Against all odds I'm part of the social networking world. I thought I should find a site where I could combine the varied parts of me... painter, sculptor, etc. Would you believe that the sculpture site doesn't mention painting and visa versa? So I've landed on the oil painting site. Here's my address http://www.art-networks.net/account/
What applications or web sites I examined:
I considered Facebook because my daughter-in-law has an account there and posts photos of the kids. I decided against it because I think Facebook's policy of owning everything you post, even after you leave, will drive off any artist who can read.
I checked out DeviantArt, which I located in a google search for social networking sites for artists. I was drawn (artistic pun not intended) to the large assortment of artists and styles. The site is oriented toward showing and promoting art. However, in a separate search I located the information that DeviantArt is not intended to be a social networking site and that they are mystified as to why people have started using it as such. They clearly view social net-workers as a plague that needs to be eradicated.
Which one I chose and why:
I ended up joining Art-Networks because it meets all the requirements of the assignment and my own goals as an artist. I will be able to upload images of my art in pdf files. Visitors will be able to view my art without needing to register or spend any money. I can create descriptions and other information in Word documents which easily upload. Because this is a site by and for artists, and because a certain amount of paranoia comes with the artistic territory, Art-Networks is more security conscious than Facebook or other sites which claim ownership to anything you post.
How easy or difficult it was to create an account and get started using the application:
Joining was easy. I suspect many artists would not survive a more difficult process. Art Network contains a directory, groups, gallery space, videos, forums, blogs, events and a shop. Forming a profile is easy. The site is designed for uploading images. I've noticed a lot of videos being used but I haven't mastered that feature yet.
I don’t have contacts within the site so I haven’t experienced that feature. The tools for composing messages and adding contacts look straight forward.
One of their revenue generating materials is a dating service called Chatter. One encounters it when entering popular pages like the gallery.
The gallery is set up well. It presents over 1000 images and each one can link you to the full site for that artist.
A rating of the application and its usefulness:
If you're and artist and want to combine a gallery space for your art with social networking I think this site deserves an A. It makes it easy to share recent creations with family and friends who are far away. I'm disappointed in their exclusion of sculpture but, since I could not find a site open to both, this is as good as it gets.
List of Facts:
Documents and Media that can be uploaded
Web pages: no
PDF files: no
Images (jpg, gif, png): all formats
Audio/video: yes
Other: images can be tagged
Special Features:
Tool for sending invitations
Tool for creating polls on your profile page
Event calendar that members can contribute to
Tag Cloud (site’s hot tags)
Blog with list of top bloggers
Directory that members can add to with a listing of recent entries
Access & Viewer participation
Method of access: create a username and password
Are there levels of access (viewing/editing): no – if two people were to overwrite a profile simultaneously, one persons updates would be lost
Can there be simultaneous editing: profiles are private so doesn’t apply
Is there RSS feed: yes
Private group access: yes
Other: viewers can make comments on entries
Customization
Only your own profile can be customized
Support
Is there technical support and what is the cost: free response to email questions
How and when can the technical support be accessed: form email
Are there tutorials online or downloadable: no
Are there searchable help pages: the help text is on one web page, searchable, categorized by subject and FAQ
Is there a user forum: yes
Password support: only by resetting your own
Technical Requirements:
Does it work with all browsers: yes
Does it work with all operating systems and platforms: no information provided; works on PC or Mac
I'll put up some of my art. OK, I paint nudes. But I'm playing with some abstracts and I'll add a couple landscapes. And I'll sneak in a metal sculpture. If you can't bend the rules on an art site, where?
No comments:
Post a Comment