The reason you're all getting such low scores is that you aren't having any variety. Toss something new around for a change.
I've got an idea I've tossed around that'll hopefully help get rid of this slump, but seriously, 5 screenshots in a row. They all look cookie cutter, save the last one that's got a little bit of flair on it.
I'm tired of this thing the community's got going with their blues and whites and their blacks and whites and their blacks and whites and their blacks and whites and their blacks and whites. It's such a simple formula, and it just looks plain.
I want to challenge you guys out there to genuinely toss out something different, because really, you guys need it.
senex.disrupted.net
03:45 pm, Wednesday, September 07, 2005 (4 years ago)
Totally agree, just the thing is, that it's a hype atm. black/white is hype, j3 is hype. Guess we just have to wait for new hypes? Guess not. I think from now on, only original desktops should be upped (although it's hardly possible). We'll just have to wait i guess.
It's all a matter of personal preference. The admins featuring and giving the subs those high ratings share the same personal preference as the people uploading them.
There's nothing really wrong with it other than it's annoying to see but custo changes trends every 3 or so years and this too will pass.
customize.org staff member relations - accounts visionleague™
Screenshots, to me, are getting to the point where it's what's under the hood that counts. Sadly, a simple jpg can't capture that sort of thing. Maybe one day it will be possible to upload screencaptured videos of your desktop in action to show off all the neat wang dizzles that a picture doesn't really display.
You can burn people for finding a design they like or VS they like and going with it. Just because alot of people like one particular VS or wall and decide to show how they have modded it or used it, then all of a sudden they have to be challenged?
If it's going to be an issue I will stop posting my work... if that encourages people to be original then so be it.
Lets see some new VSs and wallpapers come out then. Lets see whoever complains about this to make a new VS or wallpaper. Cause I thought that's what it was all about? Modding, skinning, designing etc. to share with the community.
So either step up to the plate, or keep your mouth shut.
This is not directed towards senex or anyone else, just stateing my opinion.
"If it's going to be an issue I will stop posting my work... if that encourages people to be original then so be it."
i agree w/ mojo, the one i submitted a while back called TWOZERO05 had little animations for everything, like the taskbar flashed when i opened a new app was added to it, the start button faded (invisible) then revisibled when u clicked, etc. i wish we could upload vids :( not that i know how to capture my SS anyway heh i also think the magazines of the future should have vids play on paper thin, disposable screens. game mags for example could show game trailers for thier reviews. sorry to go off topic :P
Coca Cola, Pepsi, Virgin.. what do they have in common?
They're all different brands of cola. The same product in different packaging? People like a particular brand because they have a *little* difference, where it be in taste or a gimmick. In the end, it's down to personal preference. People share their opinions on their particular favourite drink, is it a crime? No.
My point, leave people to it. Is it hurting anyone? No.
This thread has made people 'dislike' releasing or wanting to release future work. That is a crime against art, in my opinion.
Let's put it this way, seeing alot of a good thing is much better than seeing alot of trash.
Keep releasing, it's not about your stuff really it's about people becoming complacent with a certain style and not being able to move on either because they lack the ingenuity or are just too lazy and know that they will get a high score based on the current trend.
All you have to do to fix it is rate based on originality and that will stop the copycats!
customize.org staff member relations - accounts visionleague™
mojo's got a point. The fact that Oxygeneric+ has customized sounds mentioned, made me wonder... What is the next step. Some of this stuff is getting tiring. I disagree with phunky a little however. Check this screenshot site and tell me what you think: http://screenshots.haque.net/screenshots/ no flames, no fighting, some cool stuff, some junk, yes but not complicated with, and I don't want you to take this wrong, elitism for lack of a better word. I know custo is custo, but I really am afraid of releasing anything here.
I just meant that it's become a little TOO competitive . I've been getting the vibe that certain skinners with certain styles automatically get high ratings. It makes crappy skinners like me not bother to submit a second time. And anyway, I don't think 5 people using the same wallpaper in consecutive screenshots is a bad thing, especially not for the wall designer ;-) j3. I think i'm babbling. I didn't mean to say fighting. I am babbling. sorry. I need a Mountain Dew.
I was once told (in third grade, or around that time) that most of the people who copy other people's work are doing it simply because they greatly admire it. I like to think that we're a little more advanced here than third grade art class - and the caliber of the submissions I see confirms that - but I think the same principle also applies. Disregarding whether or not a certain style is labeled a "trend", I think that the majority of the screenshots we see are people picking up a style that is fresh and trying to show how much they appreciate the artist's effort. At the same time, each screenshot interprets the original piece a little differently. The differences might be hard to pick up, or even impossible to detect in an image file (this goes back to the issue of "video screenshots"). However, it is often those small tweaks that spark the interest in a person to create something original themselves, and hopefully submit it here - so it can be used in screenshots, and so on and so forth. This community is one that celebrates the talent of its members, and the contributions we make help the community grow - even if we can't see that at the time.
Just think of all the poor souls stuck using the default Luna theme - maybe because they've never seen anything better.
One of those sponge cake mini loaves would hit the spot right now.
The problem is not in the fact that people continually use the same wallpapers, visual styles, Winamp skins, etc.. because there are only a finite amount of those particular items available. But one of the primary elements of a well-designed functional desktop is just that: design. If you want to use one of j3's walls or Nano, Untitled, or Axiis-o, go for it. But change the design around a little. The first time somebody paired this wall with that visual style, it was awesome. People went nuts. But that excitement will gradually decline as more and more people use the same visual style, paired with the same wall, maybe with a slight color change. I think the community has slowly become complacent; they know that if they do this (Nano VS), this (j3concepts' wall), and this (Miranda + clistnicer), they're guaranteed a 85-90 ranking from the admins. Now, that's not to say that these items are bad. This many people would not use them if they weren't; in fact, in most cases, they're some of the best and nicest-looking of their kind. But people take their appreciation of that too far and refuse to accept alternatives. I think a part of this pseudo-conformity is due to a relative lack of new discoveries on the customization front. When Miranda was first released, Reshacking first became commonplace, Samurize began to be used and its power tapped, and HTML first found its way onto a desktop, it was groundbreaking. People had a million new things they could do, and do them they did. But over time, the ideas ran out. Things were being recycled on the sheer basis of "That looks cool." Half the time, it's not particularly functional outside of the moment before you press the Print Screen button. So keep this in mind: when you're designing your next screenshot, don't focus on the elements themselves, focus on the way the elements are tied together. Make the screenshot more than just complementary elements thrown onto a canvas; make them part of a coherant whole, a desktop. Food for thought.
(And yes, I know I have no room to talk given that I've not submitted anything in over a year.)
It seems one of the main reasons for the latest flat trend is: it's easy. Easy to mod, easy to match, easy to make matching skins. You dont really see a whole lot of inspirat mods, besides a recolour here and there. Alot of modders have limited PS skills, otherwise they'd be creating VS's instead of tweaking them.
This isnt exactly on topic, but I wanted to address this because it is a common complaint.
"I've been getting the vibe that certain skinners with certain styles automatically get high ratings. It makes crappy skinners like me not bother to submit a second time."
Yes, certain skinners do reach a level that most of their work recieves high ratings. But at some point they were the skinner who made crappy skins and got bad ratings. As their skills developed and their work improved their ratings went up. I remember when imrik first started here and he used to ask me how to do things in screenshots and now he can do things that I wouldnt even imagine doing. Now just because they have reached a point where they continually produce high quality work, that doesnt mean that they "automatically" recieve a high rating. If they dont bring their A game on a piece, its not gonna get as high a rating.
lmao! just hit me, someone search a fair bit back and tell me if another thread like this exists about heylove ... or senex ... or mojo or [insert godly name here]. :O ... j3 you little bitch, suck it up. we love you ... your themes, not you. :P ... when you die, we keep your themes. X|
How about we make a numerical rating mandatory if a comment is submitted, instead of the other way around. I see a lot of nice comments in reviews with those cold empty dashes next to them. Let the numbers really talk. Maybe have the a staff ratings and general public ratings averaged together somehow. just a thought... Hell, everyone hopes to get a good review here. Some don't care as much, but it's a bit of recognition. Like an A on a test. It ain't gonna stop the world from turning for anyone, but it's a fine thing to happen. OK I'll get back in my cell now.
I, myself like the "elitism" here. If I submit my work elsewhere, all i get are good jobs or where is this from. It gives me nothing to fight for. Custo gives me motivation to do better than what i have done before. You don't get that if no one challenges you.
...so shouldn't it be titled "rankings"? Thanks for the info, but the reasons at the bottom obviously do not apply in the screenshot section. i.e. a skins pixel size and "functionality". You can't actually "use" a screenshot. All the more reason I feel to rethink the screenshot rating or ranking or whatever system. Not to nitpick but if you sort screenshots by ranking, you will see some 101 point something's in there. I guess we really will just have to be patient to see something really original to knock them out of the lead. They are from 2001, around the time when something called XP first came out, if I remember.
the way i always saw it was, that i'd never use wallpapers or vs' from here and always find or make my stuff from stratch or find it somewhere else on the net. This way would eliminate my desktop having the same vs or wall as anybody else on the site. Makes for a nice formula :D
REIKO: those 3 categories are very old and just examples. We usually go by artwork, creativity and originality.
I don't see screenshots neccesarily as a way to be different from anybody else. For example, if me and j3 have almost identical setups... who cares? If I like my desktop and Im happy with it, then thats all that really matters. Trends come and go, because people see a style or a look that they like and want to mimic it. There is nothing wrong with that.
Now with that said, I agree that seeing the same screenshot over and over again does get annoying. Therefore what I propose is that if you like using an untitled vs mod or nano mod or whatever, but someone just submitted a screenshot that looks like what you are using. Then hold on to yours, you dont have to submit another copy of what we have already seen. Unless you have something unique or original, there isnt much point in submitting it.
I used to be a screenshot machine and submitted a new one at least every few weeks, but I've gotten to the point where I use the same setups every time and I rotate between a few of my favorite suites. Currently Im using the nano vs. Although, I could probably whip up a pretty nice screenshot of it, it would be nothing we all havent seen before.
I guess I stand somewhat on both sides of the issue. Trends are fine, in fact they are nice compliments to artists like j3. I would be honored to know that many people are using my work. But I second senex's statement when he challenges everyone to have some creativity and originality.
I really like this screenshot: http://www.customize.org/details/41770 Because it uses all the current "trends", but uses some creativity such as editing the wallpaper and the visual style to make it more unique.
So basically, its cool if a lot of you have similar styles right now and like the same trends, but its not neccesary to submit the same screenshot over and over again. If someone already submitted it, then keep yours to yourself.
And this is somewhat off topic, but when a really good wallpaper is submitted. Its not a race to see who can submit the first crappy screenshot using it. Take your time and really put in effort to make a good screenshot and do the wallpaper justice. I just hate seeing an amazing wallpaper submitted and then 20 minutes later a screenshot using that wallpaper with nothing customized and no matching.
"And this is somewhat off topic, but when a really good wallpaper is submitted. Its not a race to see who can submit the first crappy screenshot using it. Take your time and really put in effort to make a good screenshot and do the wallpaper justice. I just hate seeing an amazing wallpaper submitted and then 20 minutes later a screenshot using that wallpaper with nothing customized and no matching"
OK fuck yall then im gonna stay the asshole. It's all i'm being good at. Shove your gestapo ratings UP YOUR ASSES. Don't welcome new ideas, and eat shit. Cookie cutters. pwah.
+1 to what FF said. everyone should take extra time and go the extra distance to encourage unique screenshots. distance yourselves from eachother and expand the custo pool of awexomeness.
