Archive-name darkfaq1 22 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- aaaaaaa aaaaaa $$$$$$ $$$$$ ^$#a $$$$$$ $^$$#a a#$$#a $$$$$ $$$$ a#$$#a $$$$$$ $$$$& a$$$$ ^$$#a $$$$$ a$$$$ $$^ ^$$$$$$$ a#$$#a $$$$$ &$$$$ a$$ $$$$$a$$$$^ $$$ $$$$$ $$^ ^$$$$$$ $$$$$ $$$$$ ^$$$$#a $$$$ $$$$$ $$$ $$$$$ $$$$$ $$$$$ $$$$$$ $$$$ $$$$$ $$$b $$$$$ $$$$$ $$$$$ $$$$$$ Q$$a a$$$$$$ ^Q$a a$$$$$ $$$$$a $$$$$ d$$$$$ Q$$a ^$ dark illustrated 1995 a$$$$ ^$$#a $ $$$ ^$$a &$ ^$ & WWW http www io org drasil FTP arpeggio res cmu edu FAQ last updated on December 3rd 1995 V1 21 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT DARK ILLUSTRATED Introduction Distributed each month on The Official Dark Home-Page Dark-affiliated boards and Dark Collections this article is a documentation of questions with answers for the cyberspace community This document includes information pertaining to Dark Illustrated and various computer-specific art forms in which the organization specializes This list of Frequently Asked Questions is maintained by Carnifex (myself) a member of Dark Illustrated s Senior Staff Please address all comments suggestions etc to my e-mail address fex@tlug reptiles org Special thanks to Desalvo Elminster and Preying Menace for all their help Acknowledgments are also extended to Acidic Soap Entropy Ravage Bias Rainmaker and Tribe Their assistance with this FAQ list has also been invaluable ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents SECTION 0 DRAMATIS PERSONAE * 0 0 Listing of Dark Illustrated s active duty roster 0 1 Additions to the group SECTION 1 GETTING STARTED * 1 0 What is the art scene 1 1 What is ANSI 1 2 What is VGA 1 3 What is RIP 1 4 Have any other art groups released a FAQ like this one * 1 5 Why are pseudonyms handles aliases used in this document SECTION 2 BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT DARK ILLUSTRATED 2 0 So what is Dark anyways What s the background on the group 2 1 What does Dark mean if anything 2 2 What is meant by a Dark Collection SECTION 3 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS AND OTHER INFO 3 0 How can I join Dark 3 1 How can my BBS become an official Dark distribution site 3 2 Who writes the Dark NFO files 3 3 Where s the second disk of the Dark Collection July 1995 (archive name DARK0795 ZIP) 3 4 What is Dark s Official Position on dual-grouping 3 5 What are the responsibilities of a Dark distribution Site 3 6 Does Dark accept members for writing (ie lit) only 3 7 How can I request artwork from Dark members * 3 8 Where can I e-mail a Dark Senior member SECTION 4 LIST OF FILES ARCHIVES AND WHERE YOU CAN GET THEM * 4 0 Listing of commonly requested files & archives * - new or updated since the last edition of this FAQ list ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Answers SECTION 0 DRAMATIS PERSONAE *FAQ NOT FULLY UPDATED! CHECK DARK1295 MEM Q0 0 (Listing of Dark Illustrated s active duty roster) (A) Acidic Soap (P) Predator Argon Preying Menace (C) Carnifex (R) Rainmaker Chemical Warfare Ravage Bias (D) Desalvo Red Rum Dirge Riptide Disciple (The 4th) (S) Scrupulous Drone-Fly Shock Wave (E) Elminster Shrike Epitaph Spaceman Spiff (G) Golgotha Spirit of Illusion Green Hornet (The) Sudden Impact (H) Hemp Hoodlum (T) TGFA (K) KillChild Tym David (L) Liquid Motion (U) Undead Corpse (M) Maelstrom (V) Village Idiot Moby (W) Wolf Morkai (X) Xeryrus Myth (Y) Yggdrasil (N) Neuropsychosis Night Angel (The) Q0 1 (Listing of new members) runAmok Hells Fury Deaccession Burnout ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SECTION 1 GETTING STARTED Q1 0 (What is the art scene ) In general the art scene is comprised of individuals who share a common interest in producing computer art through several different mediums The forms of visual art most commonly used are ANSI VGA and RIP PC music is also important to the scene and is composed in various formats such as MOD and S3M Another integral role in the art scene is that of the programmers or coders They are the ones responsible for creating the different programs used in the scene like application generators and graphics viewing utilities Cliques or groups of artists make up the majority of the art scene These groups are comprised of people who share common goals and or interests and release compilations of their group s art on a regular basis The art scene itself has evolved over the years and has become very competitive at times Also a sort of hierarchy has developed where certain established groups have been dubbed the best groups in the art scene and smaller groups strive to achieve that level of achievement However it must be noted that not all groups strive to live up to a standard set by others Q1 1 (What is ANSI ) In terms of the scene an ANSI is the manipulation of the standard ASCII character set along with the use of colour (or otherwise) to produce realistic or abstract pictures on the screen An ANSI is limited to the ASCII character set and a text only video mode ANSIs are most commonly drawn using the set of block characters and A limited colour palette is available by using primary foreground colours along with background colours and various ASCII characters As mentioned ANSI artwork can either be realistic or abstract - moreso it is clearly divided into two complementary forms pictures and fonts A picture is just that - a picture A font on the other hand is a strict word title phrase etc It is usually limited to letters and or numbers Fonts can also be drawn either realistically or with a more abstract tone Fonts and pictures are usually drawn together as a promotional tool or to advertise just about anything most ANSI is drawn for BBS (Bulletin Board System) advertisements however Since an ANSI uses the standard ASCII character set it is compatible with virtually all DOS-based computers provided an ANSI driver such as ANSI SYS is loaded beforehand It is most commonly used on BBSes (Bulletin Board Systems) as a way to effectively display colour and text at a very high speed ANSI does not require a software specific terminal as with RIP (see below) but is included as a terminal option with most terminal software (such as Telix(tm) Procomm(tm) Telemate(tm) etc ) Q1 2 (What is VGA ) VGA stands for Video Graphics Array a video mode and capability designed to display graphics on a CRT In terms of the scene a VGA is generally known as any picture or graphic drawn with a computer paint render or other program in any video mode (but most commonly in the VGA (640x480x256) or higher (SVGA) video modes ) Some of the more commonly used programs are Photoshop(tm) PhotoPaint(tm) 3D Studio(tm) and Autodesk Animator(tm) In general the styles used to draw a VGA are very diverse - but they can be divided into two large categories rendered and non-rendered work Rendered work as the name suggests is art drawn with the aid of a computer rendering program such as 3D Studio(tm) or POV Raytracer(tm) Non-rendered work is a hand-drawn freestyle form of drawing which encompasses everything from simple airbrushing to pixel by pixel drawing A VGA is different from an ANSI in the fact that an ANSI is limited to the exclusive ASCII character set and text video mode - a VGA is limited only to the confines of the program in which one draws Q1 3 (What is RIP ) A RIP is a picture drawn using the Remote Imaging Protocol The Remote Imaging Protocol henceforth known as RIP is a method devised by TeleGraphix Communications Inc (tm) to display EGA quality graphics (640x350x16) over standard telephone lines RIP was devised as a way to eliminate the inherent limits of ANSI and eventually to send full colour high resolution VGA as a terminal RIP as mentioned above is the primary RIP1 standard which is limited to EGA quality However it has been rumored that a new RIP standard is to be released which will allow a maximum image quality of 640x480x16M through JPEG(tm) compression In terms of the scene a RIP is a picture drawn in using the remote imaging protocol A RIP is different from a VGA in the fact that only very general paint functions are available - the structure of various shapes (circles polygons squares etc ) along with shading (specific halftone like gradients) and pixel by pixel drawing Due to these inherent limitations the drawing of a RIP requires previous planning and since the protocol was designed to be displayed across phone lines it is not instantly displayed as with a VGA Individual shapes are plotted according to vectors and these are used to comprise a picture Q1 4 (Have any other art groups released a FAQ like this one ) Nope It pleases us to be the first and we hope that this FAQ helps to put the Dark in a whole new light (tm) Q1 5 (Why are pseudonyms handles aliases etc used in this document ) Aliases are used throughout this document referring to people who are members of Dark Illustrated In the scene the use of aliases is prevalent one might relate it to the use of a nick on the IRC or another form of anonymous contact Aliases and other such monikers have been traditionally used as a just another fun way of participating in various activities computer or otherwise ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SECTION 2 BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT DARK ILLUSTRATED Q2 0 (What is Dark Illustrated ) Dark Illustrated is a non-profit special interest group which supports various computer-specific graphic mediums such as ANSI and VGA artwork in addition to multimedia feature presentations Primarily based in the 416 905 (Toronto Ontario) area code the organization features an enthusiastic team of talented young artists Officially founded in 1993 by Black Widow Dark first began releasing compilations of its recent artwork in February 1994 To this day Dark Illustrated continues to provide a non-profit form of exposure through bulletin board systems (BBSes) and the Internet Q2 1 (What does Dark mean if anything ) Originally used as an acronym the word DARK was once coined for Digital Artists of the Rare Kind The use of the acronym within the group declined over time however and eventually became obsolete It was replaced in mid-1994 with the current group name Dark Illustrated Dark and Dark Illustrated are used interchangeably throughout this document Q2 2 (What is meant by a Dark Collection ) Each month a compilation of recent artwork from Dark Illustrated is released to the cyberspace community in the form of Dark Collections This artwork often takes the form of ANSI RIP and or VGA graphics as well as various multimedia feature presentations The filenames of these Collections are archived in month year format DARK month year ZIP (Ie DARK1295 ZIP) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SECTION 3 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS AND OTHER INFO Q3 0 (How can I join Dark ) Although Dark Illustrated is a group of mostly non-professional artists anyone is always welcome to submit an application to join the group As with any job an application requires a resume a portfolio and an interview A much more detailed explanation of this can be found in the following paragraphs The resume is not a resume in the standard printed on paper sense - in this case an application is filled out using the Dark Illustrated Application Generator (DARKGEN EXE found in any Dark Collection ) The application contains the most basic information about the individual such as name telephone number past experience etc In this sense it is much like an everyday resume It is not required for one to use the Dark Illustrated Application Generator when applying to join Dark - however some sort of resume file must be included with any application so the Senior Staff may reach the applicant(s) This must include Real name alias (if applicable) telephone number(s) along with the best time to call an Internet e-mail address (if applicable) past and present drawing and art experience (any medium computer or otherwise) and in the case of people already familiar with BBS s (Bulletin Board Systems) a BBS where one can be reached The official application generated by the Dark Application Generator is in a generally foreign file format - however any home made file should be written in straight ASCII 80 columns wide The other portions of the application being the portfolio and interview are relatively self-explanatory - the portfolio being a collection of the applicant s artwork and the interview being an interview often over the phone with the prospective member A note on the portfolio any number of pieces of artwork may be submitted but keep in mind your own standards and those of Dark Illustrated as a whole The artwork in the portfolio must be of a standard file format In the case of ANSI artwork (please refer to Section 1 1 for a definition of an ANSI) this should be saved as follows Clear screen 65 character line limit In the case of artwork drawn using various paint programs (collectively known as VGA s - refer to Section 1 2 for a definition of a VGA) the picture can be any video mode and any number of colours - however for optimal compatibility pictures should be in the following formats Any picture drawn with 256 colours or less any resolution - GIF(tm) (Graphic Interchange Format (c) Compuserve) PCX(tm) (PC Paint) or BMP(tm) (Windows Bitmap) Any picture drawn with more than 256 colours any resolution (15 16 24 bit and above colour depth) - TGA(tm) (TrueVision Targa) JPG(tm) (JPEG) PCX(tm) (PC Paint) or BMP (Windows Bitmap) In the case of JPEG(tm) saved files a compression value acceptable for the picture submitted should be used Please use your own discretion If you are unsure please a minimal amount of compression - that is the lowest setting In the case of animated artwork (any resolution any number of colours) the work should be in AVI(tm) (Windows Audio Video) FLI(tm) (Flick) or MPG(tm) (MPEG - Motion Pictures Experts Group) format In the case of music any format one may use to compose may be submitted This would include MOD S3M HSC etc Any form of written work should be submitted in ASCII form 80 columns wide To apply to join Dark Illustrated one must have the application (or resume whatever the case may be) along with the portfolio These files should be compressed using PKZIP(tm) ARJ(tm) or failing that LHArc(tm) Other compression formats may be used but keep in mind that they will not necessarily be supported The first and best choice is PKZIP The compressed file can then be delivered to the Senior Staff through any one of the following methods 1) Uploading it to the World Headquarter BBS Lethal Aspect In the newuser application mention your desire to join DARK The Lethal Aspect can be reached by setting your terminal program at 8N1 with an ANSI (or compatible) terminal and dialing the number 416-421-4839 Once connected a simple menu is available to upload the application This is the most favorable approach 2) Contacting a Dark Illustrated member or Senior directly and submitting the application to him her The head of the ANSI department is Xypher Matryx the head of VGA is Yggdrasil the head of Music is Moby the head of Coding is Sudden Impact and the head of Communications is Riptide 3) Through the Internet This can be done in 2 different ways (a) Internet e-mail The application can be UUENCODEd and submitted as a series of messages which will be then UUDECODEd and viewed Please refer to e-mail contact addresses at the end of this document (b) IRC Members of Dark Illustrated can usually be found using the Internet Relay Chat particularly #dark Once found one can DCC their application to the member who will relay it to the Senior member in charge of the respected department 4) As a last resort the application can be submitted through any Dark Illustrated Headquarter BBS Please note however that individual Dark Illustrated Headquarter BBS s have their own private policy - please observe individual BBS rules and regulations Once the application has been submitted a response is usually affected within 5 business days If you have submitted an application and haven t been contacted by then please renew contact and politely describe your situation Q3 1 (How can my BBS become an official Dark distribution site On the subject of distribution sites Dark Illustrated chooses individual BBS sites carefully and not arbitrarily An official Dark Illustrated distribution site is much like the authorized IBM(tm) dealer a BBS that both distributes productions of Dark Illustrated and supports the group in both public relations and product support The System Operator may contact Dark Illustrated with a message of application and a representative will usually call the BBS to view it first-hand The message of application like the Dark Illustrated artist application should include the following BBS name telephone number affiliations message networks online storage number of nodes BBS software used and any other pertinent information As with a normal Dark Illustrated artist application the applicant will usually be contacted within 5 business days of the initial representative contact to discuss the site application Dark Illustrated distribution sites are not limited to BBS s however We are always interested in Internet-specific support such as FTP sites and or links on the WWW E-mail any Dark Senior Staff member (see Q3 8) for more information Other methods are used and are available as distribution sites - shareware distribution houses software trees etc In the case of these less modem-intensive distribution methods please contact a Dark Illustrated member directly **DO NOT INQUIRE ABOUT BECOMING A DARK DISTRIBUTION SITE FOR THE SOLE REASON THAT YOUR BBS IS THE ONLY ONE OF ITS KIND IN THE STATE AREACODE COUNTRY! SITES ARE ASSIGNED ON MERIT NOT ON GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION ** Q3 2 (Who writes the Dark NFO files ) With the exception of our Best of Dark 94 pack DARK1994 ZIP (which was written by Desalvo) our July 95 Collection DARK0795 ZIP (which was written by Carnifex) and our August 95 Collection DARK0895 ZIP (also Carnifex) the NFO files have been written by Black Widow Currently the NFO files are collectively designed and written by a team of senior members Q3 3 (Where s the second disk of the Dark Collection July 1995 ) We wish you good luck in finding in it! (due to a printing error the FILE_ID DIZ identified the DARK0795 ZIP file as being Disk 1 of 2 when in reality it was just a single file ) Q3 4 (What is Dark s Official Position on dual grouping ) First the question what does Dark Illustrated consider dual grouping must be considered Dark Illustrated considers dual grouping to be the instance act or event in which a member of Dark Illustrated is also a member of another group Dark does not look down on dual grouping in the instances of personal side projects (ie magazines music disks internal compilations games etc ) However anything that would detract from a member s full concentration focus and energy towards Dark is highly discouraged In terms of dual- grouping this would mean and include participation in groups that have in mind direct competition with Dark Illustrated or groups that produce a product design or which have a focus similar to that of Dark What does this mean exactly The reasoning here is that Dark Illustrated wishes the full participation and focus of its members in all group aspects This is not to be selfish defiant or oppressive but to keep the interests of the group at the forefront If a member has chosen to devote some of his her self-allotted time and energy towards another directly competitive group it presents both a weakening of production and effort on top of an immense conflict of interest What is acceptable and what isn t Projects initiated by a member to produce an uncomparitive product (this would include magazines music disks games etc ) are acceptable Projects with members of other groups in the aiding of art production are also acceptable (this would include joint art projects ) However participation as an artist in two different groups is not acceptable To use the analogy of having more than one wife it is impossible to devote 100% of one s time and energy towards two different groups This immediately causes a conflict of interest Dark wishes and in a sense requires the focus of its members Without that focus the purpose of the group is lost So the official position is that dual grouping in the strictest sense (ie being in two different groups in direct competition with each other) is highly discouraged and looked down upon However Dark is always open to special cases These will be considered for what they are Q3 5 (What is the responsibility of a Dark distribution site ) Each Dark distribution site has an enormous responsibility towards the BBS and the group itself The main focus of a distribution site is just that - to distribute the monthly Collection and any other files Dark may release However it is not enough to write DARK in the list of one s affiliations and expect a courier to shuttle the Collections back and forth to one s BBS The responsibilites of the System Operator of a Dark distribution site are twofold (a) to distribute the monthly Collections in the same manner as a magazine or newspaper distributor (without collecting money of course) (b) to both support direct and attenuate to the inquiries of anyone wishing information about any aspect of Dark Illustrated (this would include joining Dark distribution sites release dates etc ) To address the first point the Collections are designed to showcase the work of our artists Dark Illustrated has it in mind to distribute the Collections in the same manner as with newspaper or magazine distributors in this case the System Operator of the distribution site would have the responsibility of getting the most recent Collection (or all of them if they do not exist on his her BBS ) The System Operator would also have to make the Collection(s) ready for immediate free download and in all cases help spread the Collection around itself What does this mean exactly Well to put it simply the SysOp must get the pack himself (through whatever means availible or necessary) and put the Collection up on the BBS also the SysOp must act as a true distributor and help spread the pack around How can this be accomplished Quite easily Our couriers exist not to distribute the Collections around this occupies but a small amount of their time So the responsibility of getting the Collection falls on the SysOp of the distribution site The Collections are always readily availible on the Dark Homepage on IRC (offered by members in channel #dark) and on the World Headquarters The Lethal Aspect It is simple enough to download the Collection through the Internet - as a last resort one may have to incur the Long Distance cost to call the World Headquarters to download the Collection One cannot simply download the pack and be called a distribution site The Collection must also be readily availible for free download on the site this is most easily accomplished by having an initial shuttle menu selection or some other form of direct anonymous access Alos the SysOp of a distribution site has the responsibility of spreading the Collection around to anyone who might want or request it - through the Internet (offering on IRC putting it for download on one s WWW page etc ) or through *LOCAL* telephone calls The SysOp of a distribution site must also direct any inquiries towards the group to a senior staff member if the question cannot be answered directly Most questions can (and will) be answered by looking into this FAQ list anything else should be directed elsewhere In the most basic sense the SysOp of a Dark distribution site is a member of the group although they are not listed in the member list The SysOp supports the group distributes monthly Collections and helps anyone who might have questions or concerns about the group Distribution sites are not limited to Bulletin Board Systems - if you have a World Wide Web Page FTP site IRC Bot or are a Shareware Distributor or maker of CD-ROMs your help and presence are always welcome Please inquire to a senior staff member (addresses at the end of this document ) Q3 6 (Does Dark accept members for writing (ie literature) only ) Although Dark does support writing in the form of poetry prose stories etc Dark s official stance is more informal than formal The primary focus of the group is computer art Writing something and then porting it over to a typed form in the strictest sense is not computer art However because of the general informality of the group s stance whatever a member may write if acceptable for release will be released So to finally answer the question Dark does not close the door to those who wish to apply for writing only positions However keep in mind that Dark has *rarely* accepted anyone for this kind of position Someone who applies with a fully rounded application (ie primary focus as a VGA artist with writing as an aside) is the kind of forward thinking multi-talented person Dark Illustrated is looking for Q3 7 (How can I request artwork from Dark members ) Just ask! This won t always mean you will get what you ask for as the decision to draw write etc lies within the discretion of the particular artist A list of the Internet e-mail addresses of all members is being compiled at this point in time if you require something absolutely specific and cannot reach the artist in question please direct your query to a Senior member (e-mail addresses for those on the Net can be found in Q3 8) Keep in mind that although Dark Illustrated is a non-profit group break even compensation for an artist s time (always negotiable) is always appreciated but not always expected Dark Illustrated is always open to companies that require our services on a contract permanent pro-bono or freelance basis For more information regarding our policies please contact a Senior member Q3 8 (Where can I e-mail a Dark Senior member ) - desalvo AKA Forlorn Extender Dark Illustrated Senior Staff forlorn@sizone pci on ca - Ravage Bias Dark Illustrated Senior Staff ravageb@io org - Carnifex Dark Illustrated Senior Staff fex@tlug reptiles org - Xypher Matryx Dark Illustrated Senior Staff WHQ SysOp omyn@inforamp net (ANSI Department Head) - Yggdrasil Dark Illustrated Senior drasil@io org (VGA Department Head) - Moby Dark Illustrated Senior ana@io org (Music Department Head) - Sudden Impact Dark Illustrated Senior impact@tvo org (Coding Department Head) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SECTION 4 LIST OF FILES ARCHIVES AND WHERE YOU CAN GET THEM Q4 0 (Listing of commonly requested files & archives) Filename Description DARK0294 ZIP - The February 1994 Dark Collection (premiere) DARK0494 ZIP - The April 1994 Dark Collection DARK0694 ZIP - The June 1994 Dark Collection DARK0894 ZIP - The August 1994 Dark Collection DARK0994 ZIP - The September 1994 Dark Collection DARK1294 ZIP - The December 1994 Dark Collection DARK0295 ZIP - The February 1995 Dark Collection DARK1994 ZIP - The Best of Dark 1994 Collection DARK0495 ZIP - The April 1995 Dark Collection DARK0595 ZIP - The May 1995 Dark Collection DARK0695 ZIP - The June 1995 Dark Collection DARK0795 ZIP - The July 1995 Dark Collection DARK0895 ZIP - The August 1995 Dark Collection DARK0995 ZIP - The September 1995 Dark Collection DARK1095 ZIP - The October 1995 Dark Collection DARKFAQx xx - Frequently Asked Questions About Dark Illustrated These files can be obtained through the World-Wide Web (WWW) from the following Dark homepages http www io org drasil or from any BBS designated as an official distribution site for Dark Illustrated (consult with the latest Dark NFO file for further details) Dark s FTP site can be reached at arppegio res cmu edu - if you would like to inquire about becoming an official FTP site or file archivist please mail one of the Senior Staff members below ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Carnifex Dark Illustrated Senior Staff fex@tlug reptiles org - desalvo AKA Forlorn Extender Dark Illustrated Senior Staff forlorn@sizone pci on ca - Ravage Bias Dark Illustrated Senior Staff ravageb@io org All references made to copyrighted or trademarked items people places things or events are (c)copyright or (tm)trademark the specific originators creators maintainers or owners of the specific item(s) people place(s) thing(s) or event(s) Dark Illustrated reserves all of its rights in any matter pertaining to the group or its members THIS DOCUMENT (C)COPYRIGHT 1995 DARK ILLUSTRATED ALL RIGHTS RESERVED --END