Is it possible to add a unique image format?

[Subtle Discord]

Since I'm just about to crawl out from under the rock that is higher learning, and I'll be start being much more active, I figured this was a good time to inquire about this. Let me briefly explain...

 

In order for the message boards to accept an image in a post it must have a recognized image file extension such as .jpg, .png, .gif, and the like. I can understand completely why this might be the case, but it's causing a hic-up with the images I store with Photobucket. In order to get images to display at their full resolution with Photobucket you must add '~original' to the end of the image link, otherwise it displays a lower resolution. I'm not interested in posting billboards, but the 1024 resolution cap looses considerable of detail compared to the original.

 

On a humors related side note, when composing a message with an image that has the added '~original' formatting, if you do a preview of the post it will display the image with the correct resolution in the preview window, but an error is displayed noting that is an unrecognized image format and that it can not post it; clearly it shows that it can do it, but it just refuses to permit it.

 

So, do the administrators have that level of control over the nuts-and-bolts of the board that they can add '~original' to the database of accepted image formats, or perhaps provide some other work-around?

 

Thanks for taking the time to investigate.

[WarriorFish]

There's always the B&C gallery, but images are capped at certain sizes for good reason - huge images will slow down a page and beast people's connections especially those using their mobiles. 1024 is large for an image, so you shouldn't be losing any detail from that. If you want to show off particular details you should take another close up picture.

 

That aside, Photobucket's way of accessing the original image is not standard as extensions exist for a reason!

[Subtle Discord]

1024 was large for an image in the 90s. In my opinion, today 1920x1080 is what many consider the baseline for images; in fact 1080 is starting to become old hat. Besides, it's not the resolution, it's the compression, and jpeg can get a 1920 image down to perfectly reasonable size, and I take the time to make sure my images are. Trust me, I pride myself on my photography, I do get in close and worry about composition and cropping; I can't get in any closer. It's actually more of an issue when you pull back a bit and a certain level of fidelity is lost in complex images with the lower resolution. On a small screen it's not an issue nearly as much (unless you want to zoom in), but a if it's on a monitor that can take advantage of the size, it's instantly capped by the limited resolution.

 

I respect the plug for hosting on B&C, but I don't have time to start maintaining separate galleries and prefer centralizing my images to save myself the chore. I also don't understand Photobucket's method, and think it's odd, but it's really the only small strange gripe I have about the service and have been happy with them for years. Plus, I don't have problems posting on any other boards using the unique extension. You wouldn't want your 'competition' to have a leg up on you, would you? While I can see the tiny window for some strange sort of strange exploit or malicious intent in some case, I suspect my small request won't open some chink in B&C's protection, will it?

 

All that said, I also understand if it's not possible, and it's not going to effect my posting or opinion of B&C. It's just unfortunate that I'll be making content with better images and it's always going to be limited here, one of my favorite communities to contribute to. I can't be the only person who likes to have the option to really 'zoom in' on an image to get a good close look; personally, it's frustrating when the image doesn't have the resolution to accommodate it. But I'll also admit that I'm a... unique... individual, so I might be nowhere near the norm.

 

Again, thanks for taking the time to consider the request and having some dialogue. 

[WarriorFish]

Even the fanciest of images must adhere to the requirements of the Internet, because it's the medium that counts. While it would be possible to change the extensions allowed, I don't think it's worth the potential time investment relative to the gain while we have more important things to focus on.

[Subtle Discord]

It's a shame the request has been seen this way; there was no expectation that this was to take some kind of priority, but maybe it could be considered in the coming days/weeks/months during some related maintenance. I'll admit, I'm somewhat confused by your first statement (I had no idea my jpg's were so fancy because they're hosted by Photobucket), but that's fine and not the reason why I feel compelled to say something more. I slept on this to contemplate commenting further, because I really don't like beating a dead horse, and that’s not my intent, but what you said struck a chord with me that I feel is worth commenting on. Please note that I'm not attempting to extort or gain preferential treatment, but if I said nothing, it would never be known. I will try to keep this concise.

 

Put simply, The Bolter and Chainsword has a special place in my heart. About 6 years ago it was the first place I started showing my revived hobby related work online because the community here seemed unique. I was correct, and for years B&C was the only place I posted because of the community, and even after I branched out to post in other locations, I found nothing compares to B&C; the attitude, feedback, content, you name it, it's just different here, in a such good way. Point being, I received such encouraging feedback and support for my work, from B&C in particular, that I made the very intimidating choice to take my hobby and try to make it into a proper full-time studio producing model kits (with plans for other products in the future) for the gaming hobby; I even went so far as to return to college to study for a Bachelors of Industrial Design in large part to support my plans for a studio. As I near the end of my college, with just weeks to go before the studio can start to become my main focus, all doubt has been removed. Based on overwhelmingly positive feedback of my work at college and places like B&C, I know now that I made the right choice; I’m looking forward to making many great ideas real, and supporting this hobby that means so much to me. I can’t put it any other way, in large part, the seed for all of this ambition was planted here at the B&C; without the initial positive feedback and excellent dialogue here, I honestly have no idea where I’d be.

 

Now, this forces my hand a little early but, I have no intention of changing my plans, so I figure it’s worth bringing up. You see, I had decided a while back that when the studio was up-and-running and the time was right, I would approach B&C and see if there was some way to do a collaboration of some kind. The idea is still somewhat vague, but I really want to give some thanks and help support this wonderful little corner of the internet in some way; I’d love to be involved with some events and/or help fundraising by offering product and/or design services for prizes, or something along those lines. Maybe make it a semi-regular thing if it is well receive and works out well; it could even have B&C exclusive content, since I control the whole process. I figured it’s the least I can do for the community that brought me to this point in so many ways. Trust me, I get it; running something like this isn’t cheap or easy, and it only survives if the right people support it, many times with little return on what’s invested.

 

Again, I’m not trying to force the issue, it’s your site to administer and you set the priorities. I absolutely respect the work involved and can/will abide by whatever is decided, but I have to say I didn’t expect such a modest request to be considered on the terms of the direct return on the investment. Naturally, you had no idea what my future intentions are, but I just felt compelled to demonstrate that sometimes a benefit isn’t immediately tangible. Given your sentiment, a lesser person might have silently changed their mind on the idea of approaching B&C and you would have no idea of the lost opportunity. It’s not nearly large enough of an issue for me to change my mind on my plans, or my opinion of B&C, but I do want to provide a bit of food for thought.

 

My apologies for the length of the post; thanks again for taking the time. Feel free to comment here, or through a PM, or not. Either way, I’m happy to abide by what is chosen by the site admins.

[WarriorFish]

You're reading way too much into this, I didn't say you'd asked for it to be treated as a priority. We're talking about very limited resources here so prioritising is essential, I was highlighting that we'd not get round to this any time soon.

[Major_Gilbear]

I guess an alternative is to have your own blog with big images, and then you keep a parallel plog here on B&C with smaller images and discussion; a link in your sig would let people visit your blog for bigger images, and/or other non-B&C content.