doranwen: female nerds, rare and precious (Default)
As I was working on the LJ project, I came across various icon resources that were hosted on DA (textures, brushes, etc.). And of course, all the pretty icons are making me want to play around with icon making once again, so I decided to start collecting them (since I only have a smattering of things from 20 years ago when I last made icons).

However, I found that in order to download, not only are accounts required - but they recently implemented a ridiculously restrictive limit of 10 free downloads a week (though that number goes up to 150 *if* you pay for Core+). The comments on the news post about it are absolutely scathing, and blow apart any idea that the new rules are for anything but a money grab. (They blame users downloading thousands and thousands of downloads, but there are LOTS of other and better ways to thwart AI scraping, and large numbers of active users naturally download larger amounts than 10 in a single week, despite their claim that this won't affect people.)

While right-clicking still works for any actual artwork (though you'll only get the original full-size if the artist set it to display), and gallery-dl can handle that sort of thing in bulk, the side effect of this limit is that anyone looking to download packs of images - like sprite packs, folder images, or (like me) icon making resources - is now extremely hampered in what we can get. A single artist with over a hundred resource packs will now take several months to download all their work.

I've tried reaching out to some artists, and the one that responded was happy to upload all their stuff to my MegaDrop folder, but others may not check their email, have lost access to the email in question, have passed away, etc.

Which brings me to my question: Does anyone reading this know of anywhere that people are pooling their DA stashes? Or collaborating to save art they're mutually interested in? If two users want the same 20 zips, for instance, they can split them up and each download 10, then share their copies with each other to maximize what they can get. Add a few more in the pool and the potential really goes up.

I'd love to work on something like that but don't know where to start, and I'd first like to find out if someone is already doing it. I'm told that sort of discussion is likely to happen on Tumblr but as I don't use Tumblr… can't really ask there. Anyone?

EDIT: I'm starting to reach out for help at least with the resources I'd like to get. If you'd like to help me, comment and let me know. Anonymous comments on this entry are screened so you can leave an email address to contact; otherwise I'll DM you. It's literally 5 minutes a week of your time, and not difficult at all.

EDIT #2: A very kind and helpful volunteer gifted me Core so I now have the 150 downloads per week. Still going to run out of it easily, with everything I'm running across - but the point of this is to also help anyone who wants them but has no download slots left, so that means I'll now have more I can share with others.
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autobotscoutriella: teenage Ema Skye writing in a notebook (AA1 Ema)
Today's to-do list, with a few items already checked off because I was going to post this earlier and forgot:

- fold laundry
- put up hummingbird feeder
- clean out dead plants from the porch garden and get the pots back in shape
- reply to AO3 comments
- put away winter decorations and get out the spring ones
- pick up groceries
- write 200 words on either Forsaken Road or broken beaten damned (I picked broken beaten damned but I might poke Forsaken Road later)
- crosspost some fic from FFA and the PWKM

I had some feline help with the plants ("Springs, what's in your mouth? Give me that. GIVE ME THAT. No, you can't eat the chives. Leave the wasp ALONE."), so I anticipate summer gardening will be somewhat more exciting than it was when Prowl was content to nap under the chairs while I worked. I need to go get some more pots, because mine are in pretty sad shape after a decade of being left out in all weather, so I may need to add a quick trip to Lowe's on the way home to my to-do list, but we'll see how it goes.

EDIT: I finished! And made that trip to Lowe's and organized the shed while I was at it. A productive day.
evandar: (Red Ribbon)
Dear Author,

Thank you so much for writing for me! I'm really excited to see what you come up with.

This letter contains a list of Likes and DNWs as well as a couple of prompts. If none of the prompts catch your eye, then write whatever you like. As long as it doesn't hit any of my DNWs, we're good.

Read more... )

Thank you for reading this letter. If none of the prompts here appeal, please feel free to write anything that you want to, and as long as it doesn't include any of my DNWs, I'll be delighted to receive it.

I can't wait to read what you create for me!
autobotscoutriella: Picture of a blue shark approaching the camera (blue shark)
I think we're finally past the last frost, which means I might be able to get some strawberries planted this weekend! I don't know how well it'll go - I am notoriously bad at container gardening - but I've wanted to at least try for a few years, so I'm finally giving it a shot. (I know I could have planted them earlier and brought them inside overnight...but I think I would have been just feeding strawberry plants to my cats.)

I just got the first Hades ending, which made me Feel Things. There's still a LOT I have to do in the game, so it'll be a while before I'm done, but awww, Cerberus's favorite person. (Yeah, yeah, family bonding whatever, I'm still looking forward to the next time I make it to the surface and SOMEONE is NOT getting a World's Greatest Dad mug. But we made the dog happy!)

The rapid weather swings this week are absolutely wiping me out, though. I'm still banned from afternoon coffee at work, and it is hard when your face starts hurting halfway through lunch. We went from a high of 75F over the weekend to 40F Monday and yesterday back to a high of 70F today and I am so tired. Pick a temperature!
eye_of_a_cat: (Default)
 Happy Easter! from me and the note that is the bane of my (chorical) life even though it’s not that high and I can sing it fine in other pieces.


autobotscoutriella: (sharpedo1)
Saddest video game moment: not only does this NPC not like me nearly as much as I like him, he keeps telling me to go talk to a much more obnoxious NPC about it. Not for plot reasons, just "go bother him".

No! He's a dick! Can you please just communicate with me about your sad ex for at least a minute ;_;