Talon's Blog

As I mentioned in the Wallpaper-contest topic, I'll blog about why I didn't want to enter the poll of the contest. But I'll begin from the start.

My Person
Private life keeps me Busy, I'm someone who mearly manages to study Interactive design, work at a good design studio as flash developper and Desktop publisher and alot of traveling to friends and family to keep a litle contact to the people who help me to survive.

On the other hand I waste every other second with being online behind my laptop and PC to watch the communities I'm at (3-4 at total) or at watching anime.

But recently I aren't really satisfied anymore about my online behavior. I got a feeling like people don't like me and then just don't know me just because it's me. I feel avoided and a little bit left out by people who might know me because of serveral things I've done and achieved but don't care much about my personal existence.

I'm aware that I'm not that popular like others but still known as some kind of one of the best within what they can do and with that I'm sort of famous without being known.

Lets move on to the key point of this rant, the contests here and the friendships here on MAL. Now after the last list Design contest I just won.. yes, great, but the joy of winning was quickly over. One of the most disturbing things about the contest was how the Poll went. There is a limit to common sense. What do people see as an Animelist design?

The Animelist Design contest
The contest was full with known famous members of MAL and this was clearly pointed out. It's all about popularity and who is new on MAL doesn't seem to have a chance. My nominations Overfiend and Zanin where somewhat new to the contest but they didn't make it in the final round. Their list where in my eyes more suitable for this contest then anyone else his/her list. I didn't nominate myself, just gave people a chance to look at my list on that moment because I thought I wouldn't be in the contest anyway, it was somehow normal for me not appear in the final round.

Then the Poll at the final round, I didn't see a chance to win but out of a little bit of anger I'd voted for myself, the reason was finely given with my decision within the topic. After this I had the best list in my opinion, so why don't try it?

My reason why I didn't see a chance to win was because of the popularity of the other members. I was really scared that Ranivus would win because he has made lot's of friends and many would choose him because it's Rani, not because he has a nice list. Sorry Rani, I really like the concept of your list but the outcome is horrible to me.

Another thing wich would put on weight is that people don't choose my list design because it's made by me and I already won twice. A negative side effect about being famous by winning much contest and people don't wan't you to win anymore, give others a chance. giving others a chance is nice but people go against they own taste just because a certinal person has made that what they like is lying to yourself.

My hope was a little to the new members who don't know me and the others or are friends with Ranivus. Because they don't know the person who made it makes them as the votes who can't lie to themselves. Even here was a little fear that the new Users first look at the poll and then vote on that wich has the most votes just to have a piece of the cake (wich is a lie).

Somehow it turned around and I won easierly the contest. Very surpising and somehow sad because my nominations would win twice against me. It makes me wonder about how people judge list designs.

There is a very simple way to test it yourself. Just watch the list and think about: do you want to use that list to keep track of your anime?. On my side this question gave Ranivus and Iri's list a fatal headshot because lack of useability and Kanashimi's list was on the egde of dying. It only survived for me because I knew that the problems of the useability where somehow fixable with some ueber advanced css and if Kanashimi asked me how it would be posible, I would had helped her on that (with the risk on it that IE sucks). Krelian's list was fine, simplicity but somehow an old concept. Maybe a little afraid of trying newer things but when he feels at ease to update his list with this design this is completely fine.

Maybe half done, when you want to read further I'm even more thankfull than the thanks for keeping reading until now. I just have alot of things on mind and want to point out the details, sorry for so much informations.

The currently running Best Signature Poll
wtf is my signature there? The same as with my animelist, my nominations didn't get far but this time I don't regret it too much. I'm bothered again by the poll and the entries but signatures is something I can't really judge because I don't focus on them. Still I've heard some things about that contest wich are just going the wrong way.

This makes a simple game about a 350x65 banner and a little bit of honour into something that provokes people to lie to themselves. the outcome of the contest is again demittered by Popularity and not the images themself. That's what I feel when I see the poll. It's the same concept like the animelist just that this time really some people who are within the contest wo easierly win against me. I'll keep watching the contest and I'm not calling names here because the contest is still running and I want to see if I'm correct about this popularity.

Current Mangalist designs Nominations
yea, when I see that tread.. Drac, Drac, Drac.. isn't he famous enough? I'm asking again this question I did at the Animelist Part. Do you want to use this list to keep track of your Manga?
Look around, use the random user button and look at the list design update tread at other users with don't have that big of a name.

De Jay, a dear friend of mine is a total newcomer and full of ideas. Ofcouse his design is a little simular to mine style of designing but he doesn't bother to ask me how to make things he wants to realize. He didn't knew CSS before he came to MAL and learned it in a quick period just with some hinting on my side.

He isn't the only one on MAL wich has just a talent to bring that on screen what he wants to. But just such Talents are supressed by people who have famous names just by winning in the past, being popular at the forum or cool at the IRC channel. It is sad this way..

Ofcouse some older MAL members make stunning stuff but that shouldn't mean newcomers can't keep up to that.

The huge MAL community (conclusion)
I've joined MyAnimeList.net a year ago, made some important changes to the site like the Advanced CSS editor was my idea. In this time the number of user grew 22 times larger and we are at a point where I don't know people at the forum but they seem to know me. Because of that I've never been at big communities, there is no hole between being famous or being ignored. from this point it really does count being famous in a contest and that is just really unfair against those who aren't known. I've been thinking alot about how many people just joined and already got more forum post and profile comments then me. I must be kind of unpopular? Still, I win contests, in some way because of my name and this hurts new members as it hurts me.

This is a point where I decide not to parcepate at a contest anymore. even if it's the Art Jam where I've never won. I will make entries just like always because I like making entries, but I wish not to be listed at the Poll. I have fun by entering the game set up by people at the forum and see if I can manage some time between work, study and anime to share my art to others.
I've won enough prices and I want to give newcomers a chance to show their art by letting me out of the contest.

"Until now I've entered every list contest and won. It seems to me a default option.."

Oh, and one thing. I really wonder how votes end when the entries are completely anonymous and/or we have a rating system like first place 10 points, second 8 points, third 6 points and so on.

thanks for reading, feel free to share your thoughs about my opinions.