Group: IPERNITY - Ambassador Images

1. A look back

This group was created by Arlequin Photographie on February 1, 2021. The objective was to present the spectrum of our community's work in the greatest possible diversity to visitors. Therefore it was linked directly to the main menu of the landing page Explore. By definition, it is not another 'best of'- group, but is intended to show visitors "a selection of the most noteworthy photos of our members".

Arlequin Photographie has been very involved in setting up the group and the jury, as well as in the weekly jury meetings. In the past 18 months, under his leadership - with active support from his co-administrator raingirl - a very noteworthy collection of photos has been created. This has increased the attractiveness of ipernity for visitors. The objective was fully achieved.

Therefore, thanks to Arlequin Photographie for his initiative and engagement, but also to raingirl and the jury, as well as to all those who have contributed with their photos. In this context, the achievement of Rob Stamp should not go unmentioned, who succeeded in linking the group to the menu in such a way that the contributions are presented in random order when visitors access from the 'Explore'-menu. In this way, all contributions appear on an equal level, regardless of the time they were posted in the group.

Arlequin Photographie retired from the administration at the end of July 2022. At the handover he pointed out the following problems:

1. The jury has too few members. Not all of them can always be present.
2. The desired two-thirds majority for the inclusion of pictures was therefore not realisable.
3. The intended rotation of the jury members was also not feasible.
4. Discord as a voting tool is too cumbersome, unmanageable and prone to errors.
5. The voting results were often not well founded for the reasons mentioned.

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2. Status as of August 1, 2022

(in brackets as of November 1, 2021 = half-time, figures provided by raingirl)

Number of group members.......... 82 (78)
Postings...................................... 928 (566)
Postings from group members... 376 (232)
Postings from non-members...... 552 (334)

The group has barely expanded further in terms of number of members. In terms of contributions, the growth momentum has slowed down by about 20% in the second half of the year. Neither of these is a problem in itself, because the group's objective - to present the work of our community - is being fully met.

It is rather thought-provoking that in the past 9 months only half of the group members (44) have been active. Only 144 new contributions came from them. In the meantime, 37 group members are inactive. Therefore, the following problem has to be added:

→ 6. The vividness of the group has diminished.

Furthermore, it was noticed that the rule of not being allowed to suggest one's own works is circumvented in several cases. Buddy groups have been formed to suggest each other's images. This problem affects more than a quarter of the proposals. It causes distortions in the evaluation.

→ 7. The rule 'no own suggestions' is circumvented. This causes distortions in the evaluation.

Currently, 3 proposals per week are allowed (156 per year). Only professionals, pensioners or people who have a lot of leisure time for other reasons can produce such a number of really excellent photos. Working people, single parents or people with little free time, reach the limit of what is possible with just one picture per week. They are disadvantaged by such a high number.

In the build-up phase, it made sense to accept this disadvantage. Because it was important to quickly provide the group with sufficient volume. In the meantime, however, the group is large enough, so that a less discriminatory limit should be set. This would also relieve the burden on the jury, because it would receive better presorted proposals from the multi-submitters.

→ 8. The current number of proposals allowed (3 per week) disadvantages people with little free time and burdens the jury.

Until now, it was important to get as many posts as possible to be able to present an adequate portfolio to visitors. In the meantime, however, we are approaching the 1000 post mark. In order to view them completely, a visitor needs 30 to 90 minutes (with 2-5 seconds of viewing time). Even with good will, this is at the limit of what is possible. That's why older posts are hardly ever viewed.

→ 9. More than 1000 pictures in the group are not necessary to achieve the group's objective. However, permanent updating would be desirable to further improve the outward impression.

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3. Further steps & solutions

The group will be administered by Bergfex and raingirl from now on. For the problems mentioned, possible solutions are presentated below.

Click on the links to get more information and to read the arguments:

Item ❶: Reduced workload due to Poll Unit and change of the rating period to once a month. ✅

Item ❷: The acceptance level of 50% should be kept until experience with the revisions is available. ✅

Item ❸: This matter should be reviewed in 6 months' time. ✅

Item ❹: A new and more efficient voting tool should be introduced. ✅

Item ❺: Voting results will become more reliable by applying Poll Unit. ✅

Item ❻: An incentive 'Picture of the Month' could be created. ⛔️ dropped

Item ❼: The rule 'no own suggestions' should be reconsidered. ✅ Modified

Item ❽: The limit should be set at 1 proposal per 14 days. ✅ Modified: 1 per week

Item ❾: The group size should be limited to 1000 posts. The oldest should be replaced by newer ones. ⭕ pending

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If anyone thinks of any other issues that need to be clarified, feel free to mention them in a comment below this thread.