I love UltraFractal.  Find it at http://www.ultrafractal.com/

I find it difficult to understand why this is still an issue, unless it is some Grand Guignol exercise in absurdity. 
To the Orbit Trap person...people, whatever, how long do you beat the horse before you realize it's long dead?  How many posts do you make before you realize nobody cares anymore.   But, because my internal censor is on leave of absence, I have to make a few comments, and feel free to attack me at will.

You make an issue out of the ethics of those who do not respond to your questions, comments and suggestions.   I say to you that some time back you made reference to something I said in DA, and you referred to me as "he".  I  privately emailed you to correct the mistaken notion that I am male.  I received no response, nor did you correct the error in your blog.  I have to question your ethics as you have done with others.   My female gender is of importance to very few, but it is of extreme importance to me.   Please correct your error.

The rest of these ridiculous issues with the calendar and Mandelbrot contest have frankly become tedious. 

By the way,I would have been happy to comment on Orbit Trap, but I don't care to make an account only to find that I'm banned.  (not that I wouldn't be in excellent company)

If arrogance is holding opinions that don't meet with the approval of everyone, then HOORAY for arrogance. This thread turned into a "what is art" kind of thing, but your original theme was: I think that if we look at our flames from an outsider's perspective would see something different from what we keep telling ourselves here. After looking at 100 or 200 flames, an outsider would start to see that maybe flames are a dime a dozen, that they are easy to come by - which they are. Outsiders don't care that a tremendous amount of work went into gifting us all with Apophysis and they sure don't care about the math. All they see is a bunch of fuzzy shapes and patterns, which at first glance are beautiful, but after 2 or 3 hundred of them, they all start looking the same. I agree with you 100% on that. That doesn't mean flames aren't beautiful, but that the variations in them may be only vaguely perceptable to the non-Apo eye. And to be completely honest, I am just amazed how often flames are raved about as if they were Rembrandt's museum pieces, when I know they're simply a variation on one of the original set of starter flames, with some gradient adjustment...pretty, yes, but unique? I don't think so, particularly when day after day that same image is presented with some minor adjustment. I do those myself, by the way. :) I just don't expect other Apo users to commend me for my creativity. beebee (unafraid to be unpopular) :)

I go to art museums, and there is so much there that is indescribably beautiful, yet I wouldn't particularly want it on my living room wall. But in a book, on a calendar, or other medium, I'd consider making a purchase. Perhaps by mostly limiting the exposure to prints, the market for digital art is bound to be tiny. I do not attempt to make flames and fractals as a business, and I doubt I ever will. I certainly applaud those who do, tho, and I cheer them on and wish them luck. A few of my images have been used in other ways, however...a cd cover in the Ukraine, another in Australia, limited edition greeting cards in the UK, a silkscreen scarf by a small but emerging fabric business , and one is being used very soon on a band's website. In every case I have given the images for free, but in every case I was approached with $ offers. This led me to wonder if there weren't a totally different market for our designs...wouldn't some of them look fabulous as a wallpaper border, or a fun china pattern, or place mats, or outdoor furniture cushions? I don't know that anyone will get rich selling digital art, but aren't artists supposed to starve in their lifetimes? I may be mistaken, but unless one had a patron, and did commissioned work, the creative people lived the life of bohemians, fed mostly by the love of their art. I now go to find me a beer and browse the galleries. :)

How interesting your comments are, because I have had similar thoughts lately about Apophysis. Although I love using the program, I have stopped posting my images because, as you said, I've seen them all before. Occasionally I create, or see online, an Apo image that is different, or eyecatching, but being so close to the program, I generally recognize images that are very similar to those I've done myself. I think the appreciation part for the viewer is mostly from the Apo user...but what does the general audience see? We appreciate because we know to some degree what the program is capable of, and what its limits seem to be. A non-Apo user, as my friends and family are, sees either a fuzzy shape, or a swirl of color for the most part. Now, an interesting point...I posted some images over a year ago that I have NOT seen recreated in the galleries, and they got barely a notice. I love them no less, and oddly enough, THOSE are the ones my friends and co-workers asked to have for framing. I love Apo, and I will continue to use it, for my own pleasure. I would never want to question what I enjoy because others who do similar work aren't giving me the praise I "deserve". End of babbling :)

I survived the tropical storm part, but Ivan has me scared. Watching the weather channel like a storm junkie from Tampa Bay.

Yes,there is. You just uncheck the little magnifying glass icon on each layer you don't want to zoom.

Awwww geezzzzzz, I gotta READ stuff? Thanks for the reminder, Nick. I'd completely forgotten about that site. Is there a possibility that too much time spent in flames causes memory loss? :) Bee

Thoughtful and helpful responses here. Thank you. I have decided against XD for now. I'll leave that for the experts, whos work I admire so much. I already have UF, and I love it, but haven't played much with it since I found Apo. That has kept me busy for weeks. Time seems to be the biggest factor in my impatience regarding learning new things. Nick, I appreciate your response, and I know that I will ask specific questions when I'm better able to form them in my mind. At the present time, I'm dazed and confused by Apo scripts. I made some minor changes to one, and liked the results, but it was purely an accident. I know nothing about what they mean. Is there somewhere that I can read about the scripts and the various parts so I could perhaps make something intelligent of my own? Again, thanks to all of you who answered. It is obvious that I'd be way over my head with XD. Bee

YAY!!!! We all LOVE Rykk!! And it's a great tutorial. Congratulations, Rick :)

Oh, sure, like my Samurai are gonna let me display them on this site just for the sake of your amusement. HA!!

You da man!!

LOL!!

I agree with Rhaina for the most part. I'm so pleased when an artist who's work I admire posts a comment on an image I've done. Since I only post things I like, if something isn't particularly well received, I'm more surprised than disappointed. If the hot 20 were a contest of some kind, with a cash prize (hint hint) then I'd feel more competitive, but as it is, it's a showcase for the images the viewers like best, and that is just fine with me. By the way, I rarely vote, and when I do, I vote for something truly unique and extraordinary.

I'm surprised sometimes at which images get commented on , and which don't. My favorites don't seem to be crowd pleasers except outside the Rend community, but of course since that means friends and family with no accounts, there wouldn't be comments. My Circus Wagon got only 5 comments here, and yet was chosen by a customer as the image they wanted to use on party invitations. Ya just never know. :)