Archive-name dark-faq 184 Version 1 84 Last-modified March 31st 1997 Distribution Monthly ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 88888 8888 _ 8888 _ yyyya____ _ 8888 yuu a@$7+ +8%88888 a@$7+ +8%88888 8888a%8+ +7$@ai888@a8+ fAq @88 @8888a88@ @8888 8888@ i888888l _ _ yyy8 ayyyyyyyyy ayyyyyyyyy y yyyyyya _ _ yyyyy MMM8 l8MMMMMMML 1MMMMMMMMM M lMMMMMMMMMMM @MMMM8 lMMM MMMM8 +MMMM+ +MMMMM+ M MMMMMMMMMMMM MMMMMM@ MMM MMMMMMa @MMMMMMM@L MMMMM$ MMM MMMMMMMMMM@@%%%@@MMMMMMMMMMMM@@@@@MMMMMMMM&@%%%%MMMMMMMM$@@$$MMMMM@MMMMMMMhO -- FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT DARK ILLUSTRATED -- == Introduction ========================= Distributed each month on DARK-affiliated Bulletin Board Systems (BBS s) FTP sites and in DARK Collections this document provides a useful reference about DARK Illustrated and the various computer- specific art forms in which the organization specializes This list of Frequently Asked Questions is maintained by a team of DARK Illustrated s Senior members led by Carnifex (fex@interlog com) It was been primarily written by Carnifex and Forlorn Extender a k a desalvo and editted by Xypher Matryx (xmtrx@interlog com) Please Email Carnifex or any one of the other DARK Seniors (See I 2) with your suggestions or comments regarding this document If there is something you would like to see included or elaborated upon in this FAQ list and it is not already addressed here please let us know so we can make the appropriate changes for the next version Version 1 80 of the DARK Illustrated FAQ list was a major overhaul of its predecessor v1 706 In addition to much updated information the document s layout has been completely changed for improved readability with the majority of the text having been changed to some degree along the way It is recommended that you give reading the subsequent versions a fresh start As of April 1997 an HTML copy of DARK s list of Frequently Asked Questions has been made available for your web-browsing enjoyment! You can point your browser to The Lethal Aspect Online this month (http www interlog com xmtrx dfaq html) for the hypertext version of this DARK FAQ NOTE It will be moved to Carnifex homepage as soon as it goes up == Contents =========================== I DRAMATIS PERSONAE * 1 Listing of DARK Illustrated s active members and email addresses * 2 Listing of DARK s Senior members and how to reach them II GENERAL QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ART SCENE 1 What is the art scene 2 What is ANSI 3 What is VGA 4 What is RIP 5 Have any other art groups released a FAQ similar to this 6 Why are aliases handles pseudonyms used in this document III BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON DARK ILLUSTRATED 1 So what is DARK anyway What is the group s background 2 Is DARK an acronym for something 3 What is meant by a DARK Collection IV FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS AND OTHER INFO 1 Can I join DARK How can I become a member 2 How can my BBS become an official DARK distribution site 3 Who writes the DARK NFO file each month 4 Who puts together the DARK Collection each month 5 What is DARK s official position on dual-grouping 6 How can I request artwork from DARK members 7 How does the DARK filename system work 8 Where s the second disk of the July 1995 DARK Collection (archive name DARK0795 ZIP) 9 What is Vortex V COLLECTIONS ARCHIVES AND WHERE YOU CAN GET THEM * 1 Listing of all DARK Collections released and other archives * 2 Where can I get these files * 3 Listing of DARK-affiliated BBS s * - New or updated since the last edition of this FAQ list ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ == I DRAMATIS PERSONAE ============= 1 Listing of DARK Illustrated s active members (A) Acidic Soap asoap@globalserver net Agent 77 neville@execulink com Aladrin Faehan aladrin@gmg com au Alex Hertzog hertzog@pcis net Armageddon Donut jbamfort@wwonline com Arzach alima@mustang uwo ca (B) Burnout burnout@ica net (C) Carnifex fex@interlog com Corinthian corn-dark@usa net Cybershock cyberknt@prairienet org Cyber X pcollie@lonestar utsa edu (D) Drone-Fly drone fly@sns gryn org (E) Essential Obscenity essob@ionsys com Epitaph cgahan@geocities com Eternal Vigilance dtym@waconnect com (F) Fluor fluor@generation net Fractal fractal@istar ca Free Fall (G) Garroter garroter@idirect com Grail jderner@hotmail com Green Hornet (The) grhornet@sizone org (H) Holister darkie@mathe ppp cyberenet net Holocaust holocaust@sns gryn org (J) Josh Miller ken@BBS gilroy com (M) Mimes mimes@globalserve net Moby moby@clo com (N) Narcosis nrcss@octonline com Neon Horse rhyz@dark tor250 org Night Stalker thomson@bconnex net (O) Oxygene oxygene@caasco com (P) Prison Breaker yu145971@yorku ca Purple Dye purpled@globalserve net Pyrochemist matt@globalserve net (R) Rubidium Bromide rubidium bromide@dark tor250 org Runamok (S) Samurai noodles@erols com Stile stile@pathcom com Sudden Impact 95shiwra@scar utoronto ca (V) Viral Overlord (W) WayneKerr euan@wintermute co uk (X) Xypher Matryx xmtrx@interlog com 2 Listing of DARK s Senior members and how to reach them Carnifex == Senior Staff DARK Illustrated Email fex@interlog com Homepage www interlog com fex Prison Breaker == Senior Staff DARK Illustrated Email yu145971@yorku ca Homepage www geocities com SoHo 5714 Xypher Matryx == Senior Staff DARK Illustrated Email xmtrx@interlog com Homepage www interlog com xmtrx Acidic Soap == General Coordinator DARK Illustrated Email asoap@globalserve net Homepage www globalserve net asoap escape Armageddon Donut == General Coordinator DARK Illustrated Email jbamfort@wwonline com Cyber X == General Coordinator DARK Illustrated Email pcollie@lonestar utsa edu Burnout == VGA Department Head DARK Illustrated Email burnout@ica net Corinthian == ANSI Department Head DARK Illustrated Email corn-dark@usa net Moby == Music Department Head DARK Illustrated Email moby@clo com Homepage www anasthasia com Oxygene == Coding Department Head DARK Illustrated Email oxygene@caasco com Grail == Web Design DARK Illustrated Email jderlin@hotmail com Purple Dye == Web Design DARK Illustrated Email purpled@globalserve net Homepage http zeppelin mohawkc on ca purpled ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- == II GENERAL QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ART SCENE 1 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 or tracked in various formats such as MOD and S3M Another integral role in the art scene is that of the programmer or coder They are the ones responsible for creating the different programs used in the scene like application generators and graphics viewing utilities Cliques and 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 at times cooperative at other times competitive Also a sort of hierarchy has developed where certain established groups have been dubbed the best while smaller groups strive to achieve that same level of recognition However it must be noted that not all groups attempt to live up to a standard set by others 2 What is ANSI ANSI stands for American National Standards Institute ASCII stands for American Standard Code for Information Interchange In terms of the scene an ANSI is the manipulation of the standard PC ASCII character set along with the use of 16 colors to produce realistic or abstract pictures on the screen ANSI artwork is limited to the ASCII character set and a text-only video mode ANSI s are most commonly drawn using the set of block characters and A limited color palette is available by using primary foreground colors along with background colors and the various ASCII characters As mentioned ANSI artwork can either be realistic or abstract - moreso it is clearly divided into two complementary forms pictures and logos (also referred to as fonts) A picture is just that - a picture A logo on the other hand is a strict word title phrase etc It is usually limited to letters and or numbers Logos can also be drawn either realistically or with a more abstract design Logos and pictures are usually drawn together as a promotional tool or to advertise just about anything most ANSI is drawn for BBS advertisements Since an ANSI uses the standard PC 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 BBS s to embellish its appearance ANSI does not require a software specific client as with RIP (See II 4) but is available as an emulation option with most communications software (ie Telix(tm) Procomm(tm) Telemate(tm) etc ) 3 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 referred to as any picture or image drawn with a computer painting and or rendering 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 Adobe Photoshop(tm) Corel PhotoPaint(tm) Autodesk 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 airbrushing to pixel-by-pixel artistry 4 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 color 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 image is one 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 5 Have any other art groups released a FAQ similar to this Not really though the now-defunct Apathy Studios once put forth their own Apathy List of Frequently Asked Questions We are pleased to see another group using such a convenient and informative means to convey its essence to the public and we encourage other art groups to follow suit 6 Why are aliases handles pseudonyms 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 Internet Relay Chat (IRC) or another form of anonymous contact Aliases and other such monikers have been traditionally used as another fun way of participating in various online computer activities ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- == III BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON DARK ILLUSTRATED 1 So what is DARK anyway What is group s background 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 early 1993 by Black Widow DARK first began releasing compilations or Collections of its artwork in February of 1994 To this day DARK Illustrated continues to provide a non-profit form of exposure for its members through BBS s and the Internet 2 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 as both refer to the same thing 3 What is meant by a DARK Collection At the end of 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 VGA and or RIP graphics as well as PC music and various multimedia feature presentations The filenames for these Collections are archived in month year format DARKmmyy ZIP (See V 1) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- == IV FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS AND OTHER INFO 1 Can I join DARK How can I become a member So you ve decided to apply to DARK eh Good choice We re looking for ANSI & VGA artists as well as musicians above all else There are no ASCII or Lit departments so applications for either of these will be disregarded Coders are also in very low demand unless they show exceptional skill and productivity In all our departments though the demand for quality work can t be stressed enough -- STEP 1 It is recommended that you fill out an application using the DARK Illustrated Application Generator DARKGen 2 (included in the DARK Collections as DARKGEN2 EXE) Please answer all the questions truthfully we will disregard any applications containing false information While it is not required to use DARKGen 2 when applying a similar personal information file must be included with your application Any such file should be saved as a regular ASCII text file Tell us a little bit about yourself! This should include but is not limited to Real name alias (if applicable) telephone number(s) along with the best time to call an Internet Email address (if applicable) past and present drawing art experience (any medium computer or otherwise) and if applicable any BBS s you frequent regularly -- STEP 2 When you ve completed this application please include a few pieces of your best work in a portfolio Archive your personal information file and portfolio (ZIP ARJ and LZH formats are just fine) and send them to a Senior Staff member the head of the department you re applying to or a Coordinator (See I 2) DARK members can also be found on the IRC in channel #dark (EFNet) -- STEP 3 Once your application has been submitted a response is usually delivered within one or two weeks If you have submitted an application and have not been contacted in that time please renew contact and politely describe your situation 2 How can my BBS become an official DARK distribution site An official DARK Illustrated distribution site is one that both distributes productions of DARK Illustrated and supports the group in public relations and product support However DARK is no longer actively looking for distribution sites in the form of BBS s We are always interested in Internet-based support such as telnet-BBS s FTP sites and or links on the World Wide Web (WWW) Email any DARK Senior member (See I 2) for more information 3 Who writes the DARK NFO file each month The NFO files are collectively designed and written by a team of DARK s Senior members 4 Who puts together the DARK Collection each month Collection of the month s artwork is typcally the responsibility of a Senior Staff volunteer 5 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 doesn t frown 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 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 flourishes only with 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 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 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 (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 individually 6 How can I request artwork from DARK members Just ask! (See I 1) This won t always mean you will get what you ask for as the decision to draw lies within the discretion of the particular artist If you require something absolutely specific and cannot reach the artist in question please direct your query to a Senior member (See I 2) Keep in mind that although DARK Illustrated is a non-profit group break-even compensation is sometimes expected and is to be negotiated with the artist in question 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 7 How does the DARK filename system work Filenames for DARK Collections work like this DARKmmyy ZIP (Ie DARK0294 ZIP for the February 1994 DARK Collection ) Filenames for ANSI artwork in the DARK Collections work like this xxxxx-## DRK xxxxx - Five characters we hope represent an artists name adequately ## - Two-digit number representing the number of releases this artist has had since 01 97 (The counter is reset at the beginning of each year ) File extensions are preserved for all file formats other than ANSI in which case the extension is DRK (Ie CRNFX-01 DRK for Carnifex first release of the year an ANSI image ) 8 Where s the second disk of the July 1995 DARK Collection (archive name DARK0795 ZIP) We wish you good luck in finding in it! (Due to a printing error the FILE_ID DIZ identified the DARK0795 ZIP file as Disk 1 of 2 when in reality it was just a single file ) 9 What is Vortex Vortex is the working title of DARK s music disk Organized by Moby it will feature music from various DARK musicians past and present The release date of Vortex is yet unknown ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- == V COLLECTIONS ARCHIVES AND WHERE YOU CAN GET THEM 1 Listing of all DARK Collections released and other 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 DARK1994 ZIP - The Best of DARK 1994 Collection DARK0295 ZIP - The February 1995 DARK 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 DARK1295 ZIP - The December 1995 DARK Collection DARK1995 ZIP - The Best of DARK 1995 Collection DARK0196 ZIP - The January 1996 DARK Collection DRK0296A ZIP - The February 1996 DARK Collection (Disk 1 2) DRK0296B ZIP - The February 1996 DARK Collection (Disk 2 2) DARK0396 ZIP - The March 1996 DARK Collection DARK0496 ZIP - The April 1996 DARK Collection DARK0596 ZIP - The May 1996 DARK Collection DARK0696 ZIP - The June 1996 DARK Collection DARK0796 ZIP - The July 1996 DARK Collection DARK0896 ZIP - The August 1996 DARK Collection DARK0996 ZIP - The September 1996 DARK Collection DARK1096 ZIP - The October 1996 DARK Collection DARK1196 ZIP - The November 1996 DARK Collection DARK1296 ZIP - The December 1996 DARK Collection DARK1996 ZIP - The Best of DARK 1996 Collection DARK0197 ZIP - The January 1997 DARK Collection DARK0297 ZIP - The February 1997 DARK Collection DARK0297 ZIP -- The February 1997 DARK Collection DARK0397 ZIP -- The March 1997 DARK Collection DRK-FAQx xx - Frequently Asked Questions About DARK Illustrated (The filename used up to v1 706) DARK-FAQ xxx - Frequently Asked Questions About DARK Illustrated (The filename used as of v1 80) 2 Where can I get these files The latest hypertext version of the DARK FAQ can be found on The Lethal Aspect Online http www interlog com xmtrx dfaq html In addition to getting the Collections from DARK-affiliated BBS s (See V 3) DARK Collections can be obtained from The Regency DARK s Internet Headquarters Run by Halaster this telnet-BBS can be reached through telnet or FTP at tregency res cmu edu The latest DARK Collections are also supported on the ACiD Artpack Archives ftp cdrom com pub artpacks incoming artpacks dark* zip These files can also be obtained through an EFNet server on the IRC in channel #dark just ask somebody on the channel 3 Listing of DARK-affiliated BBS s BBS Name Status SysOp The Lethal Aspect World Headquarters Xypher Matryx The Regency Internet Headquarters Halaster Mad Cows ! DARK Member Board Night Stalker Savage Exile DARK Member Board Acidic Soap Sight & Sound DARK Member Board Drone-Fly Special Sauce DARK Member Board Samurai Abraxas Diabolic DARK US Support Site Meggz Hertz ABCD Cafe DARK Hawaiian Support Site Kyo ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Maintained by DARK s Senior members Primarily written by Carnifex (fex@interlog com) and Forlorn Extender a k a desalvo editting by Xypher Matryx (xmtrx@interlog com) ASCII DARK header by Holocaust 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 may not be distributed in print or in electronic form without prior consent by the DARK Illustrated Senior members THIS DOCUMENT IS COPYRIGHT (c) 1995-1997 DARK ILLUSTRATED ALL RIGHTS RESERVED