Author Topic: A Million Reasons  (Read 8778 times)

Mantic

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A Million Reasons
« on: September 10, 2012, 08:28:38 AM »
This thought occurred to me looking at the videos and screencaps of the three thousand people who were at the Virtue Atlas rally. Plus reading reasons that players don't want to migrate to other games, which often include some mention of the character creator.

Every one of us has not just one avatar and one unique costume in this game. If the 10K+ players signing petitions just counted all their alts we could easily have over a million unique characters, or at least costumes (that's just 100 each, and I know that as a particularly prolific user of the costume creator I have over 200 actual active toons, not counting drastically different costumes and even more AE critters).

So, as a way of showing off to potential investors what is arguably the main aspect that puts City of Heroes game above all the alternatives, how about setting up a photo gallery where everyone can post individual screencaps of their many different creations? Call it "A Million Reasons" (if a picture is worth a thousand words, that's a billion of 'em) and make it a permanent archive for reference and promotion of the #SaveCOH efforts.

Downside of this is that the gallery would need local hosting, because the last thing you'd want is potential investors seeing Photobucket logos telling them that CoX players don't care that much about this stuff, and that would be a bigger bandwidth hit in the next few months than any little cheap hosting package could handle. Putting a strict limit on file size might help with that, though.

emu265

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #1 on: September 10, 2012, 08:30:59 AM »
I like it.  I can't comment on logistical issues, because I'm clueless when it comes to that stuff.  But it's got a nice ring to it and really drives our point home.  Nicely thought out.

Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #2 on: September 11, 2012, 07:28:26 AM »
So... not much interest?  ???

It might be possible to do this on the cheap using a DeviantArt Group. A lot of CoH players already have pages there so someone may know what is needed to set up such a group and could post a guide to setting up accounts and submitting screencaps.

Victoria Victrix

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #3 on: September 11, 2012, 07:34:58 AM »
I think it's a good plan.  And I know it's possible to host a photo gallery on a website, because we do that for my SG.  I just don't know how to do it, someone else wrote the code.

In fact, I would offer our website buuuuuuuut I do not think that you want this to be under the banner of "Coalition of Communist Crusaders for the Proletariat."
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Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #4 on: September 11, 2012, 10:02:59 AM »
Setting up a domain and a basic hosting package is pretty easy; it's the amount of storage and transfer involved that is scary.

I hit up Google Image Search for City of Heroes character and this image popped up on the first page:



It's a nicely compressed jpeg coming in at just shy of 50kb (comparable images that also popped up ranged up to 100kb). So lets say the file size limit is set at 50kb, and cap the gallery at exactly one million images. That's nearly 50GB of storage. And who knows how much traffic on a monthly basis...

It would be an awesome sight (and site), but not cheap to host.

However, DeviantArt hosts images freely, and has a system whereby groups can collect references to all the images in member galleries (though I think there is a fee for maintenance of larger groups, there is already a system in place for safely donating funds toward maintaining a group). In all, that may be the cheapest, most stable option available.


« Last Edit: September 11, 2012, 11:38:30 AM by Mantic »

Tahliah

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #5 on: September 11, 2012, 10:09:06 AM »
I think it's a great idea, but I've no idea about hosting costs, etc.  If this pans out, though, count me (and my many many alts) in!  :D

Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #6 on: September 11, 2012, 10:28:59 AM »
...count me (and my many many alts) in!  :D

Thanks Tahliah. :)

Anyone wanting to contribute, at least you can start taking the screenshots for it (if you aren't already doing so for personal mementos), and maybe setting up a free dA membership.

Vulpy

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #7 on: September 11, 2012, 10:29:30 AM »
If we're all using our own photohosting websites, it should defray the bandwidth costs. Then, the "gallery" could be a message board thread--harder to navigate, but impressive in its own right.
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Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #8 on: September 11, 2012, 10:32:18 AM »
Yeah (and it would be easy enough to set up a gallery doing it that way, too), but it would look bad having images getting dropped, leaving broken image links or hosting banners, because some members need their hosting space for something else.

jacknomind

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #9 on: September 11, 2012, 11:04:25 AM »
Haha.  Mantic, can I actually ask you to hold off on this pending something Riff and Tony are working on?  Or even, not hold off so much as be able to merge it with their project.

dwturducken

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #10 on: September 11, 2012, 11:11:28 AM »
So... not much interest?  ???

Well, you did post your idea when the apparent majority of posters were likely asleep. :)

I'm down, but about to start a very busy day of waiting in medical waiting rooms (Nothing's wrong; it's an annual checkup at a VA hospital. Bureaucracy rushes for no man!)

A lot of folks here have mentioned archiving favorite characters in various ways. I'm sure having a public gallery for them has a certain appeal.  There may even be one hosted on a different sight, already.  It certainly sounds like something members of this community would do.
I wouldn't use the word "replace," but there's no word for "take over for you and make everything better almost immediately," so we just say "replace."

Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #11 on: September 11, 2012, 11:17:56 AM »
Haha.  Mantic, can I actually ask you to hold off on this pending something Riff and Tony are working on?

Absolutely. PM me if I need cluing in on anything without spilling the beans, not that I'm doing anything special here.

jacknomind

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #12 on: September 11, 2012, 11:21:38 AM »
There isn't anything really secret.  It's just a similar sort of project.  I'll ping Riff to look at this thread when he's online.

The-Hunter-JLJ

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #13 on: September 11, 2012, 11:53:47 AM »
I like the idea a lot. Never been great about screenshots, but I have a few weeks to shoot copies of all my costumes still I guess.

eabrace

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #14 on: September 11, 2012, 01:22:38 PM »
Should I point out www.ouroportal.com?  Why, look at that, they're the Paragon Wiki's sister site and part of the Titan Network, too!  ;)
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Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #15 on: September 11, 2012, 01:48:35 PM »
Having that kind of tightness with Titan would be nice.

Kheprera

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #16 on: September 11, 2012, 02:27:36 PM »
I've already got a lot of screenshots and willing to go get more.  Count me and my clotheshorse character Mally to get in on the fun.

Victoria Victrix

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #17 on: September 12, 2012, 06:39:51 AM »


This is only 30k

I'm guessing similar head-torch-and-afk-message screenies would be about the same size.
I will go down with this ship.  I won't put my hands up in surrender.  There will be no white flag above my door.  I'm in love, and always will be.  Dido

Mantic

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #18 on: September 12, 2012, 11:19:45 AM »
This is only 30k

I'm guessing similar head-torch-and-afk-message screenies would be about the same size.

I dig the emotional appeal angle of that, but I'd rather see the whole costume. Wanting to show off the versatility of the character creator in the hands of 10,000+ highly creative players.

Jpeg compression can be configured for higher or lower file sizes (it can get ugly, though). Here are a couple of online tools to do that if you don't have local software: jpeg-optimizer.com and dynamicdrive image optimizer

Still wondering what Jack, Riff, and Tony are working on (perhaps a subsection of Ouroboros Portal?). Size limits would not be needed if images are posted to deviantArt galleries as I suggested earlier, but might be if Titan is hosting it all.
« Last Edit: September 12, 2012, 11:59:57 AM by Mantic »

The-Hunter-JLJ

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Re: A Million Reasons
« Reply #19 on: September 12, 2012, 12:48:25 PM »
Should I point out www.ouroportal.com?  Why, look at that, they're the Paragon Wiki's sister site and part of the Titan Network, too!  ;)

You guys have so much on Titan Network, you can't seriously expect all of us to have looked at all of it. <wink> We'd never have time to play if we did. "Ooooooo. Shiney." (I guess you hadda be a DDO player)