Vote: Location images
Hello everyone,
As you may have seen, yesterday's update brought several new features: a new navigation system, shortcuts, quick search, weather, and a mobile display. I hope you like them, and I'm still reading your feedback so I can implement your suggestions (please don't hold back). You can go here to find out more.
This system relies on having images to represent locations, which I also believe matters for the immersive atmosphere I've always tried to give the site.
The illustrations we've been using since 2017 came from Pottermore: we don't have the right to keep them, and that alone is reason enough to replace them eventually. We had around thirty of them; nearly four hundred are needed to cover every location. Having them drawn would cost, according to the quotes I requested, between 300 and 1,000 euros and several weeks for a single image. The royalty free image banks, which I've combed through, objectively offer no alternative for depicting our locations. Having them made on a volunteer basis raises other difficulties (an enormous amount of work, the risk of having to turn down images that don't fit, and some thankless constraints: a shared style, colours matched to each theme, a consistent brightness level, no detail too striking near the edges) and could only ever cover a handful of images given the scale of the task.
That leaves only two options: having images using generative artificial intelligence, or having no images at all.
With that in mind, I opened a topic to discuss it on the forum, showed what the site looks like without images for two weeks, and now with images. I want to make clear, of course, that the current images aren't set in stone: they required intense work over the past few weeks given how many there are, and they're only waiting to be improved or replaced with better ones, together with the community, in the future. These images are optional and can be switched on or off on the preferences page.
Finally, I said I wanted to hold a vote to gauge how the community feels, which is the purpose of this message.
The question being put to you isn't whether you're for or against AI, with all the concerns and misuses that exist, but a specific choice: whether you think players should be able to choose to display these images depicting places, or not.
So I'd like to know which of the following two alternatives you consider preferable:
1/ Let players choose whether or not to display the location images (in their preferences).
2/ Remove these images for all players (nobody would then be able to enable or see them, since they would no longer be part of the site).
To reflect the player community as accurately as possible, only one vote per person is allowed (if you have several accounts, you may only vote with one of them). The vote will last this week.
You vote is anonymous (other players won’t know who voted for what).
In the meantime, I'll have the great pleasure of coming back with several other surprises over the coming days and weeks.
All the best,
Zachary
As you may have seen, yesterday's update brought several new features: a new navigation system, shortcuts, quick search, weather, and a mobile display. I hope you like them, and I'm still reading your feedback so I can implement your suggestions (please don't hold back). You can go here to find out more.
This system relies on having images to represent locations, which I also believe matters for the immersive atmosphere I've always tried to give the site.
The illustrations we've been using since 2017 came from Pottermore: we don't have the right to keep them, and that alone is reason enough to replace them eventually. We had around thirty of them; nearly four hundred are needed to cover every location. Having them drawn would cost, according to the quotes I requested, between 300 and 1,000 euros and several weeks for a single image. The royalty free image banks, which I've combed through, objectively offer no alternative for depicting our locations. Having them made on a volunteer basis raises other difficulties (an enormous amount of work, the risk of having to turn down images that don't fit, and some thankless constraints: a shared style, colours matched to each theme, a consistent brightness level, no detail too striking near the edges) and could only ever cover a handful of images given the scale of the task.
That leaves only two options: having images using generative artificial intelligence, or having no images at all.
With that in mind, I opened a topic to discuss it on the forum, showed what the site looks like without images for two weeks, and now with images. I want to make clear, of course, that the current images aren't set in stone: they required intense work over the past few weeks given how many there are, and they're only waiting to be improved or replaced with better ones, together with the community, in the future. These images are optional and can be switched on or off on the preferences page.
Finally, I said I wanted to hold a vote to gauge how the community feels, which is the purpose of this message.
The question being put to you isn't whether you're for or against AI, with all the concerns and misuses that exist, but a specific choice: whether you think players should be able to choose to display these images depicting places, or not.
So I'd like to know which of the following two alternatives you consider preferable:
1/ Let players choose whether or not to display the location images (in their preferences).
2/ Remove these images for all players (nobody would then be able to enable or see them, since they would no longer be part of the site).
To reflect the player community as accurately as possible, only one vote per person is allowed (if you have several accounts, you may only vote with one of them). The vote will last this week.
You vote is anonymous (other players won’t know who voted for what).
In the meantime, I'll have the great pleasure of coming back with several other surprises over the coming days and weeks.
All the best,
Zachary
Vote: Location images
Because there have been questions regarding what these votes mean.
Let players choose whether or not to display the location images (in their preferences).
This is what we have presently. Those that want BG images right now can (please be aware that they are generative AI), those that do not do not have to and they will have a textured BG. Some of the textures are up but there are some still coming. Some of the BG images are not up yet also and should be up in coming days.
Remove these images for all players (nobody would then be able to enable or see them, since they would no longer be part of the site).
This removes the toggle option, everyone has the textured background. The BG images would be deleted and not accessible to anyone.
Let players choose whether or not to display the location images (in their preferences).
This is what we have presently. Those that want BG images right now can (please be aware that they are generative AI), those that do not do not have to and they will have a textured BG. Some of the textures are up but there are some still coming. Some of the BG images are not up yet also and should be up in coming days.
Remove these images for all players (nobody would then be able to enable or see them, since they would no longer be part of the site).
This removes the toggle option, everyone has the textured background. The BG images would be deleted and not accessible to anyone.
There is something about ambition, how it not only propels you but also defines you.