As a new member of the site, I recently discovered the Poser Gallery.
I am very surprised to see that images of some artists always collect exaggerated compliments by some kind of a tribe of recurrent visitors.
You can notice the same phenomenon concerning thePoser Hot20.
It would also seems that this classification can be slanted.
What is the challenge in it, except development of the votecatching ?
I would simply like to get your feelings and thoughts about this.
Thanks

Kinda like a self-licking ice-cream cone, isn't it?

maryse: It comes up once in a while, but not once or twice weekly. There never is any outcome at all...politics is politics I guess.

Take every comment you read with a pound of salt, and NEVER turn on the rating option. Those two tips will save you much grief around here. I don't believe in giving disingenuous compliments, nor do I compliment someone to "encourage them" or give them an ego boost. The whole practice makes me sick to be honest.

nods to what Alleycat just said

Maryse, one of the things you'll find out quick enough is that there is a definite prefered Poser "look" that gains quicker and more regular acceptance than anything else. Some artists are more adept at that kind of visual tap dance than others, and those are the ones whose work finds its way into the Hot 20. There was a bit of a small revolt earlier this year when Legume began a series that some of us hoped might break the 20 open a bit, but sadly enough, it wasn't that much longer before we saw it return to the usual nonsense with the usual Poser look. Unless you really feel the need to, don't bother with a gallery. It's just not worth it sometimes.

I thought I would make another point on this subject. The Poser Hot 20 was not always vote based. At one time, it was based on the number of views in a week. Some people complained about it, and it was replaced with the voting system. The problem with voluntary voting is that some people will forget to vote. I know I do.

When I first joined, I thought the Poser Hot 20 was the top 20 images that people found most interesting, and being based on the number of views, it was. Now, I do not think the title of the list accurately reflects its function.

I don't see the point: why is it so important for some people that there are some artists that recieve a lot of comments on their work? Why has it to be put in question that these comments are meant honest by the people that made them? Why is it necessary to put their work down with remarks like usual nonsense and usual Poser look? If you don't like something simply don't look at it. That's what I would do.

Why is it necessary to put their work down with remarks like usual nonsense and usual Poser look? Why is it necessary to make me feel like I can't express an opinion around this place? It's my POV, Punto; if you find that offensive, sorry, but that's what I see. And yeah, these days, I don't bother looking at the gallery, save the few artists whose work I know and enjoy, like DavidHo and DragonGirl. Most of the others, IMVHO, fall in the category of cookie cutter work. That's my opinion. Others may vary.

I agree with Puntomaus. I have seen so many threads about this subject and can't understand what the fuss is about. I love making Poser images and post them in the gallery to get feedback on my work. I've never been in the Hot20 and probably never will be, and you know what? I don't care...I make the images for my own enjoyment. If you look at art history, you will see that various time periods produced artists whose works reflected a style that was similar, but unique in it's own way. That's how I see things in the galleries here and that's okay. People should make images that make them happy and if others find enjoyment in that...great, if not...that's their privilege.

I think the fuss around this whole subject is looking at growing and refining my work though the comments and rankings I get. Even though there does seem to be other ways around here to get that accomplished, I think it is a natural response to expect to be able to have that happen with feedback in the form of comments and voting. I could have a piece viewed 200 times and get 1 or no comments and or rankings. When that happens, my first thought is "what did the 199 other people think?" So, I think the Hot20 would be a good indicator for that type of feedback, as long as it was clear how everyone could participate in it completely.

Poser Hot20 is my own Page ! This is absolutly not Rigged, not of the Clique. Fairness? Just gone with the Wind (Sweet Irony) !

Poser is the largest and most commented gallery for the simple reason that Poser and Bryce are the least expensive programs and ones more people are likely to have.
I can't afford Maya or Lightwave or 3dsmax so the only galleries I'll likely be posting to are Poser, Bryce, and the 2D galleries.

As far as the sugar coated compliments, not many people are willing to make a comment that might hurt someone's feelings. (well, most anyway) Most helpful comments regarding render, lighting and poses are well received though. For me something has to be glaringly obvious or they have to ask for a critical critique before I'll delve too much into someone's artwork. I have no real way of knowing what level they are at and that does make a difference although most who are quick to pick apart images don't usually consider that.

The fact is that anyone can critique a piece to death using perfection as a guide. I can find many problems in my own gallery that could be improved upon but my constant attempt at improvement will show with each image.

In reality, someone posting sugar coated comments on any of my images don't hold me back from improving. I can see the mistakes and errors they don't mention.

VS, you can express your opinions, but don't start to say we like you did in your post #7. And, it's one thing to express an opinion and another to make cutting remarks about other peoples work. BTW, I didn't take it personally what you've said I just thought it wasn't very nice.

My biggest gripe with the comment system is that you can't leave comments anonymously. If you like the pic, it's no big deal to leave your name, but God forbid you leave some constructive criticism. I appreciate when people take the time to actually tell me how they think a piece could be improved. However, I've nearly come to the point where I won't even leave any more comments unless they are COMPLETELY positive. If I even hint that something could be improved, I get into a big IM argument nearly every time. It's not even worth fooling with anymore. I've found that I've gotten much more truthful and useful feedback at deviantart.com than I do here...

VS, you can express your opinions, but don't start to say we like you did in your post #7 I fail to see why not. I wasn't the only one saying what I did above. If anyone remembers the great MPP flamewar, there were a helluva lot of others who said much the same thing. The "we" in this case is completely warranted. And, it's one thing to express an opinion and another to make cutting remarks about other peoples work Well, I guess it depends on what you consider "cutting". I don't. I think my remarks are, if anything, bluntly accurate. But since I'm not interested in having my opinion turned back on me as a personal attack, as happened in another thread, let's just leave it at that, shall we?

Ok, Schwamm drer ;-) (Schwamm drer -> let's forget it? Not sure if this is the right translation).

My thoughts on the Poser gallery.... I don't really like rankings, I don't like trying to figure out if something is an 8.7 or a 9.2, so I seldom give them. If I give a ranking, it is usually a 10, and that's only if the it really takes my breath away. Another reason for not giving rankings is that I frequently find myself commenting on works by some of the artists that we collaborate with. They usually get good comments, because we like their style; that's why we collaborate with them. To avoid giving anyone the impression that I am inflating their rankings to somehow help promote our products, I avoid all rankings, except in exceptional cases. I also always follow my name with my Castle Development Group affiliation. Someone may decide that I'm biased because this is one of the artists I work with, and decide to ignore my comment. That's fine. But at least they won't think I'm trying to mislead them. Integrity is very important in this (and all) business. Lynn Grant, Castle Development Group

The "compliment club" is actually several phenomina woven together... 1) Some artists just plain rock and are worth the compliments. 2) A lot of vendors give each other and some others a lot fo their stuff for free routinely. The return favor is about 2 weeks of "Thanks for the gift, it's a beautiful must have item coming soon!" renders that come out of a factory assembly line. The hope was that #2 would be stopped by the new rules about the poser showcase gallery - but no one is enforcing those rules that I can see.

Sigh. So, what.. merchants aren't supposed to do artwork and post it anymore? I spend many, many hours on my images and appreciate comments and feedback. My last piece took me three days; I don't just shove my products into images they don't belong in just to hawk them in the gallery. I don't consider my work to be something that showcases my products so much as I am making art using things I like. I don't make products for the marketplace that I wouldn't use in my own work. I comment on many pieces by people I have never spoken to and don't know, but I also comment on my friends' pieces because it is the right thing to do. I also go out of my way to find work done with my products and comment on them, because I love to see what people come up with. It's amazing how you envision one use for your work and see people come up with tons of creative ways to extend your product in their art. I had an image in the hot 20 recently. My first one. I didn't think it was nonsense; it took me days to plan and create, and I used 5 different programs to make it and spent more than a dozen hours postworking it. It was hard work.

@MARYSE: I am a new member too, and I must admit that I always enjoy viewing the H20 because there I can find the finest images of Poser gallery and I'm learning alot from them... painting, posing, lighting techniques, etc., etc. I don't see anything wrong at this. Sorry but I don't get your point. If I understood well, you became such an expert in Poser that you reject all those talented Artists?? You'd better show us what YOU CAN do then... and after come back to blame them for being in H20 and/or for receiving many comments. As a new member, the least I can do, is to show respect at other's work, try to learn from them and become someday as good as they are...

Go "Rockets" I'm with you ;0. Joan

"Sigh. So, what.. merchants aren't supposed to do artwork and post it anymore?"

Not at all, I fully support it. What I DO think needs to be in the showcase gallery is the gratuitous advertising. You know the type of thing...

"I have had a chance to test ___'s newest creation ___, coming soon to the Marketplace! She/it is great to work with and is just so beautiful! Thank you so much ___ for letting me play with him/her, what a generous gift, she/it is really a must have for everyone on the planet who uses Poser."

This is abused, and I think it is fairly obvious to anyone who looks at the gallery.