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Radioblog is often really... ornery and won't play some peoples playlists.  It usually works, but sometimes certaini ones just... don't.  After you search for an artist, just try clicking on a few of the links to songs until you get one that works.

Okay, so as far as I know... Radioblog is an internet jukebox program that provides you a program that converts mp3s into a different sort of format (RBS I believe?) that it then plays using a script provided when you download it.  Unfortunately, it does require that you upload the RBS files onto your own server.  However, as far as I can tell, there is no way to download any of the tracks that are uploaded using that program.  So... It's basically allowing other people to listen to songs that you have uploaded, but not allowing them to download them for personal use.  Thus the... "radio" part of the title, I guess.

As for what I planned to do... I really only wanted to uploaded around 10-15 songs to give my friends and other interested art colleagues an idea of what I listen to without resorting to sites like yousendit.com (which is DEFINITELY not legit, whooeeee!)  Typically, if you can get the radioblog to work correctly, it pops up in a different window (oh, and it doesn't have any ads) and then you click on the track and it (usually) plays it.

If you're really worried about the copyright issues, let me know and I won't upload it.  That's why I wanted to run it by you first, because I figured there might be some worries there.  I may be able to create an atspace.com account just for it as well if I get that desperate.

Hope that helps!  Let me know if you have any other questions.

I've been reading around a bit on the forums and haven't seen anything that addresses this, so... here I go:

Does Xepher.net allow users to upload things like Radioblogs (http://radioblogclub.com) ?  I'm well aware of the "no uploading illegal mp3s and making them available to the public" rule, but in the cases where you're just uploading the music for people to listen to but not download, is it the same?  If you're familiar with radioblog this will make much more sense than me trying to babble about it... but if I need to clarify, let me know.

Also, if you do accept radioblogs and the like, do you have a limit on the # of songs/total file size that can be uploaded?  If possible I'd like to get a few songs up just for fun, but I would never want to load up the server and impede other users with large-size files.


Thanks!
Laura

You people are all absolutely amazing.  Tickyhead, thank you so much for providing the link to that tutorial by databits.  Everything seems to be working fine now, and it's way easier than I thought it would be.

Oh, and I know that FTP and PHP are different, but I noticed that the pages had to be in php format for the newsbox to work, and I have only worked in .html before, so... I was a little concerned that I would have to learn a ton of new information, but such is not the case it seems!

Thanks again for the super-speedy help you guys!

...I am suddenly getting this horrible sinking feeling that my problem is I haven't downloaded an FTP client yet.  Is that it?

Except that I just read that Windows typically comes with one installed.  My computer is fairly new and I'm using XP, which makes it seem like it should be there.

Uggghhh.  I have never worked with FTP OR PHP before, so please go easy on me if I sound like an idiot.

Alrrrigghhhttt, so I'm having some problems already.

I followed the instructions given in the e-mail, and I got down to the part where I'm supposed to log in via the ftp.xepher.net address.  I went there, and when prompted to I entered my username and password.  The log-on message came up again saying one or the other was incorrect.  As a wild-shot, I entered my DB password.  Same thing happened (as expected that time).  So, next I made sure that five minutes had passed since I changed my password, and put in the first one again.

This time, it look like it had recognized it.  However, then the little "searching" gif with the flashlight and folder popped up, and after several seconds windows gave me and error message:

"FTP Folder Error

Windows cannot access this folder.  Make sure you typed the file name correctly and that you have permission to access the folder.

Details: The operation timed out"


Help, please??  Did I... hammer it or something with all those password changes and now it's booting me off or whatever?  I tried turning off my firewall too, just to see what that would do, but no luck.  Do I just wait, or... or what?!!?  Augughghghghgh sometimes I curse my website/internet illiteracy.

I am dreadfully confused.  Hopefully it is just some simple issue that I am being ignorant about.

Thank you!

And also, thanks for the timely response.  I wasn't very concerned at the lack of all that legal mumbo-jumbo, but you pinned my fears on the head when you mentioned DA.  That was more what I was worried about, that there was some secret clause here that made Xepher.net eligible to use and own my art as they pleased.  I am very happy that that isn't the case!

And I don't plan on showing porn of gratuitous violence here either.  I don't think I've ever drawn any in the first place.

I checked out those two pages before, and I'm perfectly fine with the rules that you have set up.  I have no plans of causing trouble or trying to weedle myself through the guidelines.

Once again, thanks for explaining all of that to me and making it clear!

Username: acephalous

Spam proof E-mail: e* c* r* u* 0* 0* 6*@yahoo.com
(Just take out the spaces and stars)

Hello, my name is Laura and I'm interested in creating a site to host my artwork and occasional comics on.  It would be more of a portfolio website, where I regularly update the images I've drawn.  While I don't have a concrete update schedule, I am fairly consistent in posting things as I create them.  However, please don't let my mention of comics make you think that maintaining one is my goal here.  I suppose you could call them... those crazy "artiste" comics that take forever to do, have no schedule, and are more of an art project.  I hope that doesn't deter anyone, but honestly, my true passion is in my regular art.  And that is exactly what I want to show professionally: those finished (and slightly less finished) works.  I've been bounced around from server to server by some not-so-reliable hosts, never being able to maintain a site long enough to attract regular viewers.   I'm encouraged by the Xepher motto and management, and it seems that this would be a great place to be.

So... an art site, you say?!  I work in traditional, digital, and photographic mediums.  I do everything from singular illustrations to comic pages to darkroom photography.  

Yes, well maybe I had better shut my mouth and give some examples!
First, some generic gallery sites:
http://ecru.deviantart.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ileum/

Alright, so I am a multi-media-all-over-the-place girl.  But my favorite?  Traditional.
Mixed Media:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/tok_skulls_sml.jpg
(this one has nudity, eek!) http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/abstract_mess_sml.jpg

Watercolor (my favorite type of paint):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/ofanglesandangels_sml.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/watercolor_sunglasscity_sml.jpg

India Ink:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/20sgirl_color_sml.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/teeth_sml.jpg

However, I also do some digital work, mostly oekaki stuff (because digital painting is just not on par with traditional media in my elitist au-naturel painter world.  (kidding)):
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/oekaki_plantsex.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/oekaki_emobloodyboy.gif
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/oekaki_avantgardeboy.gif

Annnddddddd a page of this comic that is taking me forever to do and is just for kicks:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/grasshopper_page01.jpg

As you can tell, I really change my style up a lot.  With painting things, I tend to go realism all the way.  On my sketches and doodles, I take a more... cartoony (I... dislike that word) style.

Okay, and a few photos just since I mentioned it:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/photo_lauragrass.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/photo_ashsiting.jpg


Allrriigghhhttt, I think that is enough for now.  Luckily I have a large body of work to get started with.  (oh, making all those thumbnails will be so terribly exciting.)


Okay, and now to talk about my .html skills:
I am quite familiar with .html.  Uhm, however, I do not have a "website" up at the moment.  HOWEVER, don't write me off just yet.

First, my LJ account. (which also has lots of sketches on it that aren't on my DA account.)
http://ecru.livejournal.com
I know I know, you're all thinking "what good is this?  They provide the template!"  But please consider:  I'm using the S1 style system on LJ, which means I had to create ALL of the code needed to customize it to look like that.  I researched it all and typed it out, and I know it like the back of my hand.  And no, I DID NOT just take code from another layout and paste it in my overrides box, nor did I slightly tweak someone elses layout.  All of that is done by hand, using my own ideas and visions.  My LJ also shows that I know a good deal about CSS: customizing bgs, colored scrollbars, how to change font, cursors, borders, tables, header images, etc etc etc etc etc.

And don't worry, even though I can use pure .html, I am actually a bit of a cheater and have Dreamweaver to design sites with.  So, along with the LJ, here are some screencaps I took of layouts that I have done in the past: (and please forgive the downsizing, they were just too large in a mortifying way.  Oh, and I mostly just took screenshots of the art pages because, well... they're so much more colorful and happy.)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/prevdesign_01.jpg  (whoopsies!  Sorry, the scroll bar got repeated as I was hurridly trying to paste the two screenshots together.)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/prevdesign_02.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/prevdesign_03.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/ecru/prevdesign_04.jpg

As you can see, I typically go very veerrryyyyy simple on designs.  This is because for the longest time, up until last year, I was one of those lucky lucky lucky lucky dial-up users, and boy oh boy did I feel the love when met with pages designed with flash or made up of image maps!  However, I must admit that my empathy for the dial-up users is quickly fading now that I have my broadband power-up, and I am stealthily tinkering with image maps as we speak.  However, as far as my site goes here, at first it will definitely be simple and clean.  (also just because it makes maintenance and editing so so so much easier.)

And, well... that just about sums it up.  I've wanted my own clean pristine gallery for ages.  Something about only having my work on DA just... creeps me out a little bit.  Plus I love tinkering with webdesign, even though... I... I don't know how to use FTP. (But it will come!)

So, please let me know what you think.

Best wishes all!



PS - I don't mean to step on anyone's toes, but could someone please direct me to the Terms of Service page for Xepher.net?  I looked around but couldn't find anything, and I'd like to read it before all this (possibly) gets set in stone.  I'd just feel more comfortable knowing what my artist's rights are within the site along with all that other legal jargon.