To photostar & e-brink,

I respect your views about how you relate to other members on Renderosity, but I think you're being a little harsh labeling those who don't follow your personal protocols as having "bad manners" & being on an "ego trip".

Everyone who posts their work here isn't necessarily interested in maximizing their comments or ratings. And comments don't have to be tit-for-tat & always be reciprocal. There are artists I comment on regularly or semi-regularly because I really enjoy their work & many of them never comment back on mine & rarely do I get (or expect) an email from them - so what? It doesn't hurt my feelings - I don't expect everyone to like my work. When someone comments on my work, I generally will visit their gallery. If I enjoy their work & see something that strikes me, I will post a comment. If I don't particularly like the type of work they do, then I won't comment. If someone regularly posts comments on my work, I express my appreciation by sending them an email, but I won't automatically post a comment on their work if I don't have something sincerely positive to say.

I have my list of favorite artists & I always view their postings, but that doesn't mean I like every single piece they post or need to comment on every one. And I do randomly browse galleries when I can to find new artists to discover & am always very pleased to discover new work that excites me. And there are a few artists who I have developed a special affinity with whom I communicate when we have something in particular to share with each other & that is valuable to me. But trading comments just to generate more for myself is something I have absolutely no interest in...

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." - Picasso