Sexy Excalibur
28-09-2005, 07:46 PM
Welcome. For all of you who are new to this site, please read the following to relieve come concerns you may have.
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"Lets go over two things, the first being the most important.
I know that advertising your site like this may, infact, be the best way to make your pressence known, but its not alowed on any GSI forums. GSI FAQs and the 'Forum Rules' threads at the top of each forum clearly state:
forum rules wrote:
Don't make posts that contain or link to the following:
[...]
or advertisements for websites outside of the GameSpy network.
[...]
You're certainly allowed to link to outside websites, or put them in your signature, but please do not start topics dedicated to promoting them.
We'd really rather you not go agaisnt rules that have been in place for as long as I can remember.
Second, of course, is your site itself. While Im sure you're all well-meaning, there are many things wrong with it, almost all based on the models themselves. TO begin with, you cant just blatantly base yourself off a unit from a game to make big models for free distribution. Its call copyright infringement and WestWood would not allow it. The other thing that really bothers me about these models is the polycount. You say, on your site, that the counts can be given 'upon request' which, to anyone, sounds fishy. Being a modeller myself, I have to say right off the bat that your models are all very high poly, espescially for the systems most people run for gaming. Can you try to imagine somebody with dozens of your models onscreen at the same time not getting lag, cuz I certainly cant.
I'm not one who escalades threads into arguments. I realize that you have some concerns so let me ago ahead and address your concerns, then perhaps after you see the truth, you might be willing to reopen the thread for further discussion.
Hi3P is not a business and I or Hi3P doesn't personally make models for profit. Hi3P, if you read the rules, plays no part in pricing or money but is in fact the individual authors that can make models up for pricing on turbo squid, a very legit service which can be found linked via our website or by going to just www.turbosquid.com (http://www.turbosquid.com). So thus, since I am not advertising a product or paid services, I am not breaking any gamespy rules as stated. We're just a group of gamers wanting to help out the mod community.
Second, I am always revising my models so I can’t give a poly count if I’m constantly optimizing and revising them. The average number of polygons for my models is between 2000-6000. The highest polygon count for a model is 53,000, and that’s the underground complex, which is an entire level, which is VERY reasonable to put into any game. My models are made so that they are used in game and are the lowest number of polygons available. But as I mentioned before, because I am always changing the model to better optimize and add new stuff, I can not give a poly count as it would be inaccurate and deceiving.
Thirdly, your concern for copyright infringement is very well noted, but is not necessary. Although the models that I’ve modeled MAY look like they are from command and conquers generals zero hour game (the effect I was trying to make), they are in fact, not from the game, nor is any piece of the model taken from zero hour/generals. Each model was created from scratch, and although I used the game as a reference for my pictures, they are in no way the actual model, even though they may have similarities in looks and name. They are 100% original work and you will notice that the models are not 100% the same, but in fact are very different if you look at them closely.
Im not trying to bring your site down, nor am I saying its bad, Im just saying that it wont be doing you much good. From experience, it wont work. Your "exclusive Model" plan is also a fairly dodgy one, not allowing for any kind of receipt or any information about HiCalibur itself. From any potential customer's standpoint, the business doesnt look all that reliable.
Hi3P is not a business. We do not make any money. Exclusive model exchange is 100% safe and accurate and (out of no disrespect) if you had indeed truly read the website, then you would have known this and would indeed agree with me when I said it’s very safe. I realize that the site may not be the best site out there on the internet, but it suits us just nicely and does what we want it to.
I'll quote your site for a second here:
hicalibur wrote:
You MUST also provide the reference pictures/concepts that include AT LEAST 2 DIFFERENT angles of the object in question so we can accurately create the model, preferably 4. If an interior of the model is requested, then you must provide at LEAST 1 angle of the interior, but 4 angles are requested for best results.
You must also write an explanation of why you want this object to be modeled and why you choose Hi3P of all places to model it for you. :)
To begin with, unless you're working from a sketch, its usually up to the modeller him/herself to handle getting reference pictures. Asking for an explanation is just ridiculous. This is supposed to be a business affair, not a university application form.
I am unsure how you model, but the areas of modeling that I’ve come from where the CUSTOMER requests a model, they provide the reference pictures and not the other way round. If I was on a mod team and I was dedicated and knew what we had to do, then yes, I would get the reference pictures myself, but to ask us to get the reference pictures of all the requests we receive a day is undoable and most of all, to ensure customer SATISFACTION, we ask that the customer provide the reference pictures so we know EXACTLY what they want and how they want it so that they are not disappointed. I hope this sheds some light into the workings of Hi3P. And even though I use the term customer, I refer to the consumer and not as a business reference as we are not a business.
hicalibur wrote:
As mentioned before, any transactions of exclusive models between the author and the customer are the sole discretion of the author and customer and Hi3P plays no role in it, but we do have guidelines that we wish for both parties to adhere to.
On the same page, though above the last quote, is this little gem. Now, I dont wanna hurt the site or organization or anything, but this too sounds dodgy. It almost sounds like your site is no more than a middle-man. From this paragraph alone it seems as though you take requests from people, then send those requests onto a third party: outsourcing. I know it works in corporate america, where they outsource fabrication of many products to poorer countries where labour is cheaper, but this is the internet. If you're going to be taking requests for models, you should be modelling them yourselves.
To enforce on what’s been displayed on the website, exclusive models and public models are completely different. I encourage you to look at the website and read the rules and FAQ’s before bringing your concerns to the public. There is absolutely no disrespect, but you must understand that Hi3P PLAYS NO ROLE in exclusive models. That’s between the author and the consumer. Hi3P is NOT a middle man; Hi3P does not make money nor set any pricing.
Please, read the rules and the website before asking any more questions as you will see it will relieve all your concerns.
For public models, I and the team create these free models ourselves and do it out of love for the mod community.
Scanning through your application form for joining the team, I feel more as though im applying for a job in a big corporation than a freelance modelling site. Being a prospective candidate for this kind of work, I am immediately turned off by both the enormity and intrusion of this form. I dont feel that I should be obliged to "commit to working on models" if its gonna be for fun. If someone needs a model for a deadline and they REALLY need it, they should be taking care of it themselves and should have had the staff onhand or skills necessary to do the job themselves.
Let me address next your concern for the application form. You are looking at this entirely the wrong way. If you read the rules and FAQ’s like I’ve mentioned above, you will see that I’ve done my homework. This form is for the public to know about the authors on the team, and not for necessarily Hi3P itself. Although it may seem intimidating, fear it not as it’s a way for us to get to know you and your background. Stating that this is a serious commitment if you sign up actually shows, no disrespect of course, that you have not read the forums, nor the website. We DO NOT require a minimum number of hours or models that be done but it is in fact all volunteer. Asking us NOT to have a sign up form is in fact ignorant as every mod team that I’ve come across and every business that I’ve ever worked for has such a form, although theirs goes more into detail about it. To bring a person on board where I know nothing about them is not only ignorant, it is also a bad practice. Just think about it for a second, to be on a mod team with many other people that you know nothing about them and HOPE they can actually do something. You could be actually working with lemons (so to speak) and just be hurting yourself in the end.
You most also understand that not every mod team out there has the necessary resources or man power to create a mod that works or that can be released, which is why we offer our services at no charge to the consumer.
I final thing before this topic is locked, is that Im sure you dont have access to ALL file formats in the best of their states (saving a .3dm file in 3DSMax or Maya wont yield the same result as saving the .3dm from Rhinoceros3D, its native program). Seeing as Rhino is about 900$, Maya 6 (unlimited) is about 6k$ and most programs are upwards of 500$ (all prices USD), it's hardly safe to assume that you would have ALL on hand.
The program I use and the programs other team members use very. I am using a program that supports exporting to 10 different file formats, which is very reasonable. Combine that with other programs that others may use could provide enough file formats to meet the needs of any game, not consumer.
It'd also be interesting to note that some people wont be using the models you produce for other means than gaming, and would therefore prefer NURBS instead of polygonal modelling (NURBS also facilitates alterations later on, if the model isnt to the customer's satisfaction).
As I bring this reply to a close, I want to spend a minute commenting on your last concern. Although you are correct that we cannot determine what each model will be used for, we have set up a form to minimize (not prevent, but minimize) fraudulent use. In order for any consumer to get access to a model, they MUST agree to the terms and agreements of Hi3P. If they do not agree to the terms, then they will not receive the model. This is also backed by turbo squid and for those who wish for exclusive models, PayPal. I have done my homework on this subject and you will be very pleased with the outcome of it.
I encourage you to reply with any more concerns that you may have so that I may address them and relieve any tension that you may have concerning Hi3P. Also, since you have brought this concern to my attention, I will post this on the site as a separate link on the main page so that others may understand as well.
Thanks!
-Sexcalibur"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Lets go over two things, the first being the most important.
I know that advertising your site like this may, infact, be the best way to make your pressence known, but its not alowed on any GSI forums. GSI FAQs and the 'Forum Rules' threads at the top of each forum clearly state:
forum rules wrote:
Don't make posts that contain or link to the following:
[...]
or advertisements for websites outside of the GameSpy network.
[...]
You're certainly allowed to link to outside websites, or put them in your signature, but please do not start topics dedicated to promoting them.
We'd really rather you not go agaisnt rules that have been in place for as long as I can remember.
Second, of course, is your site itself. While Im sure you're all well-meaning, there are many things wrong with it, almost all based on the models themselves. TO begin with, you cant just blatantly base yourself off a unit from a game to make big models for free distribution. Its call copyright infringement and WestWood would not allow it. The other thing that really bothers me about these models is the polycount. You say, on your site, that the counts can be given 'upon request' which, to anyone, sounds fishy. Being a modeller myself, I have to say right off the bat that your models are all very high poly, espescially for the systems most people run for gaming. Can you try to imagine somebody with dozens of your models onscreen at the same time not getting lag, cuz I certainly cant.
I'm not one who escalades threads into arguments. I realize that you have some concerns so let me ago ahead and address your concerns, then perhaps after you see the truth, you might be willing to reopen the thread for further discussion.
Hi3P is not a business and I or Hi3P doesn't personally make models for profit. Hi3P, if you read the rules, plays no part in pricing or money but is in fact the individual authors that can make models up for pricing on turbo squid, a very legit service which can be found linked via our website or by going to just www.turbosquid.com (http://www.turbosquid.com). So thus, since I am not advertising a product or paid services, I am not breaking any gamespy rules as stated. We're just a group of gamers wanting to help out the mod community.
Second, I am always revising my models so I can’t give a poly count if I’m constantly optimizing and revising them. The average number of polygons for my models is between 2000-6000. The highest polygon count for a model is 53,000, and that’s the underground complex, which is an entire level, which is VERY reasonable to put into any game. My models are made so that they are used in game and are the lowest number of polygons available. But as I mentioned before, because I am always changing the model to better optimize and add new stuff, I can not give a poly count as it would be inaccurate and deceiving.
Thirdly, your concern for copyright infringement is very well noted, but is not necessary. Although the models that I’ve modeled MAY look like they are from command and conquers generals zero hour game (the effect I was trying to make), they are in fact, not from the game, nor is any piece of the model taken from zero hour/generals. Each model was created from scratch, and although I used the game as a reference for my pictures, they are in no way the actual model, even though they may have similarities in looks and name. They are 100% original work and you will notice that the models are not 100% the same, but in fact are very different if you look at them closely.
Im not trying to bring your site down, nor am I saying its bad, Im just saying that it wont be doing you much good. From experience, it wont work. Your "exclusive Model" plan is also a fairly dodgy one, not allowing for any kind of receipt or any information about HiCalibur itself. From any potential customer's standpoint, the business doesnt look all that reliable.
Hi3P is not a business. We do not make any money. Exclusive model exchange is 100% safe and accurate and (out of no disrespect) if you had indeed truly read the website, then you would have known this and would indeed agree with me when I said it’s very safe. I realize that the site may not be the best site out there on the internet, but it suits us just nicely and does what we want it to.
I'll quote your site for a second here:
hicalibur wrote:
You MUST also provide the reference pictures/concepts that include AT LEAST 2 DIFFERENT angles of the object in question so we can accurately create the model, preferably 4. If an interior of the model is requested, then you must provide at LEAST 1 angle of the interior, but 4 angles are requested for best results.
You must also write an explanation of why you want this object to be modeled and why you choose Hi3P of all places to model it for you. :)
To begin with, unless you're working from a sketch, its usually up to the modeller him/herself to handle getting reference pictures. Asking for an explanation is just ridiculous. This is supposed to be a business affair, not a university application form.
I am unsure how you model, but the areas of modeling that I’ve come from where the CUSTOMER requests a model, they provide the reference pictures and not the other way round. If I was on a mod team and I was dedicated and knew what we had to do, then yes, I would get the reference pictures myself, but to ask us to get the reference pictures of all the requests we receive a day is undoable and most of all, to ensure customer SATISFACTION, we ask that the customer provide the reference pictures so we know EXACTLY what they want and how they want it so that they are not disappointed. I hope this sheds some light into the workings of Hi3P. And even though I use the term customer, I refer to the consumer and not as a business reference as we are not a business.
hicalibur wrote:
As mentioned before, any transactions of exclusive models between the author and the customer are the sole discretion of the author and customer and Hi3P plays no role in it, but we do have guidelines that we wish for both parties to adhere to.
On the same page, though above the last quote, is this little gem. Now, I dont wanna hurt the site or organization or anything, but this too sounds dodgy. It almost sounds like your site is no more than a middle-man. From this paragraph alone it seems as though you take requests from people, then send those requests onto a third party: outsourcing. I know it works in corporate america, where they outsource fabrication of many products to poorer countries where labour is cheaper, but this is the internet. If you're going to be taking requests for models, you should be modelling them yourselves.
To enforce on what’s been displayed on the website, exclusive models and public models are completely different. I encourage you to look at the website and read the rules and FAQ’s before bringing your concerns to the public. There is absolutely no disrespect, but you must understand that Hi3P PLAYS NO ROLE in exclusive models. That’s between the author and the consumer. Hi3P is NOT a middle man; Hi3P does not make money nor set any pricing.
Please, read the rules and the website before asking any more questions as you will see it will relieve all your concerns.
For public models, I and the team create these free models ourselves and do it out of love for the mod community.
Scanning through your application form for joining the team, I feel more as though im applying for a job in a big corporation than a freelance modelling site. Being a prospective candidate for this kind of work, I am immediately turned off by both the enormity and intrusion of this form. I dont feel that I should be obliged to "commit to working on models" if its gonna be for fun. If someone needs a model for a deadline and they REALLY need it, they should be taking care of it themselves and should have had the staff onhand or skills necessary to do the job themselves.
Let me address next your concern for the application form. You are looking at this entirely the wrong way. If you read the rules and FAQ’s like I’ve mentioned above, you will see that I’ve done my homework. This form is for the public to know about the authors on the team, and not for necessarily Hi3P itself. Although it may seem intimidating, fear it not as it’s a way for us to get to know you and your background. Stating that this is a serious commitment if you sign up actually shows, no disrespect of course, that you have not read the forums, nor the website. We DO NOT require a minimum number of hours or models that be done but it is in fact all volunteer. Asking us NOT to have a sign up form is in fact ignorant as every mod team that I’ve come across and every business that I’ve ever worked for has such a form, although theirs goes more into detail about it. To bring a person on board where I know nothing about them is not only ignorant, it is also a bad practice. Just think about it for a second, to be on a mod team with many other people that you know nothing about them and HOPE they can actually do something. You could be actually working with lemons (so to speak) and just be hurting yourself in the end.
You most also understand that not every mod team out there has the necessary resources or man power to create a mod that works or that can be released, which is why we offer our services at no charge to the consumer.
I final thing before this topic is locked, is that Im sure you dont have access to ALL file formats in the best of their states (saving a .3dm file in 3DSMax or Maya wont yield the same result as saving the .3dm from Rhinoceros3D, its native program). Seeing as Rhino is about 900$, Maya 6 (unlimited) is about 6k$ and most programs are upwards of 500$ (all prices USD), it's hardly safe to assume that you would have ALL on hand.
The program I use and the programs other team members use very. I am using a program that supports exporting to 10 different file formats, which is very reasonable. Combine that with other programs that others may use could provide enough file formats to meet the needs of any game, not consumer.
It'd also be interesting to note that some people wont be using the models you produce for other means than gaming, and would therefore prefer NURBS instead of polygonal modelling (NURBS also facilitates alterations later on, if the model isnt to the customer's satisfaction).
As I bring this reply to a close, I want to spend a minute commenting on your last concern. Although you are correct that we cannot determine what each model will be used for, we have set up a form to minimize (not prevent, but minimize) fraudulent use. In order for any consumer to get access to a model, they MUST agree to the terms and agreements of Hi3P. If they do not agree to the terms, then they will not receive the model. This is also backed by turbo squid and for those who wish for exclusive models, PayPal. I have done my homework on this subject and you will be very pleased with the outcome of it.
I encourage you to reply with any more concerns that you may have so that I may address them and relieve any tension that you may have concerning Hi3P. Also, since you have brought this concern to my attention, I will post this on the site as a separate link on the main page so that others may understand as well.
Thanks!
-Sexcalibur"