Notes on Image-Hosting
I did a lot of searching and found that there is very little available in terms of free image hosts. I learned the trouble is many web-hosts will not serve images directly. This means that your image would be available if you made an HTML page and added the code to tell the server “this image goes here”, but not just by a plain URL.
Honestly, that is probably the preferable method – provide a link to an HTML page containing your image. The space is yours to manage as you like, and the forums will load much more quickly than if we post 100 large images a week into one thread –THAT can be a real showstopper.
But, that simply will not work for signatures, which appear directly in the forum, and are called by markup, not true HTML. Please note that the signatures will need to conform to the Statics standard, 35k max, and 115x600 max dimensions - if you need help on this let me know.
What alternative is there for my images?
I can host images for the weekly "Shot of the Week" thread, and signature-pictures for active members of the forum. Simply email the image to
[email protected] – I will check the image for PG rating, upload it to the server, and send you the markup for a link to it. In the case of signatures, it will be the code to display the image itself on the forum page; for other pictures it will be a link to view in a new browser window. Please note I reserve any and all rights on my server, and will delete the weekly thread pictures frequently—keep a local copy on your PC!
If you want me to host something,
make sure it is saved as a .jpg or .gif, as those are the only two viewable in the forums.
How do I take Screenshots?
Get yourself a good program to do it, and it becomes pretty simple. Typically I choose to take shots of only a section of the screen, to eliminate annoying hand cursors, bags, etc. and make post-processing easier. Most screenshot programs allow you to set a hotkey combination to copy the active window or a screen section to the clipboard, to save or edit. For instance, mine is CTRL-SHIFT-P, which pops open a window, and prompts me for what image type to save it as.
Two I have used with good results are:
HardCopy – 234 KB – I used this for a long time before I needed the video capture of Snagit - shareware
How do I edit my images?
Brace yourself: time, patience, and an eye for the artistic not included in most software packaging, at any price. Pick a good graphics program, get familiar with it, and don’t ever switch--it will kill you to unlearn the quirks and shortcuts…
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,27664,00.html>Photoshop 6.0</a> - 41.5 MB – Probably the most popular, pricey and functional graphics program out there.
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,17446,00.html>Paint Shop Pro 7.02</a> - 28.5 MB - A favorite of many, works great - shareware
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,34446,00.html>Fireworks 4.0 </a> - 18.4 MB - my choice 50/50 along with Freehand for detailed graphics - demo
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,35426,00.html>Flash 5.0</a> - 10 MB – I use this almost always, unless a lot of texture or detail is required. Why animate any other way? - demo
How do I make a simple webpage?
You will need a text editor, unless you chose a web-host with HTML tools for you to use online. Notepad in Windows is all you really need, but a lot of features available in more advanced software can really make life easier. A few I can suggest are:
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,50965,00.html>First Page 2000</a> – 4.96 MB - lots of extras and frills, and Stratics seal of approval - free
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,34935,00.html>Edit Plus</a> – 970 KB - extremely small in size, nice features, and recommended by many pros - trial
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,40915,00.html>CF Studio (Homesite)</a> – 16.7 MB - freakin’ huge in size and cost, but all I ever use. - demo
For purpose of this information, I signed up for a free-hosting site called
Tucows – select a server near you, then learn from beginning to advanced HTML
http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/ - downloads
http://www.yahoo.com – search, with Google-power
http://www.askjeeves.com – Natural language, no tricky keywords
How do I upload images?
Pretty simple! Get the older version of <a target="_blank" href=http://www.zdnet.com/downloads/stories/info/0,10615,30994,00.html>WS_FTP</a> – free and makes FTP pretty easy to NOT mess up. –975KB
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Moderator - UO Archer Forum | Reporter - Great Lakes</center>