Monthly No Prize Contest (NPC): Comments (1/5)

[BWS's ghost]

Guidelines for NPC moderators
Step 1: position arrow on the words above then single click the left button on your mouse


Please enter all comments about the monthly "No Prize Contest" (NPC) by clicking "Reply to topic" below the last post on the screen.


To all month moderators of the games and of devoted statistics' accounts: please add the word "Panoramio" before any account devoted to contests or statistics

(game by BWS)

[BWS's ghost]

ok, andre has gotten us started! thanks, andre

[© Andre Speek]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

ok, andre has gotten us started! thanks, andre

May the first man win !


or was it "may the best man...?"

[Nawitka]

Great idea. I thought the rules were very clear, but now that I look at my photo collection I have a question.

1. I have a photo. There is a single solitary tree. Also there are some other peripheral trees not nearby the solitary tree. Does that count? If that's too vague, then I'll post a link to the photo.

2. Is it the intention that the single solitary tree is the subject of the photo? Or can it be a supporting character while the photo is actually about something else?

OK, so I had two questions.

[BWS's ghost]

hi nawitka! i was afraid such questions were coming

my intention is that the main subject is a single, solitary tree standing by itself, although some other things, including other trees or parts thereof, not touching or immediately adjacent to the main tree may be somewhere in the frame!

is that "legal" enough for you?

be warned however: one tree completely by itself, i think, stands a much better chance of winning a contest about "solitary trees"!

cheers, brian

p.s. - you have until the end of day March 7 to post your photo, or change the photo in your original post! (NOTE: that last bit is an addition to rule #2)

[BWS's ghost]

if the number of photos and/or votes becomes very high, we will probably have to go with some type of system where the contestants count the votes.

i propose that, instead of counting your own votes (i really hate cheating!) the first entrant counts the second entrant's votes and so on, up to the last entrant who counts the first entrant's votes. all results are posted by the contestants as forum replies, then we can all find the winner, or maybe a top ten!

if anyone disappears for a week at the end of the competition, we will need alternate counters for those people.

of course, you may want to double-check your counting buddy's arithmetic by also counting up your own votes!

i hope all you contestants and potential contestants are up to the task!

[© Andre Speek]

Quote © Phoenix:

Well, here's mine: a poplar tree behind my house. There have been plenty of pictures taken of this tree already!

Then it's a popular tree, not a poplar tree. Or could be a popular poplar tree...

[BWS's ghost]

how did you move that comment andre? are you a forum moderator?

has anyone ever suggested allowing all forum creators the ability to edit, delete, or move postings that are in their own forum threads? cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

we now have 16 entries in the contest! our latest is from Snemann who is a long-term Panoramian - thanks for entering our, so far, little contest!

i am hesitantly going to propose a new rule to moderate any potential for some competitors crying foul. no, i don't want to limit who can join, i just want to point out which photos have been as they say "Photo-shopped"

i propose simply that all competitors who have entered, or wish to enter, a modified photo into the contest should title it as such, within their forum entry, to read something like:

My Tree (HDR effect) or
My Tree (coloration effect) or
My Tree (reverse color effect - wow!)

basically, anything beyond a little brightness and contrast control (you decide how much is "little"!), or conversion to b/w or grayscale (which is obvious!) should be labelled as such.

i simply wish to enable voters who are sensitive to this ongoing controversy the ability to skip, or maybe concentrate only on, those that have special processing effects added.

i hope i did not offend anyone as i certainly did not intend to! i like effects, but i also have my personal maximum tolerable effects

cheers all, brian

p.s. - if there is no objection, then please start labeling your entries as shown above. i will add the "official" rule in the next day or so.

[Jessica G.]

Good rule, Brian. I'll label mine right away!

[BWS's ghost]

thanks jessica!

i'll add the new rule and hope that all entrants abide by it, but no one can really know for sure which photos have been altered as it is not always easy to tell, unless the photographer notes it. i am just trying to make the competition as fair as possible, in an unfair world!

one more idea. maybe we can have 2 categories of "awards":

1. best use of effects (the "best dressed" award)
2. best unaltered (the "au naturel" award)

the awards would be based on highest vote count among those labelled or not labelled as having an added effect.

i think that even a b/w or grayscaled photo should be in category 1, and maybe even those using a polarizing filter. now we begin to split hairs...

cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

please note rule changes! (see the competition forum for full details)

new rules: #3 for photos with modifications (see my posting of 03 Mar 2008 10:18 pm above, but read rules for details) and #5 for the counting of votes (see my posting of 01 Mar 2008 03:50 am above).

also, note a change to the time span of the voting period (was from the 8th to the end of month - now from the 8th to the 21st to allow for counting votes, reporting and setting up a new contest by end of month), and the maximum number of photos that one person can vote on when the time comes, which was unlimited but is now 5.

thanks for entering and good luck! cheers, brian

p.s. - if you wish to change your photo or withdraw from the contest you may do so by changing your original post at any time before the 8th!

[skida]

I agree with the rule changes and have labelled my photo accordingly. I hope everyone reads this!

[BWS's ghost]

please look above for summary of recent rules updates

please keep all titles and additional comments (if any, due to rule #3) to a bare minimum. i want to make it easier on the eyes, and the time, of the voters who will be looking thru the many trees in the forest we're growing here, and to get as many entries onto 1 page as possible!

something similar to the following is ideal (only place a parenthesized comment under your photo if you must due to rule #3):


A tree in my local park

PHOTO

(polarizer filter used)


or


My favorite tree

PHOTO

(HDR effect)


i thank you in advance for the other contestants, the voters and myself! cheers, brian

[Matthew Winn]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

one more idea. maybe we can have 2 categories of "awards":

1. best use of effects (the "best dressed" award)
2. best unaltered (the "au naturel" award)

the awards would be based on highest vote count among those labelled or not labelled as having an added effect.

i think that even a b/w or grayscaled photo should be in category 1, and maybe even those using a polarizing filter. now we begin to split hairs...

I think that's a little extreme. If you want to say that black and white images or those using a polariser are "effects" then what about the enhanced saturation common to just about all compact digital cameras, or the sharpening they all apply? I'd call it an effect if it's an artistic decision that causes a substantial change to the image after it has left the camera.

To put it another way, an effect is a change applied after the picture has been taken rather than an irreversible one built into the original image. If a picture is taken on black and white film then it's not an effect because the decisions have been taken at the same time as the picture and can't be changed. If the original image is a full colour one and then the colour is removed because the picture looks better that way then it's an effect.

[BWS's ghost]

hi matthew,

my intention with rule #3 is only to point out significantly different views from the one you might possibly see with the unaided eye. of course, as you say, all cameras (not necessarily digital only) modify the view based on the lens itself, the film used, the internal software in the case of digitals, filtering, etc., but usually not to such an extent that the resulting image is very unnatural in appearance.

if you read rule #3 in detail, i had already decided not to include b/w or grayscale effect (due to film type, or software effect) as a "mentionable" since it is usually obvious, except maybe in a very dark picture.

i do not want to exclude, or hinder, any entries and in fact wish entrants would keep their "significant" comments to a bare minimum, or none at all if nothing substantial was done via software editing (see rule #3 for details).

the use of physical polarizer filters should really not need mentioning, but if you like, you may. any other physical filters (besides UV) such as blue tint, orange tint, etc. should be mentioned.

anyway, there is nothing keeping anyone from entering, or leaving, the contest if they don't like the rules. i am just trying to make them as fair as possible for everyone, which is impossible of course

cheers,
brian

[Nawitka]

Another question : Is there a tag for our entered photos? Just in case global tags ever start working again ...

Thinking ahead, I hope there will be more contests like this! Maybe 2008_03_Contest ? I always like the date in this order so that it sorts correctly in a list!

[BWS's ghost]

that's a good suggestion nawitka, and one i'd thought about earlier especially if there is a large number of entrants. however, since the tag system isn't working and hasn't been for some time, i think we can skip it for now.

if contestants would like to tag anyway, to organize their personal collection, feel free to do so, and use nawitka's suggested format of:

2008 03 Contest

with spaces instead of '_' though as it's easier to type and spaces are legal in tags. i just created that tag and tested it OK on my potential entries.

i plan to keep the contest running monthly with a new subject each month, picked either by a poll or the winner of the current month's contest.

any other suggestions on picking new subjects? maybe a popular topic from the "share your photos" forum, but only subjects that are narrow enough in focus to make the contest entries similar.

cheers, brian

[Matthew Walters]

Hi Brian, so you want a separate voting topic - if so, I can lock the image posting one to prevent late entries.

Matthew

[domispinella]

(alt+p)[/img]

[domispinella]

help me to send e foto thank you

[BWS's ghost]

Quote Matthew Walters:

Hi Brian, so you want a separate voting topic - if so, I can lock the image posting one to prevent late entries.

Matthew

i'd rather not lock the topic, but thanks for offering. i may take you up on the offer at some point though.

it's an idea i had considered, but decided it's better to try to keep everything together, and people are cooperating with the rules so far. i'd also prefer to allow people to adjust incorrect titles and other text, and even withdraw from the contest if they like, during the voting phase by editing their text or deleting their photo.

the only problems i see (other than a messy forum): 1. late entries, which can either be ignored or deleted, and 2. people changing their photo after the voting has started, which i'm sure most people would not try to do and would be obvious to some other contestants who can cry "foul" and they'd be eliminated from the contest!

i'm compiling a simple database (in a spreadsheet actually) of entries including: sequential entry#, name, user# (in case of name changes), photo ID#, and date of entry, just in case any questions arise during voting and counting.

cheers,
brian

[BWS's ghost]

Quote domispinella:

help me to send e foto thank you

i see that you have succeeded in entering your photo. good luck!
cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

only about 3 and a half hours remain to enter your photo in the contest!

deadline is at midnight "panoramio time" tonight! cheers, brian

[muba]

Hi

I was going to ask about time. Namely which time zone are we working in. Now the question is what's Panoramio Time? It looks like BST, but I may be wrong.

[Jessica G.]

It must be London time - BST is British Summer Time, right?

[BWS's ghost]

i don't know exactly which time zone "panoramio" is in. i assume it is western europe or england. maybe it's greenwich mean time?

i have simply based the rules for this international contest on the date/time stamps on the forum postings, which for me are currently 5 hours ahead of my time, eastern u.s. standard time (soon to be daylight savings time though).

you can check your personal time difference by doing a "preview" on any forum posting screen and check the date/time at the top of the preview.

cheers, brian

[Will51]

You are right Brian It is indeed the Greenwich mean time.
Greetings, William.

Vous avez raison Brian, c'est bien l'heure de Greewich.
Ici en Belgique , c'est Greewich + 1 et de fin mars à fin octobre, Greenwich + 2.

[BWS's ghost]

thanks william for the confirmation!

only about 2 hours to go! i had better decide about my own entry...

[Nawitka]

As usual, we on the Wet Coast get less time than everyone else ... It is now early afternoon (2:15 pm) here, but the contest wraps at 4:00 pm! Well, I have my entry in, I will have to be careful in future not to procrastinate until the last day!

Just kidding -- GMT is fine with me. I hope anyone playing in Hawaii has their wits about them today!

[Nawitka]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

only about 2 hours to go! i had better decide about my own entry...

Better take a fire extinguisher with you, Brian, or you may not have an entry left at all!

[BWS's ghost]

still about 15 minutes to go, nawitka, and i'm still not sure i'll go with the fiery tree! you thought you were a procrastinator i'd like to be the last entrant anyway, unless someone "beats" me to it! cheers, brian

[Nawitka]

So we are supposed to do the voting on the photo thread? ... or is there going to be another new voting thread?

How many entries are there? (Sure wish global tags were working ...

[BWS's ghost]

yes, vote right in the original contest photo thread (see rule #4). i've updated the top of the rules and just after the last entry (mine!) to remind everyone of that rule!

there are only 3 pages with a total of 42 entries so not having the global tags working is not so bad. maybe they will be back soon! cheers, brian

p.s.-i have put all 42 thumbnails onto 1 page, just before where the voting begins!

[Matthew Winn]

Quote Nawitka:

As usual, we on the Wet Coast get less time than everyone else ... It is now early afternoon (2:15 pm) here

Hey, it's not the rest of the world's fault if people in North America don't get out of bed until the afternoon.

Quote:

Just kidding -- GMT is fine with me.

GMT (or more accurately UTC) has been the standard timezone for international purposes for decades. It annoys me when some sites use their local timezone, apparently unaware that there's an entire world out there, and don't even bother to tell people where they're located.

[BWS's ghost]

nothing is permanent, which is why i chose the current system time of panoramio considering that even GMT/UTC may eventually be superceded by "google time" (that would be west coast of u.s.) as CPT (Current Panoramio Time)!

i like to think loooong term even when starting a simple contest. who knows how much this will snowball in coming months, and i really don't like to change rules!

however, in the interest of making this monthly contest self-sustaining and self-governing i will now add 2 new rules, which are effective now but don't affect the voting or counting stages of the contest:

1) the winner will choose the subject for the next month's contest. as a suggestion, they may pick from among the topics in the "Share your photos" forum thread, but not one that is so narrow that few can enter the contest, such as "Glaciers" or "Sydney Opera House" nor one that is so broad that the possible entries are infinite and therefore impossible to compare, such as "Black and White" or "Sadness".

the winner will also be responsible for creating the new forum topic thread before month's end.

2) the very first entrant in each month's contest (starting next month) will be the primary contact and in charge of answering questions and managing the entries, the voting, the counting and the reporting stages, especially resolving any disputes over vote counts (my job this month and i may also act as an alternate until the contest "smooths out" and people really understand the rules).

this special role will be pointed out WITH VERY LARGE BOLD LETTERING right before the first entry position so no one can say they didn't see/read it! actually, it may seem like a lot of work, but no real work is necessary where people read, understand and follow all the rules, which most people are doing so far. if the first entrant declines, or disappears, they are eliminated from the contest and may not re-enter the contest that month. the job will then go to the 2nd entrant, and so on, until someone accepts the role, or no contestants remain!

i would like to have all the rules (after i finalize them with these additions and "simplified" english in the coming days) translated/interpreted by people who are fluent in english and 1 or more other languages. any volunteers? i really don't want to trust an e-translator except with very simple expressions.

thanks and cheers, brian

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Hi Brian,

I'll translate the rules in french for next contest, if finalized !), if you want to !

Cheers

PS : Snemann is now in lead with 10 votes, just in front of you and Roland1 with 9. Very exciting !

[BWS's ghost]

Quote Pierre-Jean Durieu:

thanks a lot for the quick offer! i'll let you know when i've posted the "final" version of the rules with the additions and as much simplification as possible. i tend to be too verbose and use complex sentences, i know i can hardly stop myself from typing now, but i am hungry and must eat!

still 13 days of voting time to go. i hope all the contestants are mentioning the contest to their "favorites" so we all have many more votes cheers, brian

[Will51]

Here is the current classification after voting 26

Name Vote
Andre Speek................
© Phoenix..................4
Kamaly.....................
Jelmer Wielema.............5
Axiome.....................1
Picsonthemove..............1
Coconuts...................1
Gauravcreations.com........
©BBFant....................1
Don Albonico...............7
Stenina_Irina..............1
Skida......................
Dana Jensen................1
Szekér.....................2
Aldo Ferretto..............4
Snemann ..................10
Ianwstokes.................5
©Marilyn Whiteley..........4
Tashimelampo...............1
MHiller....................6
©Daniela Brocca............
© Annick Restle............6
Nawitka....................2
Matthew Walters............1
Bpnjensen..................7
AsklepioZ..................1
Tabiderno..................3
Agustin Martinez...........
DavidRosalba...............2
© Roland1..................9
Pierre-Jean Durieu.........4
© Muba.....................1
Domispinella...............
© Werner Daehler...........7
Photodegraff...............2
Normand Richard............1
(m)(o)(n)(i)(k)(a).........3
Will51.....................5
Jean & Co (nano13).........1
Janina_Bielenko............
Murart.....................4
Brian W. Schaller..........9

[BWS's ghost]

thanks william! i see you didn't vote for my entry but, don't forget, you may change your vote thru the 21st cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

current standings in the competition after 44 votes, including Janina_Bielenko's on 11 Mar 2008 08:41 pm:

votes / entrant name
------------------------
14 Don Albonico
14 Roland1
14 Snemann
13 Brian W. Schaller
12 bpnjensen
11 werner daehler
10 Annick Restle
10 MHiller
9 ianwstokes
9 murart
8 Jelmer Wielema
7 (m)(o)(n)(i)(k)(a)
7 Phoenix
7 photodegraff
6 tashimelampo
6 Will51
5 Aldo Ferretto
5 Marilyn Whiteley
5 Nawitka
5 tabiderno
4 Pierre-Jean Durieu
3 Dana Jensen
3 kamaly
3 normand richard
2 axiome
2 BBFant
2 DavidRosalba
2 muba
2 picsonthemove
2 skida
2 Stenina_Irina
2 Szeker
1 AsklepioZ
1 Coconuts
1 Janina_Bielenko
1 Jean & Co (nano13)
1 Matthew Walters
0 Agustin Martinez
0 Andre Speek
0 Daniela Brocca
0 domispinella
0 gauravcreations.com

voting continues thru the 21st of march! cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

here are the "simplified" rules!

they are now longer than ever, but still only about 10 minutes to read at a moderate pace understanding may take longer... i've simplified the english a lot and made most sub-rules (lettered) into a single line to make for easier translation and reference.

summary of changes which will go into effect NEXT MONTH:
- 10 days for entries instead of 7, and 10 days for voting instead of 14 (#1a and 1b)
- voting by sequential entry (#2c/4a) instead of name to allow easier typing and more importantly, accurate computer totaling of votes by moderators and any interested entrants (name typos in votes won't allow auto counting by spreadsheet function). don't worry, you're not all just #'s to me
- maximum choices allowed per vote based on total entries (#4b)
- maximum number of entrants can be set by the moderators, if necessary! (#1a)
- 1st and 2nd entrants are the primary and alternate contest moderators (this will be noted IN BIG BOLD LETTERS along with details of duties at the top of each contest topic thread, just before the first entry position!)

the following will go into effect now:
- entrants will also report their own vote count as a double-check (#5b/7a)
- all cases for missing counts are specified and handled in rules (#5c,d,e)
- ties can be broken to determine the overall winner (#8b)
- winner now chooses the next month's subject (#9a)

that's about it! let me know if you find any errors or have any suggestions. thanks and cheers brian


please click here to go to the rules topic.

[Matthew Walters]

Brian, congratulations on organising such a well-run contest.

Matthew

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Pour les francophones :

Traduction en français des règles du jeu

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Hi Brian,

Rules are perfect, 10 minutes to read, an hour to translate but so easy to understand !

Cheers

[BWS's ghost]

Quote Matthew Walters:

Brian, congratulations on organising such a well-run contest.

Matthew

thanks a lot, matthew! i'm glad to see my efforts are appreciated and that everyone is following the rules. i hope that the coming months see more entries and votes!

cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

Quote Pierre-Jean Durieu:

Hi Brian,

Rules are perfect, 10 minutes to read, an hour to translate but so easy to understand !

Cheers

Thank you, Jean-Pierre! I am now pleased to invite all the French-speaking people of the Panoramio world into the next contest!

Did you use an e-translator and make the necessary adjustments, or translated sentence by sentence? The first is acceptable (that is what I plan to use if no more volunteers), I am just curious how you made the translation. greetings, Brian


e-translated to "french" (E-traduit en "français&quot:
"Merci, Jean-Pierre! J'ai maintenant le plaisir d'inviter tous les habitants de francophones du Panoramio le monde dans le prochain concours!

Avez-vous utilisé un e-traducteur et d'apporter les ajustements nécessaires, ou traduit phrase par phrase? Le premier est acceptable (c'est ce que j'ai envisagez d'utiliser l'absence d'autres volontaires), je suis juste curieux de la façon dont vous faites la traduction. Salutations, Brian"

[Daniela Brocca]

Here you have the Italian translation

Qui c'è la traduzione in italiano delle regole del concorso mensile

[BWS's ghost]

Molto grazie, Daniela!
Merci beaucoup, Pierre-Jean!

i have started a new forum topic for all the translations of the rules. please copy and paste your translation to a reply there. after copying, please delete the text from this topic leaving only a pointer to the new topic. i have copied all to a document on my computer, so don't worry about losing your work! cheers, brian

Ho iniziato un nuovo forum per tutte le traduzioni delle regole. Si prega di copiare e incollare la traduzione di una risposta. Dopo la copia, si prega di eliminare il testo di questo tema, lasciando solo un puntatore al nuovo argomento. Ho copiato tutto a un documento sul mio computer, quindi non preoccuparti di perdere il vostro lavoro!

J'ai commencé un nouveau sujet pour toutes les traductions des règles. S’il vous plaît copier et de coller votre traduction à une réponse là. Après la copie, s’il vous plaît supprimer le texte de cette question laissant seulement un pointeur vers le nouveau sujet. J'ai copié tous à un document sur mon ordinateur, ne vous inquiétez pas de perdre votre travail!

[BWS's ghost]

daniela and pierre-jean,

because of the placement of the rules in a separate topic, the words "right here in this forum topic" must now read "in the contest forum topic" instead or it will cause confusion and people posting in the rules topic by mistake!

please update the text in the "basic rules" and add the new "note:" under that section. also, please update rules #2, 2b, 4, 7, 9c and 10 as i did in the english version where you see the italics.

sorry about that, but you did volunteer! cheers, brian

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

Did you use an e-translator and make the necessary adjustments, or translated sentence by sentence? The first is acceptable (that is what I plan to use if no more volunteers), I am just curious how you made the translation. greetings, Brian


e-translated to "french" (E-traduit en "français&quot:

"Merci, Jean-Pierre! J'ai maintenant le plaisir d'inviter tous les habitants de francophones du Panoramio le monde au prochain concours!

Hi Brian, I translated sentence by sentence, it's easier for me to understand english than poor french of an e-translator
Your last sentence will be better translated by : "J'ai maintenant le plaisir d'inviter tous les utilisateurs francophones de Panoramio dans le monde au prochain concours!"

Cheers

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

Done !

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Brian

On the rules forum, in your first post, could you change the french sentence (it means : "translation of the rules has been added here&quot by :

La traduction des règles du concours mensuel ont été ajoutées ici.

Maybe with a link to my post if you know how to link a particuliar post in a topic.

Cheers

[Guido Musch]

Vertalingen van de maandelijkse wedstrijd regels worden toegevoegd aan hier.
This is not a good Dutch sense, it has to be: Vertalingen van de maandelijkse wedstrijd regels worden hier toegevoegd.
(from the topic with translations)

[BWS's ghost]

thanks pierre-jean and guido! i've updated the rules topic with your proper translations shown above and a link to the french version. cheers, brian

[Stenina_Irina]

Oh, so many rules, for such simple competition . I have not enough patience for read all of this. ops: So if I some disturb - just tell me .

[BWS's ghost]

hi ira! i admit that the rules are a little long but are still only about 10 minutes reading time to cover many possibilities (including potential cheating) and also make it self-sustaining and manageable.

i could start a wide-open contest much more easily, like the infamous "panoramio elections" which had practically no rules and failed because of it:

1) tag everything you like, but only 1 of your own
2) we'll figure it all out later! (or somebody will, someday...)

cheers, brian

p.s. - i guess you are NOT volunteering to translate the rules?

[Agustin Martinez]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

Quote Pierre-Jean Durieu:

Hi Brian,

Rules are perfect, 10 minutes to read, an hour to translate but so easy to understand !

Cheers

Thank you, Jean-Pierre! I am now pleased to invite all the French-speaking people of the Panoramio world into the next contest!

Did you use an e-translator and make the necessary adjustments, or translated sentence by sentence? The first is acceptable (that is what I plan to use if no more volunteers), I am just curious how you made the translation. greetings, Brian


e-translated to "french" (E-traduit en "français&quot:

"Merci, Jean-Pierre! J'ai maintenant le plaisir d'inviter tous les habitants de francophones du Panoramio le monde dans le prochain concours!

Avez-vous utilisé un e-traducteur et d'apporter les ajustements nécessaires, ou traduit phrase par phrase? Le premier est acceptable (c'est ce que j'ai envisagez d'utiliser l'absence d'autres volontaires), je suis juste curieux de la façon dont vous faites la traduction. Salutations, Brian"

An hour? I spend two.
e-translated doesn't work for big text. It make many nonsenses sentences.(maybe like my sentences in English). I used it but I had to change almost everything and many times to read the sentence in English to understand the meaning.

[MHiller]

Don't rule it to death...

[BWS's ghost]

good point, MHiller i will resist the temptation to change the rules any more, though i have some other ideas for rewarding the monthly winners and Top 10. they're not rules, just suggestions at the moment:

- the winner tags their entry as "2008 Monthly Contest Winner" and all the Top 10 entries are tagged "2008 Monthly Contest Top 10" for a year-end contest run-off of all the best photos, across subjects

- all entrants and voters should make a comment in the winner's photo entry area with a congratulations, "Yellow Star" it if they voted for it, and if they REALLY like it they click "Best Of"!

of course, all that is already obvious and would probably happen without me making it a "rule" - at least i hope so!

"without rules, chaos" but there are limits...

cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

thanks a lot, agustin! i'll point the spanish-speakers to your translation. sorry it took so long, but i did try to simplify the wording. cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

current standings in the competition after 52 votes, including Eric Ferrer on 18 Mar 2008 11:11 pm:

votes/entrant name (listed by the tie-breaker rule #8b)
-----------------------
16 Snemann
16 Don Albonico
16 Roland1
15 Brian W. Schaller
15 werner daehler
14 MHiller
13 Annick Restle
13 bpnjensen
11 murart
10 ianwstokes
9 Phoenix
9 photodegraff
8 Jelmer Wielema
8 Nawitka
8 (m)(o)(n)(i)(k)(a)
7 tabiderno
7 tashimelampo
6 Dana Jensen
6 Will51
6 Marilyn Whiteley
5 Aldo Ferretto
4 normand richard
4 Pierre-Jean Durieu
3 kamaly
2 axiome
2 skida
2 Szeker
2 Stenina_Irina
2 Janina_Bielenko
2 picsonthemove
2 DavidRosalba
2 muba
2 BBFant
1 Matthew Walters
1 Coconuts
1 AsklepioZ

1 Jean & Co (nano13)

0 Daniela Brocca
0 domispinella
0 gauravcreations.com

0 Andre Speek
0 Agustin Martinez

voting continues thru March 21st!

[Sabine aus Rostock]

Hi,

I will do the German translation. But it will takes some more days, because I will have some days with my parents and hopefully, lots of opportunities to take some pictures.
Maybe next week? Is it okay?

Greetings,

[BWS's ghost]

hi sabine, thanks for volunteering! you may do the translation whenever you are ready cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

what does everyone think about 3 contests each month?

exact same rules, just different subjects and time-frames:
- contest A: starts on the 1st
- contest B: starts on the 11th
- contest C: starts on the 21st

each contest allows entries for 10 days, voting for 10 days, counting and reporting within 3 days, sorting and posting results within 3 days, and new subject posted by the same start date in the next month!

in this way, you always have somewhere to enter a photo, somewhere to vote and somewhere to check results! maybe too much to do, but more consistently exciting! there would be separate moderators (the first 2 entrants) for each contest so no one is overloaded. the winners pick the subject only for the same letter contest in the next month.

might be a bit of a problem in february to march (fewer days), but other than 3 times the number of forum topics, i don't see any real problems.

what do you think, including forum moderators and the owners of this website (i assume someone is watching this first monthly contest)? cheers, brian

[skida]

I'm not against developing the competitions within Panoramio, but I think it might get a bit confusing to have three versions of the same competition running in the same month.

On another site I visit they have a monthly comp plus a weekly one which is set and judged by the mods. Maybe something like that can be introduced in the future.

[MHiller]

Quote skida:

On another site I visit they have a monthly comp plus a weekly one which is set and judged by the mods. Maybe something like that can be introduced in the future.

I think i know which site you're talking about.
You may read up in the forums over there about the hassles and struggles this kind of "judgement" caused.
Don't put that over here...

[skida]

I just spent 10 minutes flicking through the comp threads over there looking for scandal and didn't find any, so I guess it is a different forum.

[BWS's ghost]

"flicking through the comp threads" - is this other site flickr, or which?

i confess to not looking at any other photo sites since i chose to join panoramio. i would think that one place with over a million users and 8+ million photos is enough for any one person! my eyes are boggled every day as it is.

i agree that 3 simultaneous contests could become confusing, but only if poorly managed. however, in this world people become impatient quickly, always wanting more action and results. maybe if many more entrants and voters join next month's contest it will be different. whether it is worse or better remains to be seen... so far, so good and even quieter than i ever would have imagined! maybe not many people like to read all my blah,blah,blah...and rules,rules,rules.

so, we have 2 votes "against". let's see if any "for" in the coming days cheers, brian

[skida]

No, not Flickr, which I find difficult to use and quite frustrating at times. It is a UK forum mainly populated by professional wedding photographers and others with a degree in Photoshop. My postings don't get many replies

ps: I am not "against", just a "not yet".

[BWS's ghost]

ok skida! then it's:

1 vote "for" 3 contests/month (me)
1 vote "against" (MHiller, at least i think so: "Don't put that over here..." )
1 vote "maybe" (skida)

[Matthew Walters]

I think one monthly contest is fine, I for one wouldn't have time to enter three different ones and I think you would be in danger of losing sight of what has started as a great idea.

Matthew

[MHiller]

Brian, i was just against a 'moderator judging' contest as skida mentioned.
So i'm fine with your proposal, go ahead ;)
Martin

[Bruce da Moose]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

Brian, as others have suggested, three seems a bit much, although 2 might work OK. I'd vote for one or two - consider this a "maybe".

However, noting that the whole thing is voluntary anyway and nobody is forcing people to do more than they can, I'm OK with anything.

Bruce Jensen

[BWS's ghost]

thanks matthew! i agree that i am quite possibly going too far in trying to extend the success that the contest has had, so far...

i hesitated to even suggest additional contests per month, and would suggest only 1 contest again in April to see about the increase in entries, and especially whether, and how well, the #1 and #2 entrant moderators do their jobs.

however, as bruce stated, they are just contests for fun and completely voluntary. i haven't even created any "virtual award certificates" (another whole topic) let alone suggested any real-world prizes (which would be nice and i'm sure would encourage more entries, and unfortunately, cheating).

i had considered just 1 additional contest, but the timing is more difficult. weekly contests are too short, and strangely enough, i found that 3 non-overlapping contest entry periods would fit more neatly into a month and just as easily as 2, allowing for an entry (only in the current subject) on any given day of the month. if you have more time, then enter 2 or all 3 contest subjects! and, with 10-day periods for entries and voting, there is always a weekend where almost everyone would have some time to look for photos or to take new photos and enter them, as well as check out the entries in the other contests and vote as they please.

so far, i count:
2 "for" multiple monthly contests - martin and myself
1 "against" - matthew?
2 "maybe" - skida and bruce?

cheers, brian

[Jessica G.]

Here's another "Not Yet." It's a great idea, but so far there isn't enough response to warrant starting any more contests at the same time. Maybe after a few months, if the number of entries gets larger, then you could think of having a couple of contests going. But (IMO) don't get ahead of yourself!

[BWS's ghost]

in my suggestion to wait another month to see about entries in april, i was basically saying the same as jessica (© Phoenix, above) - but in reverse!

having more contests only when there are more entrants would seem to make sense, but i think it would be better to iron out all the kinks with fewer entrants if multiple contests are to continue, and that's only possible nearer to the beginning. well, unless this whole thing slows down and fizzles out due to poor moderation

if there are very many entries (many hundreds...) in april i would not recommend starting another contest reasoning that most of the people interested in contests must have already heard about the contest and had enough days to enter. also, if there are many more entrants that will probably result in many more votes too, making that round more interesting and competitive as the leaders would change a lot more.

the last time i checked there were over 5000 views of the contest topic, but only a little more than 50 votes. it seems most people won't vote unless they are entrants, and i only gave 7 days to enter with no prior notice and no advertising. now with 30 days notice, 10 days to enter and advertising by the entrants and photos themselves - who knows! maybe the rule about entrants #1 and #2 being contest moderators will result in 0 entries next month

cheers, brian

so far: 2 "for", 1 "against" and 3 "maybe later"

[murart]

Dear Brian. Could You delete Your comments? Under my pic. Please. THX. Happy Easter.
Greetings from Poland. murart

[BWS's ghost]

hi murart, i've deleted my comment under your photo [in your album, not the copy of your photo in the contest forum which was edited by a forum moderator - not me! i'm just a powerless contest moderator] as you requested. if anyone else would like to delete any of my comments from their photos, feel free to do so. i won't get you can always delete under your own photos!
cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

only about 3 hours left to post (or change) your vote.
this month's contest ends at midnight panoramio time!

[BWS's ghost]

the March contest is now in the vote counting and reporting period, through the 24th. Please follow the rules for counting and reporting (#5 thru #7) in the contest rules topic. the re-written rules are basically the same as those in the contest topic except that you should also report your own vote count at the same time you report the count of the person who entered the contest immediately after you. also, list your counts by name this month (not entry# which will be effective starting next month).

thanks everyone for your patience and time during this first of what i hope become ever more exciting contests! cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

preliminary UNofficial contest results (moved to the contest forum topic)

[Bruce da Moose]

AsklepioZ - 1

bpnjensen - 15

These match Brian W. Schaller's final counts. Brian, many thanks for all of your energy in coordinating this contest! Congratulations to Snemann, Don Albonico and Roland1 for their top finishes, excellent work!

...and to all entrants, I say again, you guys rock - I am humbled by your beautiful efforts.

- Bruce Jensen

[BWS's ghost]

hi bruce, thanks for your count report! please copy the info to the contest topic as that's where everyone is supposed to report them, according to the "rules"

i've moved the preliminary results over to the contest topic cheers, brian

[murart]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

hi murart, i've deleted my comment under your photo [in your album, not the copy of your photo in the contest forum which was edited by a forum moderator - not me! i'm just a powerless contest moderator] as you requested. if anyone else would like to delete any of my comments from their photos, feel free to do so. i won't get you can always delete under your own photos!
cheers, brian

Hi Brian. Didnt know it wasnt you who put that comment in. Sorry for that. In fact, the comment was a bit nasty and I think it could affect the results of competition

[BWS's ghost]

all translators (pierre-jean, daniela, agustin and sabine) please note recent changes to the rules (noted by italics in the english rules):

- add the "Note" after the "Basic Rules"

- in rules 2, 4, 7 and 10: be sure to change the wording "in this forum" -> "in the contest forum topic"

- 9c: changes to the wording about the "Attention!" notice

- 9d is a NEW sub-rule: please add it

i also made some small changes to wording in many rules to shorten them to 1 line, but the meaning remains the same. you can check them if you like: 2a,2c,2h,4a,4b,4f,5d,5e,6a,6b,7c

lastly, just in case we start multiple contests in 1 month, i changed the last line in the "Basic Rules": from "by the end of the month" -> "after votes are sorted"
and i removed the final sentence in rule 10 ("Top 10&quot, which read: "Results should be available by month's end."

let me know if there are any questions.

thanks for all your efforts!
cheers, brian

[Marilyn Whiteley]

My apologies for failing to do my part in the counting. I guess I was dazzled by the overwhelming beauty I saw on our trip to the southwestern part of the USA--and overcome by the mail, etc., awaiting me when I arrived back home!

[BWS's ghost]

that's ok marilyn, you are in the company of at least a dozen other entrants who didn't report counts! it was a holiday weekend, and week, for many people so i am lenient

anyway, i'd already counted all the votes this month since there were few. i'd added the contestant counting rule as a double check and in case of very many votes in future contests.

cheers, brian

p.s. - there are some great photos appearing in your collection, marilyn

[Guido Musch]

Hello again Brian, I have to correct you again on your Dutch!
In this topic:
Dutch/Nederlands:
De eerste gegadigde zal de wedstrijd moderator!
De tweede gegadigde zal een alternatieve moderator!
Als u niet vloeiend in het Engels, moet u wachten tot minstens 2 andere items zijn gemaakt voor het verzenden van uw inschrijving.

It's better if this would be:
Dutch/Nederlands:
De eerste deelnemer zal de wedstrijd moderator worden!
De tweede deelnemer wordt een alternatieve moderator!
Als u niet zo goed in Engels bent, moet u gewoon even wachten tot minstens 2 andere deelnemers een foto hebben ingezonden.

If I have some time I'll translate the other rules!

[yorunojin]

I have the same kind of correction to report for the french translation :

now it is like :
French/Français:
Le premier sera le modérateur du concours!
La seconde sera un autre modérateur!
Si vous ne parlez pas couramment l'anglais, s’il vous plaît attendre au moins 2 autres entrées sont faites avant de poster votre entrée.

but should be :
French/Français:
Le premier sera le modérateur du concours!
Le second sera un autre modérateur!
Si vous ne parlez pas couramment l'anglais, s’il vous plaît attendez qu'au moins 2 autres entrées aient été faites avant de poster votre entrée.

[BWS's ghost]

hi guido and yorunojin!

thanks, i'll change the wording, and special thanks to guido for offering to translate the rules into dutch!

the "Attentions" are all just e-translations so i expect all of them are wrong, and probably pretty funny too sometime (free entertainment!), but at least i hope they are all comprehensible.

cheers, brian

[Daniela Brocca]

Hi,Brian,I made already the correction in the French.Daniela

[BWS's ghost]

thanks daniela! i guess you checked the italiano too btw, the italiano version of rule #9c is also shown in english

guido, i've updated the dutch version. thanks again!

cheers, brian

[Daniela Brocca]

Ah yes,you are right,I deleted it now.I had copied it to translate it and then forgot to delete That was yesterday.Ciao,Daniela

[Pierre-Jean Durieu]

Quote Brian W. Schaller:

Hello Brian,
I've done these corrections in the french translation. Hope rules are quite definitive now.

Cheers
Pierre-Jean

[BWS's ghost]

thanks pierre-jean, i think the rules are now set - maybe not in stone but at least quick-drying cement which hopefully won't require a jackhammer anytime soon ;) cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

note that the change made to the english rules today was simply to remove italic formatting - used only to highlight text that has now been added/translated by the translators - thanks pierre-jean, daniela and agustin!

the april contest entry period starts at midnight tonight - little more than 4 hours from now in panoramio time! cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

i hope no one is discouraged from entering our little "no-prize" contest now that an official contest with prizes has begun! at least the subjects are different, but the other is neatly integrated to a new button
now i am glad i did not start 3 contests per month cheers, brian

[BWS's ghost]

please note that ©bartowian and Warren Dowling, being the first two entrants, are the primary and alternate contest moderators for april.

i'd like to help them by pointing out a few problems i've seen already:

- all entries must have an entry # which really should be in both the entry's title and in the title of the entry's photo display page, to help when voters are looking thru the "2008 04 contest" tagged photos (of course, if you wish to irritate voters making them go back-and-forth and/or don't want to win then you need do nothing)

- not all entries have been tagged (again, if you don't want to win then do nothing and people who are voting by only looking at tagged photos won't see your entry!)

cheers, brian

[Tjarko Evenboer]

Hi all,

Can anyone tell me how to create a thumbnail?
I have no idea.