Well, the reason I scratched that out is because I didin't want to offend anyone, but yeah. Given the varying qualities of newbies (some good, some bad) does not at ALL depend on senior members breathing down on the youngins' necks, because of a minor age difference.

In a way, we do also wind up with oldies vs oldies, and the outcome will always be the same: unpredictable. And I think it's time that unpredicability should slow down for a bit and think about "what's happened in the past few years on this site?"

For example: Even though I mostly lurk now, I had a bit of a rough start on pixeltendo, and then, I still have a hard time "fitting in" with the more advanced memberbase. I know it's not right to judge someone because of one's age, but it's the way we act.

I myself want to get my head out the creative gutter and actually create something that me (and probably everyone else) can enjoy, hence I'm always looking for new ways to escape that box that's been holding me back for how long?

I'm not the best gosh-darn member here on this site myself, and I bet most of my compatriots here are most likely from another site I stalk. Sure, I've heard stories of TSR's harshnessness, but I think it's finally time for me to let this monkey off my back, figuratively speaking.

(03-31-2013, 03:49 PM)Gaia Wrote: Well, the reason I scratched that out is because I didin't want to offend anyone, but yeah. Given the varying qualities of newbies (some good, some bad) does not at ALL depend on senior members breathing down on the youngins' necks, because of a minor age difference.

In a way, we do also wind up with oldies vs oldies, and the outcome will always be the same: unpredictable. And I think it's time that unpredicability should slow down for a bit and think about "what's happened in the past few years on this site?"

For example: Even though I mostly lurk now, I had a bit of a rough start on pixeltendo, and then, I still have a hard time "fitting in" with the more advanced memberbase. I know it's not right to judge someone because of one's age, but it's the way we act.

I myself want to get my head out the creative gutter and actually create something that me (and probably everyone else) can enjoy, hence I'm always looking for new ways to escape that box that's been holding me back for how long?

I'm not the best gosh-darn member here on this site myself, and I bet most of my compatriots here are most likely from another site I stalk. Sure, I've heard stories of TSR's harshnessness, but I think it's finally time for me to let this monkey off my back, figuratively speaking.

I can actually sympathize with that. I mean yeah, I guess we do have a reputation of being some what harsh on members when it comes to criticism, or if their not listening. But I really do believe that we have the power to change that now.

I mean, I had a really rough start on Pixeltendo as masterofthewii, and if anyone recalls how I acted back then knew I was a mess. Looking back on it I kind of regret it, and even if I was depressed to the point of suicide back then that still wouldn't change the fact that I was being a flaccid asshole towards everyone and acted extremely childish. And even when I tried to mature a bit I still got ranked on. Hence why I ended up changing my user name because I got tired of all the bullshit that I was dealing with because I just didn't fit in.

Comparing myself back then and now is really something because I have matured more than I thought I would. Shit speaking of which everyone matured. That's why I'm saying that we all need to start appealing to a new userbase and lowering the tone of how harsh we can get.

That being said the truly harsh people ether got banned or they decided to leave because they we're kind of in a group of their own. Don't get me wrong, I miss some of those guys and I have no problem admitting that I was trying to keep the whole community together but then I realized that it just wasn't going to happen. And since those guys left that alone will probably make it easier for us to actually make that transition.

EDIT: That and another thing I feel that I want to point out while it's still in my head. You're right about how a person acts matters more than their age. And for that matter I think how long someone has been here doesn't excuse that. That's one of the reasons why I had a problem with one of the moderators here a while back because he wasn't in the right position to be acting the way he was, professionally or not. And to be frank that's still one of the reasons why I don't feel that we should just give respect to members that have been here for a longer time than another, because in the end the majority of us as members are equal. It's a harsh point I know, but between that and some other things that could be said bluntly this is probably the best time to say it now than some other things.

So, In the end how we act is major issue more than anything else. We have improved over the years and I think we're doing a good job with that. But with the maturity we gain it means that the more changes are going to have to come with that.

Speaking of issues like this I kind of feel that this belongs into the site discussion now more than anything, I mean we're practically discussing what we can do to change our attitudes in the community more than anything else and I think that whether or not it's about competitions or another thing that happens on this site then we're probably going to end up boiling it down back to this discussion in general

moved, and I'll add what I think of the site.

When I first joined Pixeltendo, I wasn't that happy at all. It was dark, it was intimidating. Maybe partly because I wasn't confident on my skills and English. But it did felt like a group of assholish friends that let others enter so they could beat them up.

I've always given direct and honest criticism to people (notice the lack of the word 'rude' here) and sincerely, I don't think I need to change. The same could be said of several other people. Ever since the oldmembers' departure, we've been giving criticism without insulting anyone, and I'm really satisfied with this. If someone is a shithead that don't want to change, fine, I won't force him/her either. It's its choice after all.

Also I'll parrot diogalesu and say that age doesn't matter much when coming to actions. Just check those people who left. All 20+ years old and all caused problems. We may have lost art quality, but I'd rather teach goodwilled people than having to deal with assholes all the time.

(04-01-2013, 10:15 AM)Gorsalad Wrote: I've always given direct and honest criticism to people (notice the lack of the word 'rude' here) and sincerely, I don't think I need to change. The same could be said of several other people. Ever since the oldmembers' departure, we've been giving criticism without insulting anyone, and I'm really satisfied with this. If someone is a shithead that don't want to change, fine, I won't force him/her either. It's its choice after all.

And I totally agree with this. It's one thing to give honest criticism to fellow artists even if it gets somewhat brutal. But how far can some one go when they're harsh with criticism? I think that's sort of a concern to an artist who might feel like they're getting shot down for their work.

That being said, even if we are polite when we give our criticism there's still going to be our share of children who expect their asses to be kissed and want to receive praise for an edit or recolor. Now, I wouldn't mind that at all if they want to keep it out of the spriting discussion, which is why I'm still for a board that should be for just showing your sprites. That way we can keep those members in an area where they won't receive criticism. And if they want it they can go to the spriting discussion.

(04-01-2013, 02:05 PM)TreeStar Wrote: And I totally agree with this. It's one thing to give honest criticism to fellow artists even if it gets somewhat brutal. But how far can some one go when they're harsh with criticism? I think that's sort of a concern to an artist who might feel like they're getting shot down for their work.

That being said, even if we are polite when we give our criticism there's still going to be our share of children who expect their asses to be kissed and want to receive praise for an edit or recolor. Now, I wouldn't mind that at all if they want to keep it out of the spriting discussion, which is why I'm still for a board that should be for just showing your sprites. That way we can keep those members in an area where they won't receive criticism. And if they want it they can go to the spriting discussion.

That kinda goes into the age-old dilemma of some people just flat-out can't stomach criticism. Not to point at the younger ones because it most certainly applies to older people too, but I know personally when I was 14 on a sprite comic forum and somebody tore my comic a new one, I was devastated. made a post about how I was leaving forever and everything too

So, I think your idea is really smart. People can seek criticism when they want (because we all have oodles of that lying around) but also display their stuff when they don't want input. I'm not sure how well it'd work in practice, but I think it'd be worth a shot at least.