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custom avatars and signatures


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I'll make it easier. Center it. Same position vertically, but move it over to the right until it is centered.

You *absolutely* did not make it "easier". I wish you had gotten out your red marker as I had asked. Or been more *specific*, as in "Center it in the 80px horizontal".

"Centered" relative to WHAT ?:

The Old Man's head; the Old Man's head and beard; the Old Man's head, beard, and mushroom cap; the whole 80px in the horizontal direction ?

Certainly, you can't mean the whole 80px, which would put the bphlpt *on the beard* and *very close* to the mushroom stem (and expose virtually all of the so-called "snaky" hair in the process).

Who knows *exactly* what you mean ? I don't. For me, it is "nebulous", at best.

In # Final-15 and 16, I centered the bphlpt *exactly* between the back of the Man's head and the tip of his nose, and made minor adjustments to the hair as shown. A major feature of # Final-15 and 16 is that now the little bit of hair that dangled down in # Final-11 and 12 just to the right of the "t" in bphlpt is gone. Note that this "dangle" was a strong element in the signature, so, if you want the avatar and signature to be a "unified set", as you have mentioned, the dangle needs to be there (IMO) -- as shown in # Final-13 and 14 (which are identical to # Final-11 and 12, except that the sphere has been moved up 1px). The sphere occupies this same position in # Final-15 and 16.

Even though my "sliding" of the bphlpt might not have been *exactly* what you had in mind, it should be enough to convince you that # Final-13 and 14 are the *much better* images (IMHO).

With bphlpt as shown there:

the image is "opened up" more;

we have the strong lower-left to upper right diagonal formed by bphlpt and the top of the sphere (and, as I had mentioned before, this diagonal is "balanced" by the opposing strong diagonal of the Man's beard -- giving an overall "X-type" pictorial composition);

the triangle formed by bphlpt, the mushroom cap, and the top of the Man's head is *much more* equilateral (i.e., balanced) than in # Final-15 and 16;

the way in which bphlpt "possesses" the lower left corner of the picture makes it stand out more, and it tends to provide an "anchor" for the entire image.

I kept the luminosity of the letter outline equal to 120. Recall that this value had been *finalized*.

I guess that's an indication that you do good work - when people expect you can OBVIOUSLY perform miracles until you finally tell them NO!

Since you didn't use your red marker, as I had asked (or been more *precise* in your "centering" description -- especially since we had just discussed *precise communication*) -- and by so doing, making the situation much more "nebulous" (i.e., confusing) for me -- I respectfully decline to do any more versions of the "sliding" bphlpt.

That's not a "NO!", but it is definitely a "no!"

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FINAL VERSIONS OF "OLD MAN" TRANSPARENT GIF AVATAR (IN JPEG FORMAT)

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Images are the same as in # Final-11 and 12, with the exception that the blue binary-number sphere has been moved up 1px.

# Final-13: avatar on a white background, JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/1166vxmxw/

# Final-14: avatar on a black background, JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/1ffstk3o/

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Images are the same as in # Final-11 and 12, with the exceptions that the blue binary-number sphere has been moved up 1px and bphlpt is now centered under the Old Man's face.

# Final-15: avatar on a white background, JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/1ghu6jgk/

# Final-16: avatar on a black background, JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/1h013cw4/

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"Abstract painting is abstract. It confronts you. There was a reviewer a while back who wrote that my pictures didn't have any beginning or any end. He didn't mean it as a compliment, but it was."

Jackson Pollock

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LOL # Final-13/14 Finalize. Publish. Thanks.

I guess "LOL" is, indeed, the correct reaction. I do get carried away at times. Sorry.

Since we have been collecting "whammys", had you realized that "LOL" spelled backwards is "LOL"? Another *double "symmetry-type" whammy* there, for sure!

But, I think I am "whammied out" on this project.

Now comes the fun part -- (not!) -- of piecing together the final avatar psd file to give you. Like I said, it should take 2-3 days to make it -- (in doing a good, detailed job). And I should have both (signature and avatar) psd files posted in a week or two, once I get my psd to rar conversion problem solved.

Your transparent GIF is given in # Final-17.

It looked good in Photoshop, and to double check it, I e-mailed it to myself on an aqua background. That was an interesting effect, since the aqua outline around the mushroom cap -- all the way from the sphere down to the stem -- merged (i.e., disappeared) into the aqua background. Of course, the aqua outline *on* the sphere remained. But, even in this "kind of extreme" situation, the overall cap image looked *good*. Try it, to see for yourself, if you want. I'm glad I chose aqua as the background, because 2 light colored pixels near the cap border and just to the right of the stem stuck out like sore thumbs when the aqua outline "disappeared". They were much too light (and, really, kind of out of place). I corrected this situation by darkening these 2 pixels and I added another darker pixel near the border to give a *perfect pixel distribution* in that area. I'm sure you'll agree that these small changes were improvements. In summary, the only differences between your transparent GIF, # Final-17, and # Final-13/14 are these 3 pixels.

So, thoroughly check out your transparent GIF to make sure it meets *all* your requirements. If it doesn't, let me know, and I'll try to adjust appropriately.

As you probably know, you can use an image for your MSFN Photo (shown under "My Profile"). I noticed that you currently don't have a Photo. Your new transparent GIF avatar would make a good Photo (the Photo doesn't have to be a picture of yourself), and it would "unify" your image throughout MSFN. The maximum Photo size is 150x150px, but it doesn't have to be that big. You won't be able to successfully enlarge your new avatar, because the bphlpt would become blurry. I think the 80x80px size is fine as it is.

I like LoneCrusader's avatar/Photo because it is a striking image on a black background, and my favorite image of your avatar is the image on a black 100x100px background (which we have seen many times). So -- just in case you ever want to use this image for anything -- I made versions as a PNG (# Final-18) and as a JPEG (# Final-19). The PNG and JPEG were made totally independently of each other, and, as I've mentioned before, the direct comparison between these 2 versions shows that the PNG is of good quality.

I feel that the creation of your new avatar has been a definite *collaboration* between us, and without *each* of our inputs (and dencorso's suggestion about changing the shape of the Old Man's beard), the final result would not have been *nearly* as good. I hope you feel the same way. I think that we at least reached the 95% level of perfection -- a hard level to attain in any project.

Of course, in this process of artistic creation between two "perfectionistic hardheads" (is that the right term? lol) there were -- as would be expected -- periods of "gentle friction" (again, is that the right term? lol). But, all in all, the experience was rather rewarding. I hope you feel the same way.

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FINAL VERSIONS OF "OLD MAN" TRANSPARENT GIF AVATAR (IN VARIOUS FORMATS)

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# Final-17: the final transparent GIF, 80x80px, GIF

http://postimage.org/image/1bmfy1n44/

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# Final-18: possible MSFN Photo (avatar on a black background), 100x100px, PNG

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/35353

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# Final-19: possible MSFN Photo (avatar on a black background), 100x100px, JPEG

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/bb61a

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"I think everyone should be a machine. I think somebody should be able to do all my paintings for me."

Andy Warhol

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It has most definitely been an experience collaborating with you Larry on my Sig and avatar. It would not have been the same without you. I am very pleased with the results, as you can tell, and I took your suggestion and used the .png for my photo. As I've mentioned before, you are quite welcome to use any part of either image in whatever way you choose in your future projects. I'll look forward to getting the psd files for both whenever you are able to supply them for my files. I can handle them with any form of compression, or not, that you are able to do. Whenever you have them, just PM me the links. Thank you very much in advance.

Cheers and Regards my friend

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I am very pleased with the results, as you can tell, and I took your suggestion and used the .png for my photo.

I'm so glad you are very pleased with the results. I like them, too, and I'm glad we found the "universal solution" that pleased us both. Your Photo looks great, too. I really like the way the black background accentuates the aqua outline around the mushroom cap.

The *real reason* I'm responding here:

As you know, an image looks different in different environments (as we've seen with your avatar on a white vs. black background). On seeing your new avatar posted in the "environment" of the MSFN page, it is absolutely *crystal clear* "to me" that the luminosity 120 outline (around the bphlpt letters) was the correct choice. (It needs to be that dark so that your name "pops out" compared to the word "Member" below it.)

bphlpt, your avatar now has an optical illusion to it. It would appear that the "data sphere" is not a circle, especially where the man overlaps it. However, it is a proper circle.

Optical illusions abound in Art -- (especially in "Op Art", of course -- lol) -- and these are one of the reasons I enjoy Art. But please note that optical illusions are a highly individualistic, subjective phenomenon. (I know with *absolute certainty* that you know this fact, Tripredacus, and I don't mean to be didactic here.) The optical illusion you are seeing might not be seen by others, and others might see optical illusions in the sphere that you don't.

Thanks for your input. I always enjoy it.

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"The best reason to paint is that there is no reason to paint..."

Keith Haring

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@ bphlpt

When we both were fiddling with the Old Man's head in trying to smooth out the "stairsteps" (aliased edge), his head grew and grew until it turned into "balloon head", as shown in your avatar -- which you can clearly see by comparing the avatar head to the signature head. From my viewpoint, I was so focused on the avatar, that I basically forgot about the signature. But, when I saw them both on the MSFN page yesterday, the discrepancy hit me like gangbusters.

No big deal. I corrected the avatar head to match the signature head so peace has now been restored in the "Old Man's Kingdom".

The corrected images are shown in # Final-20 and 21, and these may be directly compared to # Final-13 and 14, respectively, -- to see how much "balloon head" has been deflated.

I also made a few very slight improvements in texturing the hair. I don't think the shape of the head can be improved any more. We certainly don't want to start fiddling and give birth to "balloon head redux".

Give me the go-ahead and I'll whip # Final-20/21 into transparent GIF and Photo PNG formats -- so that you will have the *perfect* avatar.

P.S. added in Edit:

I left out the little tuft of hair sticking up from the top of the Old Man's head in the signature. When I had it looking perfect on a white background, it was ultra-bright on a black background. When I had it perfect on the black background, it was distractingly-dark on the white background. I was unable to find a happy medium. In addition, the hair *shape* was also very distracting in the (aliased) avatar -- so, I'm glad I left it out.

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FINAL VERSIONS OF "OLD MAN" TRANSPARENT GIF AVATAR (IN JPEG FORMAT)

In the 2 images below, the Old Man's head was *corrected* to be the same as in the signature.

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# Final-20: image on a white background (compare with # Final-13), JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/2amyqlpic/

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# Final-21: image on a black background (compare with # Final-14), JPEG

http://postimage.org/image/2an5cr3hg/

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"I love Los Angeles. I love Hollywood. They’re beautiful. Everybody’s plastic, but I love plastic. I want to be plastic."

AndyWarhol

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Edited by larryb123456
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LOL, and if you go back to Final-7/8,he was starting to look like a conehead, LOL

I also forgot to directly compare the av and sig, was just comparing the av to the previous av image. The new shape is much more natural. And your improvements to the hair are striking. Thanks for being diligent, even after things were "finalized". You are an artist. Go for it. Thanks again.

Cheers and Regards my friend

Edited by bphlpt
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You are an artist.

Did you mean to say, "You are a temperamental artist."? LOL!

Here are your transparent GIF avatar (80x80px) and MSFN Photo PNG (100x100px).

I hope the avatar gives you many years of enjoyment, especially in recalling the major role you had in its creation.

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FINAL VERSIONS OF "OLD MAN" TRANSPARENT GIF AVATAR (IN VARIOUS FORMATS)

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# Final-22: the final transparent GIF avatar, 80x80px, GIF

http://postimage.org/image/2bisu17qc/

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# Final-23: MSFN Photo (avatar on a black background), 100x100px, PNG

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/46e01

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"I like to repeat an image in another medium (as an example, Old Man in avatar vs. Old Man in signature) to observe the play between the two: the image and the medium. In a sense, one does the same thing two ways and can observe differences and samenesses -- the stress the image takes in different media."

Jasper Johns

The italicized parenthetical was added by me.

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Being the "perfectionistic" artist that I am, I didn't like 2 rather minor features of the "finalized" # Final-22:

# 1) where the top of the scalp meets the hair (above his right ear), there is not enough definition (i.e., darkness) to the hair, so it kind of looks like the hair and scalp "merge" together.

# 2) the back of the left side of his head looks too flat.

I corrected these two "minor flaws" in # Final-24 and # Final-25.

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FINAL VERSIONS OF "OLD MAN" TRANSPARENT GIF AVATAR (IN VARIOUS FORMATS)

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# Final-24: the final transparent GIF avatar, 80x80px, GIF

(This image may be directly compared to # Final-22.)

http://postimage.org/image/2qbiwxqlg/

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# Final-25: MSFN Photo (avatar on a black background), 100x100px, PNG

(This image may be directly compared to # Final-23.)

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/0c626

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"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing."

Harriet Braiker

and

"When you aim for perfection, you discover it's a moving target."

George Fisher

and, finally, the best, to-the-point, quotation

"Have no fear of perfection - you'll never reach it."

Salvador Dali, the great visual and conceptual artist

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Edited by larryb123456
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LOL I'd laugh more, but you really can tell the difference! Surprisingly so. I will refrain from updating my posted images, however, until you are sure you've found everything that can possibly be corrected. Thank you very much for your hard work and persistence. If nothing else, others should be able to see your willingness to go above and beyond.

Cheers and Regards

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I will refrain from updating my posted images, however, until you are sure you've found everything that can possibly be corrected.

I am *completely finished* with the corrections to the avatar, and I will base my .psd file on # Final-24.

Any little "imperfections" in the image that remain will give the Old Man "character". Also, I'm convinced that if I try to improve the avatar any more, I'll make it worse, not better.

Even Leonardo da Vinci had the good sense not to "correct" the imperfect, asymmetrical smile in the Mona Lisa.

Thank you very much for your hard work and persistence.

You are so very welcome.

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  • 3 months later...

Hello Larry,

I'm not the "originator" - I found' this cutie as "Animated.GIF" some years ago,

... and I just search again - here ist the result ... and the "freedom of choice"

http://www.tineye.com/search/cb4706db1a04fbe5ff1f61290357df36a0eb6fff

cheers ^L^

EDIT: Hello again, :)

What a wonderful renewed & cleaned Avatar ---> Thanks a Lot !!! =))

Edited by e-t-c
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