Original Usenet thread from alt.ascii-art, started 2 Nov 1997.
Time for a new FAQ?
alt.ascii-art
· 19 messages · 2 Nov 1997 - 9 Nov 1997
In article <345...@spamfree.land>, Matthew Thomas <mpt...@spamfree.land> writes: >(Some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) supply > newsreaders to their customers which, strange as it seems, don't > allow them to use a fixed-width font. If this applies to you, > there's not much you can do except to ask them for an upgrade, or > switch ISPs.) Actually, the person can save the message to disk and then look at it with an ASCII/ANSI viewer such as TheDraw or ACiDVIEW (in the case of WIN95, NOTEPAD) if they want to see what it really looks like. NOTEPAD is fixed-width. OR If they can, SEND the message directly to NOTEPAD if the viewer allows (in WIN95). . . http://members.aol.com/lester5374 Ansi home page (ANSI are in GIF format only.) FTP://members.aol.com/lester5374/ansi To download the ANSI format (a lot more are here than are displayed on the web page).
llizard wrote: > It's not really fair to say that people don't even bother reading > what was posted two or three days ago. My newsreader is expunging > messages so quickly that I can't really look at anything from two > or three days ago. > Even though I don't exactly have the best ISP (still waiting for > "the envy of all newsreaders" to be installed), I think I'm seeing > most of the posts but only if I look *every* day. > > Okay, so how about making the subject heading read: > > *NEW* TO ASCII-ART? READ ME (FAQ) Hm. Your ISP is an extreme example, most keep them for over a week. Even the one that my mother uses which is run from one lady in a 1 room building over a bike shop keeps them for 4 days.... My isp keeps article for over 3 weeks, so missing is rather hard to do. -- --ran...@slip.net --Randy Gardner
Hey- the proposed new FAQ is pretty good. I like it.
After it is completed, I would be happy to host it at my
website. I have a second website at GeoCities that still
has plenty of room to it...
I have one comment though... I have to object that
the overtype mode is better. I like to keep the characters
there and manually move them around until the picture
looks right. I'd rather insert spaces and move a character
than to type over it. Am I the only one using this method-
or is everyone else using the overtype?
I'll keep watching this thread... it'll be a little while before
all the input has taken place to finalize the FAQ... I also
think that it ought to posted to USENET in addition to
having it available on the internet. Some people just
don't have access to the web. As for the title, how about:
ASCII ART FAQ-1997-please read
It's simple and to the point.
-joan
--
_____ /|
.-'@ & #`'-. // joan stark
/ % 8 \ // <spu...@juno.com>
| m () _ | //
\ 0 ( '-._/ // SEE MY PERSONAL ASCII ART GALLERY:
jgs '-.____'. y http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/
In article <199...@ladder02.news.aol.com>, spu...@aol.com (Spunk1111) writes: > I have one comment though... I have to object that >the overtype mode is better. I like to keep the characters >there and manually move them around until the picture >looks right. I'd rather insert spaces and move a character >than to type over it. Am I the only one using this method- >or is everyone else using the overtype? Insert mode is a heck of a lot better than overtype, I mean, what if you accidentally left out a ~ or a _ somewhere? You'd have to do the whole line all over again... arrgggh! Forget that. What are your thoughts on using a ASCII editor like TheDraw so you can copy and stamp something over and over again to make the right effect (say like a fence)? . . http://members.aol.com/lester5374 Ansi home page (ANSI are in GIF format only.) FTP://members.aol.com/lester5374/ansi To download the ANSI format (a lot more are here than are displayed on the web page).
Matthew Thomas (mpt...@spamfree.land) wrote: >- - /, /, ,, , > )/ )/ ) || || > )__)__) _-_ || _-_ /'\\ \\/\\/\\ _-_ =||= /'\\ > ~)__)__) || \\ || || || || || || || || \\ || || || > ) ) ) ||/ || || || || || || || ||/ || || || > /-_/-_/ \\,/ \\ \\,/ \\,/ \\ \\ \\ \\,/ \\, \\,/ > > > > ,, , , > _ || || _ ' ' _ || > < \, || =||= < \, _-_, _-_ \\ \\ < \, ,._-_ =||= > /-|| || || /-|| ||_. || || || <>-<> /-|| || || >(( || || || (( || ~ || || || || (( || || || > \/\\ \\ \\, <> \/\\ ,-_- \\,/ \\ \\ \/\\ \\, \\, > > >FAQs: About the alt.ascii-art newsgroup >By Matthew Thomas >Last changed 1997-11-02 [...snip...] >THE END >---- >Now it's not perfect, in particular Question 7 could have a bit more >detail, and of course the `also available at' section needs filling in >(my Web account is only allowed one page, alas, so I can't volunteer to >host it). But I think it would result in fewer postings of those >questions which are currently answered (ever so patiently) by Veronika >et al. So perhaps the regulars (Joan, Veronika, Colin, Joris, llizard, >and co) could post their suggestions, and then Colin could perhaps >incorporate some of them and start posting this along with or instead of >the existing FAQs -- I'd suggest the subject >FAQs: About the alt.ascii-art newsgroup >so that newbies are in no doubt as to what the message is for. In my view your new FAQ is a substantial and well-written contribution which has taken a great deal of time and effort on your part and is perhaps more relevant and understandable to newcomers than the Jorn Barger & Bob Allison older FAQs which are nevertheless still of considerable value both in content and historically. I think we should post your new FAQ regularly to alt.ascii-art and alt.ascii-art.animation newsgroups and give the old FAQs ( still valuable ) a rest...perhaps posting the oldies quarterly ? Daniel Au's Tutorial is probably still worth posting regularly in addition to the FAQ because it has direct impact and shows very clearly how to construct a first picture. I'm uncertain about dropping the WARNING notice on Control Codes because historically that posting has produced more reaction than any of the other items I have posted regularly. Thank you indeed for your contribution which demonstrates that alt.ascii-art is the type of newsgroup which encourages people who discover the group to think about the groups and make worthwhile input for reader benefit. A nice and tidy piece of work. Bye,
Hi Matthew,
well, you really invested some time and effort in good old
alt.ascii-art here! Even though it might have some minor
errors / weak parts (as Veronica pointed out) it's still
a very good FAQ and better than the older ones too.
Good work!
I do agree with some of Veronica's remarks and if
you've got some time left you could start making the
first revised version. :) But -really - it's well
written as it is. I only insist on adding Alan Muller's
Link List http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/2695/links.htm
and (why not for heaven's sake) Joan Stark's site
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/ to the URL list.
(Colin? Do you read this?)
Those are the best starting points and we should not
hide them.
:)
Andreas
_
| Ascii Dictionary (Collection, Links, ...) |
o | http://www.stud.uni-hannover.de/~freise | o
<<.|_ _| < >
|\ |
>What are your thoughts on using a ASCII editor like TheDraw so you can >copy and stamp something over and over again to make the right effect (say >like a fence)? Why bother when you have copy/paste? -joan -- _.-----._ * .' .-'``|'. * / / -*- \ joan stark | ; <{ | ; | spu...@juno.com -*- | _\ | | -*- | ; _\ -*- | ; | \ \ | -*- / ASCII ART GALLERY: * jgs '._ '.__ |_.' http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/ '-----'
Matthew Thomas wrote: [snip] > for more suggestions to come in, and then have a go at a revised > version. [snip] OK, some detailed opinions of mine... > Secondly, everyone has different ideas about what the subject of the FAQ > message should be. llizard wrote: > > "FAQs: So you're new to ascii-art..." > and (in a different message): > > *NEW* TO ASCII-ART? READ ME (FAQ) > Joan wrote: > > ASCII ART FAQ-1997-please read Colin's post are easy to spot aren't they? I don't think the subject is that important. I wouldn't go for an all-capitals subject line cause some spam-filters assume capitals equals spam. My choice : Ascii Art FAQ 1997 [snip] > > > [`Welcome to alt.ascii-art' heading] > > llizard wrote: > > > > I like the Welcome sign, but because the post is already quite long > > and people are often reluctant to download long posts, I suggest you > > use a smaller font. > > (I've used my diddled version of one of Joan Stark's fonts here.) > > __ _, > > (-| | | _ | _ _ ,_ _ _ -|-_ _ |-|- _ _ _ . . _ ,_-|- > > _|_|_|(/_|(_(_)| | |(/_ |(_) (_|| |.(_|_)(_ | |.(_|| | > > ( > > Yes, good point, although llizard's one is a *bit* hard to read. Anyone > want to do a dazzling (but smaller) freehand-style heading, or suggest a > better Figlet font choice? A *bit* hard? _I_ can read llizard's much better than yours. Back to the 'looks different on different platforms/software' problem. Less 'nice' but more general might be e.g. 'standart' : __ __ _ _ \ \ / /__| | ___ ___ _ __ ___ ___ | |_ ___ \ \ /\ / / _ \ |/ __/ _ \| '_ ` _ \ / _ \ | __/ _ \ \ V V / __/ | (_| (_) | | | | | | __/ | || (_) | \_/\_/ \___|_|\___\___/|_| |_| |_|\___| \__\___/ _ _ _ _ _ __ _| | |_ __ _ ___ ___(_|_) __ _ _ __| |_ / _` | | __| / _` / __|/ __| | |____ / _` | '__| __| | (_| | | |_ | (_| \__ \ (__| | |____| (_| | | | |_ \__,_|_|\__(_)__,_|___/\___|_|_| \__,_|_| \__| > > > 1 What is the alt.ascii-art newsgroup for? > > > 2 What is ASCII art, and why is it used? > > > > Shouldn't 1 be 2 and 2 be 1 here? You start discussing what > > alt.ascii-art is before you explain what ascii art is... > > (Five minutes later ...) A brief survey of news:news.answers reveals > that of those FAQs which describe the newsgroup and its topic > separately, a small majority have the newsgroup before its topic. A > matter of taste, I guess. 2 before 1 for me please. :) > , > (O (Matthew slapping himself with > M\ a wet bus ticket -- proverbial > / \ NZ punishment for silliness) > He he, I'll introduce that here too I think. :) > Veronica wrote: > > > > > > 9 Can I copy this ASCII picture? > > > 10 What should I know about signature files? > > > 11 What happened to rec.arts.ascii? > > > 12 Where can I find more ASCII art? > > > > 13 Is there legal copyright problems when duplicating ASCII art? > > Question 9 is what seems to me to be the consensus from recent > discussions in a.a-a about copyright. Would you like to suggest some > more detail? Some more legal details would be nice. That pictures are generally protected (? everywhere anytime ?) but that alt.ascii-art is a place to share and that 'our' common understanding of allowable practises includes some rules etc etc In previous discussions 'law' and group-rules were mixed quite often. > > 14 How do you make ascii animatons? > > Since news:alt.ascii-art.animation seems to be a wasteland now (most of > its traffic is spam, crosspostings from a.a-a, or llizard :-), I guess > it's not worth a separate FAQ, so you have a point ... so if anyone can > mail me a summary of how to do ASCII animations using scrolling > techniques (as mentioned before, I think scrolling ones are > newsreader-dependent) and animations using JavaScript, I'll include it > (keeping in mind that the FAQ shouldn't be a multi-volume epic). A detailed answer would probably be too long. Perhaps links - to where? - could be given here. > > 15 How do you make coloured ascii art? > > Care to elaborate? The only safe, semi-standard way of doing it that > I've ever seen in a.a-a is HTML, which is covered in Questions 2 and 3. Coloured ascii art wouldn't be ascii art any more but ANSI art or HTML art or whatever instead. You could mentioned that as a point 15 because Question 2 and 3 are not what I'd read while looking for a 'colour' hint. > > 16 Isn't a gif version better than just a "raw ascii" picture? > Question 2, or do you mean something else? Well, that is a 'frequently stated opinion' but I don't think there's no need to present the opposite opinion in a FAQ. > > 17 Does anybody have pictures of naked women/men in ascii? > > In my six months of reading, I don't remember this ever being *asked* > for, although Meriday, your self-portrait, and TowelMan have been > *posted* often enough... True. > > > 18 Some other popular requests... > > Like? IMHO, the FAQ shouldn't end up being a FRP (Frequently Requested > Pictures) gallery as well. True. > > > * REQ: xyz (ie, has anyone got any ASCII pictures of xyz?) > > > > (with some exceptions...) > > Like? As far as I can tell, there isn't much the regulars here are > afraid to have a go at. :-) Like a 'Kandinsky' sig-sized. ;) [snip] > > WARNING! Posting pictures containing [ANSI] characters to aaa is a > > sure way to get FLAMED! > > Why? Sure it's not a good idea, but are there any newsreaders which > crumple up in terror if you use ANSI, as opposed to just displaying the > pictures a bit oddly? Who knows. I did have a problem once on a windows platform with a free newsreader but I couldn't say for sure that ANSI was the evil and microsoft the victim. ;) My opinion. ANSI is not Ascii. > > > Some e-mail programs, particularly those built in to Web browsers, > > > can read and write messages in HTML (HyperText Markup Language, the > > > language which Web pages are written in). HTML allows colours and > > > (using JavaScript) animations in ASCII art. It IS ok to post these > > > messages, since they are just plain text; but remember, most e-mail > > > programs do not recognize HTML and will print all the HTML > > > formatting as well as the text, making your pictures more or less > > > unrecognizable. > > > > This is not good advice to put in a FAQ! It would be better to > > encourage text-only posts since the html posts don't just turn up as > > one messed-up-looking html code version in the text-only people's news > > programs but as TWO versions, one html and one plain-text, in which > > case the html one is totally superfluous. > > Usually true, although it depends on your browser settings. For instance > (if I remember correctly), of Netscape Communicator 4's three options > (send as HTML, send as plain text, send as both) the default is > unfortunately the first one. Mmh, I don't like the 'is OK' either. I'm going mad over all those html- messages in some mailing lists and I just delete them instantly. This is definately not OK with me. > ... > > > * If there are a lot of < and > symbols in the picture, with words > > > like HTML, FONT COLOR, B, I, and so on inside them, then the > > > picture has been done in HTML (see Question 2), and your > > > newsreader does not understand HTML (most don't). > > > > Is this very common? (now you see why I recommend NOT writing mail and > > news messages in html) > > Not right now, but I'm sure it will become more so (unfortunately) in > the next year or so as the HTML-defaulting mail programs become more > widely used. Oh yes, unfortunately in some parts of the net this is already common enough to start some flame wars. I think it's a good policy to explain those strange HTML tags and to suggest plain Ascii posts as well. > > Yes, you _can_ use a word processor to draw ascii art! No it is not > > "like using a sledgehammer to crack a walnut"! Word processors can > > have some sophisticated little functions that make them much more > > suitable to draw ascii images with (such as "replace", which most > > editors probably have too... > > Maybe I was a little over the top there. But generally, an editor has > more of those character-based features than a word processor, and it > doesn't keep saying `this file contains formatting which cannot be saved > in Text format; are you sure you want to close without saving the > formatting?' etc. Ah come on. Every word processor uses an editor for typing in the text. That's how the names are given. Everything you use for editing is somehow an editor. And I don't really see the need for explanation. When people ask about it they surely wonder if there's a really good editor. Say NO to that and mention that everyone uses his/her favourite or you end up with listing every editor. I personally use TheDraw, Q and Emacs most of the time and about another dozen when I need a change. ;) > > I have one comment though... I have to object that the overtype mode > > is better. I like to keep the characters there and manually move them > > around until the picture looks right. I'd rather insert spaces and > > move a character than to type over it. Am I the only one using this > > method- or is everyone else using the overtype? > > Now this seems to me to be incredibly labour-intensive, but who am I to > argue with the Queen of ASCII herself? Yep. ;) > > > ... [discussion about copy and paste] > > (hmmm... how about some instructions for that... for the most common > > types of computers...) > > I don't think so. (1) There are SO many different systems out there, and > as I said, the FAQ shouldn't be an epic; (2) copy and paste is usually > pretty easy to figure out anyway. True. > ... > > > Once you've chosen your font, prepare your canvas. Type a row of > > > spaces for however wide you want your picture. Copy this row and > > > paste it for however many rows high you think your art will get. > > > Then turn overtype on, stick your cursor somewhere in the middle, > > > and you're ready to draw ... > > > > I don't agree! With this technique it is very easy to get extra > > unnecessary spaces at the end of the lines which may cause > > "mysterious" wrapping when the image is posted! (and it is so easy to > > forget to look for them and remove them when the picture is made... > > Not if you have overtype on right from the beginning, surely? Oh yes because sometimes you switch to insert after deleting something accidently with backspace and so on and so on. But you cannot explain _everything_ . The canvas method is a good example. Keep it. > > > 10 What should I know about signature files? > > > ============================================= > ... > > > A signature file (or sig for short) is a small text file which an > > > e-mail program adds to the end of every e-mail you send -- the > > > equivalent of a letterhead for dead-tree (paper) mail. Usually it > > > contains little more than the person's name, organization, and > > > e-mail address, and an inspirational quote of some sort: but some > > > people like to incorporate ASCII art into their signature files as > > > well. > > > > (how about a link to some page with lots of examples here...?) > > Can you suggest an URL? http://wwwtios.cs.utwente.nl/~kenter/sigs.html http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/sigs.htm (jgs again * sigh *) > ... > > > 12 Where can I find more ASCII art? > > > ==================================== > > > > > > Lots of ASCII artists put up libraries of their own and others' > > > ASCII art on their Web sites. Do a Web search for `ascii art', or > > > see > > > http://www.yahoo.com/Arts/Visual_Arts/Computer_Generated/ASCII_Art/. > > > If you don't have Web access, well, just read this newsgroup! :-) > > I have to admit I was a bit tired by the time I wrote this section, so > didn't include as much as I should have. Following Veronica's and > Andreas's suggestions, I'll include: > > http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/2695/links.htm > http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/8608/ > http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/. > > Any suggestions of others (that aren't going to disappear in the near > future)? NO!!! Since I'm hosting a picture collection I'm a bit proud of and which will be likely to stay in the net for a long long time I understand that everyone wants to be linked everywhere. But Allen Mullen's list is something like 'the most complete list'. Why make another worse one in the FAQ. Just make clear that that link is a good starting point. Joan's page should be mentioned there for obvious reasons. But - PLEASE - not 10 others! Look into the older FAQs and you see what happens with long link lists in FAQs. BTW: A search for 'ascii art' with a search engine isn't a very succesfull way of finding the good pieces either. Try it and compare the result with - again Allen's list. > And finally, just to prove that I actually do some ASCII art (not just > FAQs :-), and to give you an idea of what I look like (in case you > haven't been to my home page), here's a self-portrait mugshot: > > ,a@@@@@@@@@m. > ,@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@. > J@@P':.. ..:`W@ > @@@':;;.. ..;;::@) > \@!:<@#@>::<@#@>.@ > |.::"??"; `???.:"\ > `._::..:_ee_...::_/ > \:..______,::/ > \::.. ...:/ > MT-3 `-:____:-' Looks like a long night... ;) And again : Good work. :) Andreas _ | Ascii Dictionary (Collection, Links, ...) | o | http://www.stud.uni-hannover.de/~freise | o <<.|_ _| < > |\ |
>I use a program that is designed for doing >ansi's and ascii's, which works really well in the overwrite mode because >it allows for highlighting and moving, copying, etc, of rectangular >sections of text and stuff like that. Insert mode is very annoying! Ah! Seems like it goes back to personal preference. I don't use any programs-- just basic editor on a windows notepad. Perhaps we ought not say one is better (or preferred) over the other... Just list methods... I think that programs may intimidate some good ASCII artists... -joan -- __ _ / | joan stark | \ \/_/ <spu...@juno.com> \_\| / __ \/_/__\ .--='/~\ ____,__/__,_____,______)/ /{~}}} -,-----,--\--,-----,---,\'-' {{~}} jgs __/\_ '--=.\}/ /_/ |\\ \/ ASCII ART GALLERY: <http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/> -joan
Well, personally, I agree with joan about using just simple editor
functions. I do everything on notepad, which really only has one font,
keeps everything on one screen with no linewrap, and uses the insert or
nothing. What else do you need? Perhaps I'm just a bit out of date, but
I've never liked programs that do my work for me when the work is not
all that hard to do.
--
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Phosphor wrote: > > On Mon, 3 Nov 1997, Veronica Karlsson wrote: > > |Spunk1111 wrote: > |> > |[ 8< ] > |> I have one comment though... I have to object that > |> the overtype mode is better. I like to keep the characters > |> there and manually move them around until the picture > |> looks right. I'd rather insert spaces and move a character > |> than to type over it. Am I the only one using this method- > |> or is everyone else using the overtype? > | > |I _can_ set emacs to use a kind of overtype-like mode but I prefer the > |"normal" mode... :) > > Yuck... How can you stand that? I use a program that is designed for doing > ansi's and ascii's, which works really well in the overwrite mode because > it allows for highlighting and moving, copying, etc, of rectangular > sections of text and stuff like that. Insert mode is very annoying! > Andreas taught me how to do that with emacs... =) AND I can use the same program, with the same special little "tricks", for writing html source code, programming source code, even play some games... (I have heard that you can also use emacs to surf and read news etc but lets not get too extreme now... I am also very irritated about the way it sometimes tries to be smart and changes stuff for me, like when one day it suddenly "tabified" an ascii art file for me without my telling it to do that...) I say, choose one tool and learn how to use it. A good artist can achieve the most amazing results with really simple tools. A bad artist might be helped by special programs to create something that looks "cool" without really knowing what he did, but he will not be able to achieve anything really amazingly good until he makes the effort to learn how to do things thoroughly. -- _ ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _| |__/ __ \| |_ _ __| |__| | | |_ _| |_| |_ ___ ___ \ V / / / / _` | | || / _` / _` |_| | || | _| ' \ _(_-</ -_) \_/|_\_\ \__,_|_|\_,_\__,_\__,_(_)_|\_,_|\__|_||_(_)__/\___| \____/ http://www.ludd.luth.se/~vk/news LIKE MY SIG? GO HERE: http://www.surfplaza.com/figlet/
In article <345...@spamfree.land>, Matthew Thomas <mpt...@spamfree.land> wrote: > [] []i there, ASCII people. You should feel honoured and privileged to > || || be reading my first ever Usenet post ;-). > |+=+| > || || I've been reading alt.ascii-art for about six months, and I can't > [] [] ^^^^^ Is this a Hi-fighter, or is this the wrong thread...? Tim. -- tim...@argonet.co.uk Saxon's Curious facts, updated: 2nd Nov - As seen at Acorn World! http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/tim.m
Jorn Barger wrote: > The first person to make this possible will change the face of > netnews... I do custom software, $50.00 US per hour, minimum 3 hours. 3 hours payment due upfront, plus $500.00 US deposit, which must be payed in full before I start working. C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: C: Actually, it wouldn't be that hard, if somebody were to email me the source (C/C++/basic) for an ASCII editor (must be their own, so I can ask them any questions I have), I would be glad to add a transparent paste option. -- --ran...@slip.net --Randy Gardner
Thanks Colin Douthwaite, Veronica Karlsson, llizard, Joan Stark, and Andreas Freise for your comments and suggestions. I'll wait a few days for more suggestions to come in, and then have a go at a revised version. In the meantime, some of your comments which I'd like to reply to are set out below. But first, Veronika Karlsson was rightly incredulous at what I was doing: > ... > Hi there yourself... that was one loooooong first ever post... (a > record?) Well that wasn't my primary goal, and it was *nothing* in comparison with your reply! Phwarrr! :-) ... > > So, over the past few weeks I've had a go at doing a new FAQ myself, > > "this is my first post ever" and "I wrote a new FAQ" in the same > post!? Prepare to be torn to pieces! :D:D:D:D:D:D I *knew* someone was going to say that! Oh well ... :-) Secondly, everyone has different ideas about what the subject of the FAQ message should be. llizard wrote: > "FAQs: So you're new to ascii-art..." and (in a different message): > *NEW* TO ASCII-ART? READ ME (FAQ) Joan wrote: > ASCII ART FAQ-1997-please read Something to think about. Next, Veronica wrote: > > > > In addition, some of what [the current FAQs] say is a bit > > out-of-date or idiosyncratic (how to use gopher and lynx, and > > relying on scrolling newsreaders for animations, for example), > > As we have also seen recently the scrolling animations aren't _that_ > outdated and I know from my own experience that lynx is everything but > outdated ... > and it is definitely very well suited for ascii art. Er, those came under the heading of idiosyncratic, not out-dated. lynx is useful (yes, I use it occasionally) BUT it is fair to say that the great (great as in large, not great as in intelligent :-) majority of Netizens use browsers other than lynx, and use newsreaders which do not scroll messages up as they are loaded (which is a requirement for scrolling animations, isn't it?) ... > > [`Welcome to alt.ascii-art' heading] llizard wrote: > > I like the Welcome sign, but because the post is already quite long > and people are often reluctant to download long posts, I suggest you > use a smaller font. > (I've used my diddled version of one of Joan Stark's fonts here.) > __ _, > (-| | | _ | _ _ ,_ _ _ -|-_ _ |-|- _ _ _ . . _ ,_-|- > _|_|_|(/_|(_(_)| | |(/_ |(_) (_|| |.(_|_)(_ | |.(_|| | > ( Yes, good point, although llizard's one is a *bit* hard to read. Anyone want to do a dazzling (but smaller) freehand-style heading, or suggest a better Figlet font choice? Veronica wrote: ... > > NOTE: If you are new to Usenet News, please read the messages in > > news:news.announce.newusers before posting to any newsgroups. > > Thanks. > > Did you? Did anybody? Er, yes. Netscape News has its faults (this is the second time I'm writing this message, for one, because it crashed on me the first time), but one of it's better points is that it automatically subscribes you to news:news.announce.newusers, news:news.newusers.questions, and news:news.answers when you first start using it, and I *have* read them. > Personally I had read elsewhere that you should read FAQ files and > lurk for a while and see what things were like before butting in... > But when it came to reading those things, I couldn't care less, I > wanted to get out on the NET! (I suppose they may be good, but do real > people read them?) Are you trying to *encourage* bad Netiquette, or what? I don't want to think I'm a freak just because I *did* do all those things ... :-) ... > > 1 What is the alt.ascii-art newsgroup for? > > 2 What is ASCII art, and why is it used? > > Shouldn't 1 be 2 and 2 be 1 here? You start discussing what > alt.ascii-art is before you explain what ascii art is... (Five minutes later ...) A brief survey of news:news.answers reveals that of those FAQs which describe the newsgroup and its topic separately, a small majority have the newsgroup before its topic. A matter of taste, I guess. ... > > 8 Can someone do my name / these words in ASCII, please? > > 7 Can someone convert this picture to ASCII, please? > > 6 Can someone draw me a ... llizard pointed out: > ha > ^^^^%--- ha > " \ ha Is there a reason that numbers 8,7,6 are out of order? Oh, botheration (it was bound to happen somewhere, I suppose) ... , (O (Matthew slapping himself with M\ a wet bus ticket -- proverbial / \ NZ punishment for silliness) Veronica wrote: > > > > 9 Can I copy this ASCII picture? > > 10 What should I know about signature files? > > 11 What happened to rec.arts.ascii? > > 12 Where can I find more ASCII art? > > 13 Is there legal copyright problems when duplicating ASCII art? Question 9 is what seems to me to be the consensus from recent discussions in a.a-a about copyright. Would you like to suggest some more detail? > 14 How do you make ascii animatons? Since news:alt.ascii-art.animation seems to be a wasteland now (most of its traffic is spam, crosspostings from a.a-a, or llizard :-), I guess it's not worth a separate FAQ, so you have a point ... so if anyone can mail me a summary of how to do ASCII animations using scrolling techniques (as mentioned before, I think scrolling ones are newsreader-dependent) and animations using JavaScript, I'll include it (keeping in mind that the FAQ shouldn't be a multi-volume epic). > 15 How do you make coloured ascii art? Care to elaborate? The only safe, semi-standard way of doing it that I've ever seen in a.a-a is HTML, which is covered in Questions 2 and 3. > 16 Isn't a gif version better than just a "raw ascii" picture? Question 2, or do you mean something else? > 17 Does anybody have pictures of naked women/men in ascii? In my six months of reading, I don't remember this ever being *asked* for, although Meriday, your self-portrait, and TowelMan have been *posted* often enough... > 18 Some other popular requests... Like? IMHO, the FAQ shouldn't end up being a FRP (Frequently Requested Pictures) gallery as well. ... > > Types of messages which we generally enjoy seeing include: > > * look, here's an ASCII picture I drew... > > (provided it wasn't a famous eagle by Row...) <snigger> Shame on us, I noticed that it was a New Zealander who tried to pull that one off ... > > * REQ: xyz (ie, has anyone got any ASCII pictures of xyz?) > > (with some exceptions...) Like? As far as I can tell, there isn't much the regulars here are afraid to have a go at. :-) ... > > Types of messages which we generally don't enjoy seeing include: ... > > * make money fast!!! ... (yawn, yawn, snore) > > As if _they_ would read an FAQ... I know, but it's the principle involved. :-) ... > > * messages with the subject `ASCII art' (not exactly informative, > > is it) > > so? Does it have it have to be? If what's _inside_ it makes sense... Well, yes, it does. Basic Netiquette -- give the reader help in deciding whether they want to download the message or not. ... > * Long discussions about pentagrams! Oh come on, I liked that thread. :-) Off-topic postings broaden the mind ... > * Meriday in the Morning (we have already seen her) Yes, but who here can honestly say that they object to seeing Meriday reposted here every once in a while? :-) ... [talking about ASCII characters] > > These characters are almost completely standard, except for a few > > slight variations on some systems. For example: > > # (hash/pound): a hash sign on most computers, a pound sign on some > > British ones > > ??? > > The one above (number 35) comes out like this: > > _|__|_ > | | > _|__|_ > | | > > The pund sign is a completely different, non-standard, character. (Am > I missing something important here, or is Matthew missing something > important here?) On some British keymaps/fonts, this character is _ / \ | -+- | /___| for obvious reasons (European Monetary Union still being some time away for them, of course). > > | (bar): a solid line on most computers, but some split it in the > > middle > > Personally I recommend using this instead of "I" or "l" since they are > less likely to look ok... > > | | > | may turn into: > | | > > ___ > | > but "I" may turn into: | > _|_ > > A dotted line looks better than one with little "thorns" on it... That's exactly what I say in Question 4. > > ^ (caret): differs in size depending on the font used > > ~ (tilde): appears in the middle of the line in some fonts, at the > > top in others > > this can be a problem! WARNING! Exactly. I might put in a bit here about using " instead of ~ for a top-of-line horizontal line. ... > WARNING! Posting pictures containing [ANSI] characters to aaa is a > sure way to get FLAMED! Why? Sure it's not a good idea, but are there any newsreaders which crumple up in terror if you use ANSI, as opposed to just displaying the pictures a bit oddly? ... > > Some e-mail programs, particularly those built in to Web browsers, > > can read and write messages in HTML (HyperText Markup Language, the > > language which Web pages are written in). HTML allows colours and > > (using JavaScript) animations in ASCII art. It IS ok to post these > > messages, since they are just plain text; but remember, most e-mail > > programs do not recognize HTML and will print all the HTML > > formatting as well as the text, making your pictures more or less > > unrecognizable. > > This is not good advice to put in a FAQ! It would be better to > encourage text-only posts since the html posts don't just turn up as > one messed-up-looking html code version in the text-only people's news > programs but as TWO versions, one html and one plain-text, in which > case the html one is totally superfluous. Usually true, although it depends on your browser settings. For instance (if I remember correctly), of Netscape Communicator 4's three options (send as HTML, send as plain text, send as both) the default is unfortunately the first one. > Also who has the time to sit and make "pretty" little html documents > for NEWS, something that only lasts a few days (ok, much longer in > some archives, but in practice they last a few days) when the message > is of a text nature anyway?! Someone here at the University of Canterbury, for one (yti11, a couple of weeks ago). ... > > Some people look at ASCII art and shake their heads in disbelief, > > thinking `haven't these people heard of REAL graphics?'. > > HEY! WAIT A MINUTE! Time for a new headline here? Hmmm, possibly. ... > I have heard that there are some silly people who think > monospaced fonts look ugly and have thrown all of those out of their > computers to gain memory, I have also heard that there are some > _really_ stupid computer makers who think the same thing and don't put > any monospaced fonts in them to begin with... (these are rumours, I > don't know if they are true but they don't sound _too_ impossible... I don't believe it. A Macintosh, possibly, if Monaco is deleted. But a PC will always have Terminal (for DOS programs etc), an Amiga will always have Topaz, and so on. > I _know_ that it can be true for individual programs...) :( See Question 4. > > * an ASCII art picture is literally hundreds of times smaller than > > its GIF or BMP counterpart, while still giving a reasonable > > level of detail > > You will have to give some more thorough explanation about this! There > are so many WYSIWYG people out there who want to measure the size of > an image in inches rather than bytes. These people will think that > this argument doesn't make sense! Sure. This bit could be rewritten, I guess ... ... > > * Make sure you are using a fixed-width font to view messages with > > -- one where all characters are the same width (like on a > > typewriter). ... > How about mentioning the names of a bunch of common monospaced fonts > here... Yes, I'll move the font stuff from Question 4 to here, since this part comes first. ... > Wrapping is a problem when you SEND pictures! The "wrap long lines" > thing in some versions of Netscape has to do with SENDING posts! As I wrote: yes, some of the time. I have Netscape's View / Wrap Long Lines turned on when *viewing*, so I don't have to scroll forever to read a paragraph from someone who had it turned off when *sending*. But when I go to look at pictures, I need to turn it back off again, otherwise they get wrapped to oblivion. But ... > If a picture is already wrapped by the sender it won't matter how much > I try to click on that option, nothing is going to happen. > Also some news programs wrap _incoming_ messages as well as outgoing > messages. Learn how _your_ program works, but do that in alt.test, not > aaa! ... that's also true. ... > > * If there are a lot of < and > symbols in the picture, with words > > like HTML, FONT COLOR, B, I, and so on inside them, then the > > picture has been done in HTML (see Question 2), and your > > newsreader does not understand HTML (most don't). > > Is this very common? (now you see why I recommend NOT writing mail and > news messages in html) Not right now, but I'm sure it will become more so (unfortunately) in the next year or so as the HTML-defaulting mail programs become more widely used. ... > > 4 How do I start drawing ASCII art? > > ===================================== > > > > ASCII art can be drawn using any text editor, such as the Windows or > > Macintosh Notepads, any of the various Emacs editors, BEd or AZ on > > the Amiga, and so on. (Using a word processor to draw ASCII art is > > like using a sledgehammer to crack a walnut -- it can be done, but > > it is difficult to do properly.) > > how about "edit" in DOS... Ok, I'll stick that in. (I'm not that knowledgable about DOS, nor do I have any desire to be. :-) > Yes, you _can_ use a word processor to draw ascii art! No it is not > "like using a sledgehammer to crack a walnut"! Word processors can > have some sophisticated little functions that make them much more > suitable to draw ascii images with (such as "replace", which most > editors probably have too... Maybe I was a little over the top there. But generally, an editor has more of those character-based features than a word processor, and it doesn't keep saying `this file contains formatting which cannot be saved in Text format; are you sure you want to close without saving the formatting?' etc. ... [An overtype function is useful] > Usually accomplished by pushing the "insert" key! Whoops, forgot to mention that. :-) But I was surprised when Joan wrote: > > I have one comment though... I have to object that the overtype mode > is better. I like to keep the characters there and manually move them > around until the picture looks right. I'd rather insert spaces and > move a character than to type over it. Am I the only one using this > method- or is everyone else using the overtype? Now this seems to me to be incredibly labour-intensive, but who am I to argue with the Queen of ASCII herself? Especially since Veronica replied: > > I _can_ set emacs to use a kind of overtype-like mode but I prefer the > "normal" mode... :) Veronica wrote: > ... [discussion about copy and paste] > (hmmm... how about some instructions for that... for the most common > types of computers...) I don't think so. (1) There are SO many different systems out there, and as I said, the FAQ shouldn't be an epic; (2) copy and paste is usually pretty easy to figure out anyway. ... > > DON'T try to post pictures drawn in a proportional-width (ie > > non-fixed- width) font: even if you specify the exact font you used, > > the chances of other people being able to read it are pretty slim > > (even `standard' proportional fonts such as Times New Roman can vary > > in width from computer to computer). > > BIIIIIIIIG RED BLINKING TEXT HERE!!! Using HTML? :-) ... > > if you're using a sans serif font, just remember to use the vertical > > bar (|, above \ on most keyboards) > > (The vertical bar sits on the same button as < and > on _my_ > keyboard... > NOT EVERYBODY ON THE NET IS AMERICAN! OR "ANGLIFIED" IN SOME OTHER > WAY!) I said most, and most is correct. Calm down. 3-) ... > > Once you've chosen your font, prepare your canvas. Type a row of > > spaces for however wide you want your picture. Copy this row and > > paste it for however many rows high you think your art will get. > > Then turn overtype on, stick your cursor somewhere in the middle, > > and you're ready to draw ... > > I don't agree! With this technique it is very easy to get extra > unnecessary spaces at the end of the lines which may cause > "mysterious" wrapping when the image is posted! (and it is so easy to > forget to look for them and remove them when the picture is made... Not if you have overtype on right from the beginning, surely? ... > > As you gain confidence, your pictures will start getting larger. > > Not necessarily true. Drawing small pictures is a challenge and can be > quite difficult while drawing bigger pictures requires less exactness > and can be easier to start with... And llizard wrote: > -- > ___ ha > _/ | ,^%--- ha Hey!! As I gained confidence, my > |_____| __<_ \ ha pictures didn't get larger.... > --- == >/ > [_____] __>,^ llizard aka ejm [..........................] > ejm97| | //| | http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Studios/9334/ Sorry. That's the way it worked for me, and I guess I'm guilty of assuming that it worked that way for everyone else too. Veronica continued: ... > > The things which give beginning ASCII artists the most trouble are > > usually diagonal lines and circles. Here are some lines of various > > angles: ... > Here's a collection I made once (and if anybody can come up with > _good_ lines for slopes > 1/1 please tell me!!!) > > 3/1 2/1 1/1 2/3 1/2 > | | / / .' .' > | | | / / .' > | / / / .' .' 1/3 > | | | / / .' .-' > | | / / .' .' .-' > | / | / / .' .-' 1/4 > | | / / .' .' .-' _.-' > | | | / / .' .-' _.-' 1/5 > | / / / .' .' .-' _.-' _.--' > | | | / / .' .-' _.-' _.--' 1/6 > | | / / .' .' .-' _.-' _.--' __.--' 1/7 > | | | / / .' .-' _.-' _.--' __.--' __..--' > _.-' _.--' __.--' __..--' 1/8 > _.--' __.--' __..--' __..--'' > __.--' __..--' __..--'' > __..--' __..--'' > __..--'' > -------------------------- 0 Ooh yes, much better! (Although, depending on whether or not your comma is north/south or northeast/southwest, ,' ,' is probably better than your .' .' .) ... > > And here are a few circles of various sizes: ... > ... [after which Veronica included a LOT of good and not-so-good circles] > I'll put some of those in. ... > Figlet is _the_only_good_ascii_art_program_! That is, Figlet is the > only ascii art program that can produce result just as good as a human > artist can! It is very easy to use and most of the time when you want > to do text there is absolutely no reason not to use it! FIGLET IS > GOOD! FIGLET IS FUN! TRY IT! That was a party political broadcast from the Figlet Lovers' Advocacy Party (FLAP) ... :-D ... > > 7 Can someone convert this picture to ASCII, please? > > ====================================================== > > > > Probably not, for the same reason as question 6: there is a computer > > program that does it. Well actually, several programs, with names > > like ascgif, gifa, gifscii, and gif2ascii. Do a Web search for any > > of these programs to find places where you can download them. Now I seem to have tripped up badly here. Veronica wrote: > > I disagree! You are confusing two questions here: > > 7a: Can somebody tell me where to find a gif-to-ascii converter? > > 7b: Can somebody draw an ascii version of this picture? > > (there is a difference!) > > I strongly suggest that you don't put your answer quite the way you > did! It looks as if you _recommend_ using those programs... (I assume > that you do not!) The first question should be answered by giving a > couple of URLs and a comment saying that THE RESULT OF THOSE PROGRAMS > USUALLY SUCKS! The second question is welcome to the group and often > seen as a challenge, certainly not as an insult, since it clearly > shows that the person in question has understood that in this case the > computer just isn't up to it... And llizard wrote: > > I think that question #7 can be answered a little differently. I have > converted (if I can use that term) gifs by looking at them. I have > never used any of those programs (brrr... too hard). Instead of your > answer of "probably not", which is just too frustrating for a new > person to see, I'd like to see an instruction for the person to state > the URL where the picture is located. (example: "Can someone convert > this picture which is at: http://fillintherestoftheURLhere ") along > with an instruction that it should be the URL for *just* the picture, > not the whole page. (example: "Right click on the picture you want > converted; left click on [View Image]; copy the URL of the picture > only.") Consider it done. Can anyone give me the URLs of the convertors' home pages, to start with? Veronica continued: ... > > 10 What should I know about signature files? > > ============================================= ... > > A signature file (or sig for short) is a small text file which an > > e-mail program adds to the end of every e-mail you send -- the > > equivalent of a letterhead for dead-tree (paper) mail. Usually it > > contains little more than the person's name, organization, and > > e-mail address, and an inspirational quote of some sort: but some > > people like to incorporate ASCII art into their signature files as > > well. > > (how about a link to some page with lots of examples here...?) Can you suggest an URL? ... > > no-one will complain if your signature file is four lines long or > > fewer -- and it is quite possible to do a reasonably good ASCII > > picture which is that small. > > It is quite possible, but also quite difficult, to do some bloody good > ascii art that is that small! > > Here are a couple of examples (most of them NOT made by me): ... [There followed not a couple, but a gazillion examples ...] Have you collected these on a Web page? ... > > 12 Where can I find more ASCII art? > > ==================================== > > > > Lots of ASCII artists put up libraries of their own and others' > > ASCII art on their Web sites. Do a Web search for `ascii art', or > > see > > http://www.yahoo.com/Arts/Visual_Arts/Computer_Generated/ASCII_Art/. > > If you don't have Web access, well, just read this newsgroup! :-) I have to admit I was a bit tired by the time I wrote this section, so didn't include as much as I should have. Following Veronica's and Andreas's suggestions, I'll include: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/2695/links.htm http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/8608/ http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/. Any suggestions of others (that aren't going to disappear in the near future)? Colin concluded: > > I think we should post your new FAQ regularly to alt.ascii-art and > alt.ascii-art.animation newsgroups and give the old FAQs ( still > valuable ) a rest...perhaps posting the oldies quarterly ? > > Daniel Au's Tutorial is probably still worth posting regularly in > addition to the FAQ because it has direct impact and shows very > clearly how to construct a first picture. > > I'm uncertain about dropping the WARNING notice on Control Codes > because historically that posting has produced more reaction than > any of the other items I have posted regularly. I'd agree with all of that. And finally, just to prove that I actually do some ASCII art (not just FAQs :-), and to give you an idea of what I look like (in case you haven't been to my home page), here's a self-portrait mugshot: ,a@@@@@@@@@m. ,@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@. J@@P':.. ..:`W@ @@@':;;.. ..;;::@) \@!:<@#@>::<@#@>.@ |.::"??"; `???.:"\ `._::..:_ee_...::_/ \:..______,::/ \::.. ...:/ MT-3 `-:____:-' Bye for now ... -- __ /\_\ Matthew Thomas, who was thrown into the Avon River today _\/_/_ My real address is mpt26 @ student dot canterbury dot ac dot nz /\_\/\_\ http://kiwipages.co.nz/matthew.html \/_/\/_/ PS: Veronica, sorry for spelling you `Veronika' before :-(
Spunk1111 <spu...@aol.com> wrote: > Lester5374 <les...@aol.com> wrote: > >What are your thoughts on using a ASCII editor like TheDraw so you can > >copy and stamp something over and over again to make the right effect (say > >like a fence)? > Why bother when you have copy/paste? The ascii tool I want most is block-paste-with-transparency. Once someone writes this, we can start accumulating a library of ascii clip art, and mix and match things to make more complex images. See <URL:ftp://ftp.mcs.net/mcsnet.users/jorn/keepers/keepers01> for an ezine where I illustrated all the articles with this technique (by hand). Another tool I want is a Figlet implementation that does backspace, and select-region, and change-font. And, an editor that will flow text around embedded ascii graphics, or do columns! The first person to make this possible will change the face of netnews... j
Andreas Freise (ad...@mpq.mpg.de) wrote: > I only insist on adding Alan Muller's Link List > http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/2695/links.htm and (why not for > heaven's sake) Joan Stark's site http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/7373/ > to the URL list. > (Colin? Do you read this?) Yes. Being lazy I have always preferred mainly just to repost existing FAQ material...that's easier and all work on the Net is purely voluntary. The problem with URLs and Archive Sites is that they are constantly changing and disappearing so putting them in FAQs means that the FAQ maintainer has to be relied on to keep the URLs up to date - a thankless and often impossible task. I was never prepared to attempt to do FAQ maintenance so I added disclaimers to the old FAQs stating that the existence and correctness of Archives and Archive sites could not be guaranteed. Personally I prefer Site Archivists and Homepage Owners to make their own announcements rather than having a list of site references in FAQs. Also FAQ authors and maintainers frequently disappear so that the FAQs become old and historical. Like everyone else these people volunteer their work and have no obligation to continue it. There are many FAQs automatically posted monthly to the "news.answers" newsgroup which have not been revised in years. Bob Allison used to post his FAQ to "news.answers" but it disappeared once he had resigned as moderator of rec.arts.ascii. Bob Allison ( Scarecrow ) was perceived to be immortal but burnt out after only 2 years or so. 3 years is like an Era on the Net and anything that survives longer than that is somewhat unusual...nothing lasts forever in this medium. Bye,
Randy Gardner wrote: > Hm. Your ISP is an extreme example, most keep them for over a week. > Even the one that my mother uses which is run from one lady > in a 1 room building over a bike shop keeps them for 4 days.... > My isp keeps article for over 3 weeks, so missing is rather hard to > do. Well, let's not get too hasty with the "most" talk. Llizard has better access than I do. We do not even retain alt posts for 24 hours. So, I get anything received between about 2am and 5pm, Monday through Friday only. I think I miss more posts than I actually get to see. (One of those little drawbacks to access from work.) And deja news is a pain. However, that doesn't alter the fact that people should read for a few days (at least) before they post. Sandy
Andreas Freise (ad...@mpq.mpg.de) wrote: >My intention writing the sentence you quoted above was >only to make sure that at least Allen Mullen's >list is added before the first posting of the (any) >new FAQ. (Allen gets a big Thanx!, too) >That wasn't meant to be any kind of critisim. I fully realise that you were not being critical and I was in in no way offended but thought an explanation of my attitudes might be useful. I was only making the point that whilst I have nothing against listing URLs and Archive Sites, lists of that type are a pain to maintain and keep current because the Archive Site/Homepage Owners seldom let the List and FAQ Maintainers know of changes. Allen Mullen is quite diligent in maintaining his own Site and has definite views on FAQ contents. After posting the Bob Allison FAQ in the newsgroups for some months I got tired of private email from people telling me they could not access Sites listed in the FAQ and asking if I could sort it out...so I added the Disclaimers and mercifully the emails stopped. :-) The only persons really able to maintain and revise FAQs are the original authors...some do, some don't, and many simply lose interest and enthusiasm. The main point about the "New Ascii FAQ" is that it is written from the perspective that most people now use Windows 95, Netscape and other sophisticated Web-Browsers and News-Readers with all sorts of Colours, Bells & Whistles and other Gizmos...instead of the old Text Editors with Non-proportional Fonts used by the "Early Neanderthal Ascii Artists". Modern users naturally think they should be able to use ALL the Gizmos in Ascii Artwork and they get all frustrated and confused when the hi-tech expensive Gizmos don't work in the pictures they produce. Bye,
Matthew Thomas wrote in message <345...@spamfree.land>... >> I have heard that there are some silly people who think >> monospaced fonts look ugly and have thrown all of those out of their >> computers to gain memory, I have also heard that there are some >> _really_ stupid computer makers who think the same thing and don't put >> any monospaced fonts in them to begin with... (these are rumours, I >> don't know if they are true but they don't sound _too_ impossible... > >I don't believe it. A Macintosh, possibly, if Monaco is deleted. But a >PC will always have Terminal (for DOS programs etc), an Amiga will >always have Topaz, and so on. Hm.. I don't like sans-serif fonts, but you don't see me deleting them all from my system.. (But I'm a font hoarder anyway. I have many, (for not having one of those 1000fontcd's anyway)) AHEM, on to what I was gonna say.. >> I think that question #7 can be answered a little differently. I have >> converted (if I can use that term) gifs by looking at them. I have >> never used any of those programs (brrr... too hard). Instead of your >> answer of "probably not", which is just too frustrating for a new >> person to see, I'd like to see an instruction for the person to state >> the URL where the picture is located. (example: "Can someone convert >> this picture which is at: http://fillintherestoftheURLhere ") along >> with an instruction that it should be the URL for *just* the picture, >> not the whole page. (example: "Right click on the picture you want >> converted; left click on [View Image]; copy the URL of the picture >> only.") > >Consider it done. Can anyone give me the URLs of the convertors' home >pages, to start with? I was doing some web-research for the a.a-a page that will go on my website if/when the next update ever comes out, and I found a webpage, http://www.io360.com/v2/yo/asciiworld/gs.html which will gifscii any .gif (OR .jpg) off the Internet, or let you upload your own to use. It's pretty interesting; you put the URL of the image in a form, submit it, and then a page comes up with the original image and the gifsciified (whoaw what a word) version underneath it... Of course, it's still gifscii, so it ain't beautiful, but hey, don't we all need a little diddling? ;) >>BKNambo "I really need to finish my webpage, but until then,..." http://come.to/brocks.place and raise my counters, 'cause nothing new's up...
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