Carol, You are right about #6. One of the merchants I had in mind uses only a flat black ground, another a photographer-type cloud thingy... so bland that it is never seen, and a third just has a standard frame. A certain amount of white space is a tradition in some genres... for some car art, pure white. IIRC, I had one of those and left it because it was within the tradition. It wasn't just popped onto a flat ground: the artist actually considered the composition. These aren't absolutes (I did mention marshy ground and markers can be moved if there is a new survey). Also, they only trigger a closer look. Part of why I'm actually glad this discussion has boiled to the surface is that it gives us the chance to look at the issues. If the Gallery is seen as merely an extension of the Marketplace, is this a good thing or a bad thing? Why is this a common perception? If ads are as welcome as merketers (and venders) say they are, why do people flee, change channels, complain, and otherwise try to avoid being drowned in them? If ads are as bad as consumers say they are, why does capitalism work? If all the other places for ads and all the other encouragement of merchants (such as the Rendo newsletter) aren't enough, so that the galleries must also be filled, what happens when that isn't enough to induce sales, either? (Or has that line been crossed... there are many, many more merchants than there used to be... yet the products available look pretty much the same, filling the same niches.) Is Renderosity merely a mall for people to sell to each other, or is there a place for education, exhibiting, and socializing... and should these other interests have some protection? These are all concerns. I'm afraid that I have to go lie down with an icepack for a while, and maybe get a spot of sleep,... but I'll be back. Carolly