DAZ's ArtZone has this set-up...think they call it "Face-Off" or something like that...

...my opinion is that the Rosity galleries would be better off with LESS emphasis on competition, not more.

Getting rid of the Hot 20 only to replace it with the Art Charts was a mistake...they had the first step right, but simply reincarnated it in the second step.

:b_lipssealed: I'm not sayin' nuttin' about that! LOL

Khai, she moved that thread over to the Copyright forum

Thank you again, Stacey...

StaceyG wrote> Quote -No, that does NOT happen

 Again, NO of course not, that is not even close to what the TOS meant or I meant

Once again NO, this wouldn't be any cause for us to "scrutinize" their site mail

I'm seeing a pattern, LOL again NO.

Again NO that doesn't happen

As stated several times now, we do this only in cases that require it, harrassment complaints, threat complaints, etc.  The scenario you described above has never happened since I have been here and never heard of a case like that so I don't think someone would be "banned" because an admin "misinterpreted" something. So again I'll have to say No that doesn't happen

Okay...thank you, Stacey. One last question...On this subject, are you speaking officially for the entire administration of the Renderosity site including those admins who run the Renderosity store?

I also want to make the small observation that while you've answered "No" to all my specific scenarios, you do seem to be keeping your options open when you added "we do this only in cases that require it, harrassment complaints, threat complaints, etc." and the determination of what is actually meant by "cases that require it" is open to some interpretation, wouldn't you agree?

Hmmmm, I'm going to step in here for a moment on this subject, because I wonder if there is a bit more to this than has been discussed so far. It's been stated by the admins & moderators that site mail or email might be looked at in cases such as "harrassment, attacking, threats, etc." Those particular examples sound okay to me...I'd guess that in such situations that one of the parties (probably the receiver of the messages?) welcomes (maybe even requests) the aid & investigation by the admins.

But the TOS asserts the general right for the admins to look at these things, and I don't see any restrictions stated as to the circumstances. How about these??

• What if a member regularly complains in the forums about the site (e.g., site speed, conversion issues, general fairness of how members are treated by the admins, etc). Does this member become a subject of having their private messages or email scrutinized by the admins?

• What if a member posts a controversial image in the galleries, one which fully conforms to the TOS, but which some admin strongly dislikes. Does this member suddenly get their private messages or email scrutinized by the admins?

• What if a member who purchased a product in the store is really unhappy with the item, complains bitterly about it but can never get the matter resolved either with the merchant or the store manager. The member NEVER makes any threats, or harrassment or personal attacks, but has a heated argument with the store manager about the issue. Can this member's private messages or email be scrutinized by the admins?

• What if an admin learns that a member has been discussing that admin ON A TOTALLY DIFFERENT SITE...perhaps making disparaging remarks about that admin...but NONE of that discussion is ever made on Renderosity. Does this member's private messages or email get rifled through, too?

• What if a Renderosity merchant has a dispute with the admins concerning a product. Can the admins go through the merchant's emails & private messages looking for incriminating evidence against the merchant?

• What happens if a member gets banned from the site because some admin has misinterpreted the member's email or private messages...reads something out of context or thinks it says something it, in fact, doesn't.

I frankly was surprised to hear that the TOS asserted the right of the admins to read these messages & emails. Initially, quite shocked, in fact. I'd like to know the answers to the hypothetical scenarios that I suggested above. I suspect the answer is "Yes" on many if not all of these, and that would be real food for thought.

While I would agree that the admins probably don't have alot of spare time to just sit around reading member's private messages, it does seem like a rather slippery slope and a real intrusion in the member's privacy.

Well, good luck to everyone...

this is clearly just a waste of our breath to go through this endless exercise with the admins here...I, for one, am too tired of it all...I've been lingering around while hanging on to a fraying strand of hope that things would improve...but it's just hopeless and just too damn frustrating...You can hear it in the all too familiar words from the PTB...been there, done that...

just one final disappointment...and Stacey, you're in luck...one less voice giving you a hard time...

peace & love to you all...Jen  :unsure:

Lyne wrote:

Quote - ...as I said in an earlier post...I think there are just too many bells and whistles taking up bandwidth.

I completely agree with you, Lyne. While I DO believe there is an underlying problem of insufficient server capacity, the situation was made worse with all the extra "glitz" added by the programmers when the conversions were made...it was veritable playground, I think. People can agree or disagree whether the bells & whistles look nice or are "fun"...but there's no denying that they suck up bandwidth.

One simple example is adding people's avatars all over the place...sure many people may think that's nice...not uncommon on other sites...but do we need it in the comments section of the galleries? That adds alot to the load...could we REALLY afford (speed-wise) that "enhancement"?? But that's just one example...it's happening everywhere on the site...fancy pop-ups, extra pagination in the galleries & forums (resulting in more page calls), hyper-customization options, etc, etc.

I'm not a coding expert by any means, so I'll just take it at face value that it's true that conversion to php would produce speed improvements...that's what we were told last Fall. But I think any speed gains that might have been attainable were mostly overrun by the added glitz & tricks. What is it people say...Sometimes, LESS IS MORE.

Stacey says that after the conversion is complete they'll address the speed issues...I hope that doesn't mean they're going to start limiting what members/customers can do...less gallery uploads, smaller filesizes, (Fill In The Blank)...rather than fixing the fundamental problems. Frankly, it's hard for me to believe they're going to start removing the bells & whistles after touting how great they are.

Also, check your Hosts file and make sure you don't have any entries for Renderosity in there.

Last year, a solution to a different problem for the site was to make a couple of entries in the Hosts file for Renderosity...but now those entries are not needed and cause the problem you are describing.

hi hon, I didn't think you were harsh at all...it's just frustrating to not be able to enjoy the place as we once could, right? That's why I get so grumpy about this! I'm on high-speed cable and I guess it's faster for me than it is for you on dial-up...so I think you have more to complain about than I do. LOL. But R'osity is still the slowest place that I visit...which is why I only rarely do visit. Take care, Bill

points to Anthony

yep, what he said!

Yes, I visited the site a couple of times this week hoping I would see that the poll had been set up, so I could cast my vote...figured September 1 would have been a good date to start it...but nothing there that I can see poll-wise.

Bill, I suggested the poll not so much to show you how slow it is here, or show me how slow it is, or show any of the other many members who have already complained about the site's speed. We already know. The purpose of the poll, more than anything else, is to give a reality check to what seems to be a divergence of perception between many, many, MANY members and the PTB whose response more often than not is something like "the site is fast for me."

I AM holding my breath for the poll, btw...getting a bit blue colored in the face, too! :crying:

Thank you soooo much, Stacey! I really do appreciate you considering this!

I'm also floored that you took a peek in here during your vacation!! Wow...thank you!!

StaceyG wrote: "I desperately need to step away from the computer for a few days"

um, that would be my fault  :lol:

I hope you enjoy your time off...

I really am sorry if I sound harsh and distrusting...I definitely have a bit of an edge sometimes...R'osity was such a big part of my life before and it can't be the way it is now...so it makes me sad and want to do everything to change it for the better...that's all...

Jen

Hi Stacey, thanks for your response and your interest. Here's my take on the situation:

I actually don't think the poll should be buried inside the annual survey, but should be a stand-alone poll...and here's why. I think there's a really BIG disconnect between what the members feel and what the PTB's say the members feel. I'm not saying the members are being intentionally misled, maybe it's just a case of selective listening by PTB's...hearing more of what they want to hear or what coincides with their own feeling. And I'm not directing that at anyone in particular, please understand...but I think we've seen time and again a stark contrast between what members say in forums & shared PM's versus the PTB's statements that "most members are very happy..." and "we know that because people write us privately because they're reluctant to write positive things in the foums."

A front page poll would provide transparency (and anonymity, too), and transparency would provide believability. People could see the current results right after they've voted and could  go back later to see the updated results. There wouldn't be any filtering or summarization by the PTB's that we get when the results of the annual survey are announced.

A template to run a poll already exists...it's used every month for AOM...and I've already provided some verbage (which of course you are welcome to use). How hard would it really be to do this and settle the debate.

There is precedence for this...a separate poll was run sometime last year regarding the navigation links used at the top of the site's pages.

If this important question is just buried in the annual survey, it won't get the type of visibility it warrants, and the results won't be as transparent.

So my first choice by far would be to run a separate poll with a high visibility so the level of input by members is strong. But if all I can convince you to do is to include it in the annual survey, well that's alot better than where things stood yesterday...but I do think it's an inferior choice.

That's my pitch...thank you again for your interest, Stacey. I REALLY do appreciate your willingness to listen!