cb submission standards Options

[fainaru]

I'd like to have some input too, as being someone who almost always used to submit layouts weekly.

So I came back from a couple months of break and submitted some new stuff.

I don't recall having my layouts pushed back to later pages this quickly, unless the submission approval rate has substantially increased since my time off. Call me greedy, but I put tons of effort into my work.

My biggest issue doesn't seem to be the quality control, but the fact that I see some really good layouts here pushed 3 pages later where not many would want to look (that is of course if the front pages are less appealing). It urks me to see stuff like that fall under the cracks and get pushed back by some mediocre work. Ehh.

[*MyMichelle*]

My little bit of input:

I agree 100% with what Jusun said. Most of mainstream / popular layouts I see on Myspace nowadays are the "ugly, regular" layouts that are basically a style-sheet of some flashy fonts and background of interest to the user.
I enjoy a lot of the layouts on cB, but most of the time, people aren't looking for such complicated layouts.

^_^

[*mzkandi*]

I'd like to have some input too, as being someone who almost always used to submit layouts weekly.

So I came back from a couple months of break and submitted some new stuff.

I don't recall having my layouts pushed back to later pages this quickly, unless the submission approval rate has substantially increased since my time off. Call me greedy, but I put tons of effort into my work.

My biggest issue doesn't seem to be the quality control, but the fact that I see some really good layouts here pushed 3 pages later where not many would want to look (that is of course if the front pages are less appealing). It urks me to see stuff like that fall under the cracks and get pushed back by some mediocre work. Ehh.

Since the revealing of cb4 we get ALOT of layout and graphic submission daily. ALOT. Because of this some newly submitted layouts will get pushed back more quickly because of the heavily increased number of submissions we get.

[falsetigerlimbs]

I'd like to have some input too, as being someone who almost always used to submit layouts weekly.

So I came back from a couple months of break and submitted some new stuff.

I don't recall having my layouts pushed back to later pages this quickly, unless the submission approval rate has substantially increased since my time off. Call me greedy, but I put tons of effort into my work.

My biggest issue doesn't seem to be the quality control, but the fact that I see some really good layouts here pushed 3 pages later where not many would want to look (that is of course if the front pages are less appealing). It urks me to see stuff like that fall under the cracks and get pushed back by some mediocre work. Ehh.

I made a comment about this too. And part of the reason why my layouts have disappeared in the past is that the layouts are organized by submission date, not approval date. So even if mine was approved after someone else's, it could appear on the page before theirs if they submitted their layout after me...if that makes sense. Shouldn't organization go by how long the layout has actually been visible instead of when it was simply submitted for approval?

[fainaru]

^ Hmm, I didn't take into account about the whole submission date, but I don't quite understand what you mean by "how long the layout has actually been visible". When you put it that way, I think you're implying how long it's stayed on the site, which is essentially organizing by date no? Unless you mean something else.

@ mzkandi: I have definitely noticed the boom in submissions after the revamp, but I have also noticed the decline in layout views from visitors. My guess is that submissions just keep getting pushed back for no one to see. cB is still getting decent traffic right? Or has the new look generated even more that people just don't drop by the designs as often?

[falsetigerlimbs]

^ Hmm, I didn't take into account about the whole submission date, but I don't quite understand what you mean by "how long the layout has actually been visible". When you put it that way, I think you're implying how long it's stayed on the site, which is essentially organizing by date no? Unless you mean something else.

Yeah, I meant how long it has been on the site, how long the public has been able to see it. Layouts that haven't been on the site long, but got submitted before others, get bumped to the second page quickly.

[*IVIike*]

^-- that shouldn't happen, because we aren't supposed to skip through the queue

[anime-essence]

I think , and correct me if I'm wrong Mike, that the submission standards has something to do with it obviously, not skipping around (which doesn't seem to be the case). The accepted submissions don't receive much public showcase like in the past, when the standards were more strict and less lenient. With the new leniency in effect, more submissions are getting passed the queue with no problem which then triggers less attention to the newly accepted submissions on the home page. The more submissions being accepted equals less time for showcase on the home page and more pages that are added each time.

[*IVIike*]

yeah i understand that ricky they were saying they don't like it when a layout that was submitted after another layout gets accepted first i was just saying that shouldn't happen

[*SinfullySweet*]

Look at the first page of the cb layouts. What has cb come too.. ='[

[*IVIike*]

AMEN
I'm trying my best to kind of up the quality just a tad, but I'm only one person

[markmejia]

Nah Angie. I completely agree with you. And Gabi.

As much as you and I don't like how this was Jusun's motives for cB, we really don't have the power to change anything; we can only try to convince him or something. But that's all common sense. :P

But yeah. Btw, thanks for mentioning my name. You forgot to mention yours.

[IVIike]

http://schizo.createblog.com/blog/entry.php?id=2963

Has anyone ever read that? I actually agree with Gabi with everything. I've thought about leaving this site so many times. I too feel like that little light cb once, has faded. The layouts accepted now are nothing more than scheme9 layouts. Full of nonsense 7th grade love layouts, with no potential for design. I've given up critiqueing mostly everyones layouts. Simply because there are too many, and I have no effort, and am not up for it anymore. Imo, take a look at the front page right now, there are more than half that are crap. Most are just a bunch of brushes splatted together, randomly, and slapped on a couple of divs. All the new submitters, continually are submitting now, without getting better. Back in 06, nearly every single layout you browsed through was appealing, and flowed so well. To this day, only few of the official designers reside, such as Fainaru, Kirsty, Mark, ect. Honestly, as you browse along the layouts these days, there are about 2 - 3 of the better layouts submitted, lately. I dont know why.. but this is depressing beyond words. I guess this is what Jusun wanted, so I can't complain. Just.. cb has lost the prestigious feel it once had. The cb icons, that link back to the site, look pretty average now, like any other layout site. But I guess, I'm only one person, and my opinion won't change anything.

i agree i've tried bringing it up backstage, but we don't have any power really... it's up to Jusun

[freeflow]

I'm sorry that you feel like you have to leave but the standards were lowered because thats what Jusun felt would help the community. At first I was totally against it but you know what if you want to leave because of something like this then I'm not going to try to stop you. The standards were lowered because it would give more people a chance to get their work out there. From some designers it helped them improve a lot. For people with the more superior designs that helps you more and I feel it gets you more publicity. But the standards were lowered so that we didn't have so many high quality layouts when some people simply liked simple. I know teh standards suck now but everyone just has to face it. It gives more people opportunities and thats teh point.

Going back to hgher standards was a lot tougher and it caused a lot more chaos because some people's standards are different that others. We are now taking a lenient approach and thats it. All of you guys tend to be some of the people that were here when the standards were higher and if we higher them again I don't even thinks ome of the stuff you guys submitted should be accepted at times. But you know what its life. And we can't just carter to some people.


Its all of you guy's choice whether or not you want to submit anything here. If you have a problem with teh way official designers are selected then don't be one. If you don't like to have your designs next to someone who isn't as great then don'submit anything.


To an extent I agree we don't see that mayn DIVS anymore. So how is highering our standards going to change that? We can only accept what people submit. And let me tell you one reason is that too many people generate them so they don't get accepted. Having leniency gives more people a chance. IF you guys were on staff you would of known previously I was completely against it but I think its a more fair approach.

Sorry if you guys don't like what you see but there are more people here that like to get their layouts accepted here and there no matter how "easy" it may be for you gus.

[IVIike]

well said Toya. IMO i think it's awesome that we accept simple layouts, but I think they have to be exceptional not just something someone could throw together in 10 mins.

Maybe we just up the standards a bit that way we still have simple default layouts, but we don't necessarily have trash.

[pandora]

im all for upping the standards - the talent on cB has died a WHOLE lot. i also think jusun expects you to exercise your better judgement - while keeping his suggestions in mind. but yknow what, on the other hand; there IS an option to SORT ONLY div overlays when you browse the layouts.

[digitalfragrance]

I'd love to see better quality layouts as well, and personally, I think the standards could be better, but not strict like last time. I hope you all realize that there will never be a time when everyone is happy, even if standards were upped the little bit that you all are talking about. We got a lot of hell fired at us when we were really strict, so it's hard to find that line when asked to lower our standards.

What kind of standards do you suggest? Or is this just a general idea? At any rate, we'd have to talk to Jusun.

[IVIike]

I mean as long as the images are crisp and clean and the coding is neat i have no issue with the standard layouts. It's the ones that have crappy image quality tacky borders misaligned boxes ect. that get me mad.

[brooklyneast05]

yea i think there's a difference between lower quality and low quality

[freeflow]

im all for upping the standards - the talent on cB has died a WHOLE lot. i also think jusun expects you to exercise your better judgement - while keeping his suggestions in mind. but yknow what, on the other hand; there IS an option to SORT ONLY div overlays when you browse the layouts.

Exactly.


The whole point of this is to give more people an opportunity while still trying to keep some things up around here. It allows for people to see more layouts than div layouts. People got tired of them from the same people. Barely anyone's work was getting accepted. You see the same selected view over and over when there should be/could be more.

[pandora]

maybe we should have a new category for "higher" quality layouts.

[Smarmosaur]

YAYYYYY!
we've talked about myspace; but what about xanga?
ex: i submitted an xanga layout a while back with a big banana on the left and the blogs and modules on the right. to be specific, this layout: http://www.xanga.com/Mgt__5
and it got rejected for being too "default"...some people still actually like/use these kinds of layouts-just like the myspace thing, not everything has to be complicated DIV's and such.

[digitalfragrance]

^ Well, you still have the xanga modules, but that really isn't the issue. It's the fact that you don't have much to your design except for CSS editting and a background image with any design elements...

[S-Majere]

^ Yes, to be honest that's exactly what's letting CB down. It doesn't have any...oomph.

I've seen bad DIVs too *shrugs* but being a perfectionist my standards will be much higher than someone elses.

[*yrrnotelekktric*]

i posted this in backstage aimed at staff members, just felt the community should know.
---

im still making sure there arent any bugs in the submissions engine, but i want to say something about standards that i think is way over due.

i understand that many of you want cb to only have the highest of quality, but i personally think this is counterintuitive to bringing createblog to the masses. for example, lately (and one of the main reaons ive decided to seperate myspace layouts to div overlays and standard), is because increasingly i only see div overlay layouts. sure, div overlays are pretty and look great, but that only accounts for less than 1% of the entire myspace community. i think its a flaw in our logic to think that highering the standards even more will bring in more members. in fact, its just going to do the opposite. submitters will stop submitting their layouts, because they will fear (know rather) that it will be rejected. and without new layouts, people will visit createblog less often to check up on the new layouts, which means with less traffic theres just less opporunity for people to submit things. you see, its a downward spiral were going, if we maintain our current rediculous "standards" aiming to please only the measly 0.0001% of our potential audience. which says something especially if the staff members themselves dont have any quality layouts /graphics submitted to cb.

in anycase, im going to ask everyone to loosen up on teh standards. instead of accepting what pleases you, think in terms of the community. ask yourself, will someone out there use this layout / graphic ? if the answer is yes, accept the layout, no matter how you may feel about it. your perspective is very important, but only because you should be thinking behalf of the community, not yourselves.

i hope i made myself clear. if you disagree wtih my stance, feel free to tell me why.

finally! not just by mod standards. i like, i like.

i also love how the username MICRON is like the Tom of myspace.
just thought i`d add that.