id say the guy who gave the comment is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy toooooo stupid... maybe he doesnt know what and how hard HDRI is.... forgive him drac, for knows not what he does... eyecon

i'm really puzzled by this idea that someone has to be as good as or better than the artist whose work is being critiqued in order to have or express an opinion on it. everyone has an opinion (or two or three), and everyone has the right to voice it. i'm not a movie director, but that doesn't mean i have to like every movie i see just because i can't make a better one myself. i can't sing worth a damn or write the great american novel, but there are still plenty of writers and singers out there whom i don't like, and i'll say so. and it's not even just a case of whether the artist is good at what he/she does. . . i think still life paintings are boring. the artist may use great technique, but it's still put to use in a genre that i don't like. so, in the end, great technique or not, i just don't like the painting. art is more than just becoming proficient with the tools of the medium. i've seen bryce pictures that were very crudely done, obviously by someone very new to the program, but which i still liked just for the idea behind them. on the other hand, i've seen pictures that technically were outstanding, but were otherwise empty. maybe the guy who didn't like the marble picture just doesn't like pictures of marbles. maybe he needs more in the way of subject matter in order to give a picture an overall great rating. anyway, as i'm rambling a bit here, i'll shut up. i don't have many pictures in my gallery, so my opinion doesn't count anyway :-)

The point is not to make a fool out of yourself when you criticize someone that knows more than you do. No one said on here you couldn't express your opinion.

"Opinions are like a$$holes-everybody has one." I don't think the point here is whether people have or should express an opinion. It is whether the opinion is an INFORMED opinion. Which would mean more to you - the opinion of your favorite artist, or the opinion of his 5-year-old son? Where art is concerned, the voice of experience is always more meaningful than the guy who says, "I may not know much about art, but I know what I like." At least, in my opinion. :^)

But still, the image should also hold up with people who don't even know how hard it was to create it. Even if people DONT understand the difficulties of HDRI, they should still appreciate the art for what it is. For people who don't understand the finer points of this image, it probably just looks like some spheres on a slightly low res piece of newspaper, which isn't really the most exciting thing in the world. It's only when you begin to understand the little tricks they put in there that someone can truly appreciate the art.

If an artwork says something to me, it is a success. : )