You just take care of yourself, Melissa. So glad to hear you've wrangled a dinosaur laptop to spend some time with. Do they have WiFi routers in hospitals? Get better... and get on back... okay? :)

I just love these "blasts from the past", Barb... thanks so very much! :)

Thank you, God... and Jenny... so very much for this news.

Thank you, Jenny... my thoughts and prayers continue...

The only news I can find is that Metairie is in Jefferson Parish. At wwltv.com there is an instruction listing for all of the different parishes in New Orleans as to when and how you may return to your homes. For Jefferson Parish it states: "Jefferson: You can return Monday with your ID. You will be allowed to collect your belongings and will not be allowed to return for a month."

I truly hope that Joey will contact someone here soon as I, too, am worried about him.

A real treat and a wonderful tour, Barb.... thank you! Now... if you make me come over there with chicken soup and a mustard plaster (ever heard tell of one?) you'll be one sorry gal. It smells... it's extremely spicy ... it's hot... and I'm not talking about the chicken soup! lol! I sure hope you feel better really soon, hon. Thank you for an always delightful reminder of the very best!

Hugs!
Helen

Me, too... or three... agree! ;)

I absolutely agree with you, Barb. And I've been voting my fool head off since reading this thread. But I don't believe there is an "elitist attitude" permeating this thread. A forum is the medium wherein people can air their thoughts and opinions, isn't it? Personally, I don't ride a high horse... I prefer to perch upon a stunted donkey... so that I don't have too far to fall when someone kicks my ass. ;) Happens all the time, too. My two cents worth was only to point out that the Hot 20 doesn't seem to encompass the talent displayed in the fractal gallery the way it does in other software galleries. I have no intention of naming the people whose works I think should be profiled there but aren't (and I don't mean mine... I'm already in there and for that I'm eternally grateful and alot of the time embarassed) ... and I just feel that someone "shopping" for ideas in the fractal world and using the Hot 20 as a catalogue might well think it's not what they were hoping for. Let's get out there and vote, guys and gals... and keep an eye on the results.

Matt... hey... :) Is Odie an elephant or is this a macro shot? Damn fine photography, at any rate. We're like Motel 6... we'll leave the light on for you.

What I find most disconcerting about the Hot20 (lately, and with a few exceptions) is that it misrepresents the Fractal Gallery in a punitive way. I know nothing about, say, 3D Studio Max or Cinema 4D... but I greatly admire the resulting images from those programs in the hands of the talented. So I cruise through the Hot20 in those galleries to get an idea of the cream of the crop. And it seems to me that I'm seeing just that. There is precious little coddling, even between good friends, in those galleries and the constructive criticism that shapes the comment section is enlightening and informative... even to someone like myself who has no idea what's being suggested. It is rather evident that votes in those galleries are witheld unless and until a certain criteria is met. That criteria being a well-executed representation of what the software is capable of producing in the hands of the seriously motivated.

I'll admit that the comments I offer under gallery images are few and far between and I apologize up front for that. But I do exercise my voting priveledges when I view an image that deserves recognition. If an image is truly exceptional (in my humble opinion) I make a note for myself to go back the next day and vote for it again... and again the day after that. It's a bit disheartening, though, to realize that there is a voting blitz (a kind of round robin, if you will) going on en masse... and my particular choices seem to disappear in the dust.

If, as Harmen suggests, the Hot20 is purely for enjoyment, perhaps it should be called the Fun20... thereby representing the lighter side of fractal manipulation. I am not an artist, I'm simply a fractal enthusiast ... but I feel that the Hot20 cannot hope to inspire much enthusiasm in those who visit with the expectation of gazing upon the "hottest" creative interpretations using the latest and greatest fractal software.

I will continue to vote without the V and hope that one day the Hot20 will, once again, live up to its name. :)

I agree with Keith... what a breath of fresh air. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone had to enter to Fractal Gallery through this window? Excellent eye candy this week... thank you Barb and Nick! :)

Hi Eric, I'm on the mailing list and I have the new version installed. The bugs? Yeah, they're that big... and there's an army of them... ;) I keep hearing William Hung singing "She crashes! She crashes!"... lol! Ah, well... for the price we're paying it's all good... :)

Thank you, tresamie. Of course, I saved the wrong files before I uninstalled the old version... mostly because I'm not yet familiar on the whole saving business in APO. Saved myself a nice bunch of .jpegs but none of my flame files... lol! Live and learn! ;)

Thanks ever so much! :)

Thanks, gunsan! I've taken your advice and copied my saved flames to another folder. Is there a different URL for downloading the new beta?