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Please learn to thumbnail images

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dasein
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Please learn to thumbnail images

#1 Post by dasein »

Inspired by another thread, this post seeks to encourage people who post graphics to embed thumbnails of these images in their posting, and not the full screen renderings.

The reasons are simple:

1) Not everyone has unlimited bandwidth. If you do, then bully for you, but lots of folks are saddled with data limits, or pay per byte transferred. Thumbnails routinely decrease total image size by 30%-40% (sometimes more).

2) Not everyone has high-speed data. Once again, it's great if you are using the latest in fiber optic technology, but large swaths of users in less populated areas are limited to what is essentially dialup speed.

I don't know if it's still true, but it used to be that the single best predictor of user bailout was load time. If you're the OP, do you really want to encourage potential responders to bail on your post simply because they got tired of waiting for your piggish screenshot(s) to load?

3) On the server side, bandwidth costs money. I don't know the details of FDN's hosting, nor do I care. But the fact that users aren't asked to pay the costs of keeping this forum online means that some small measure of respect and gratitude is due to whoever is paying the bill.

4) Far too often, the embedded graphics simply are not all that informative. One recent thread showed two fullscreen images that differed only in the contents of a single drop-down: 30-x-30 pixels on a ~640-x-480 image. (Worse, that difference didn't illuminate the problem/issue in the slightest.)

5) Every image hosting site I'm aware of offers the option of thumbnailing the image during upload anyway. So it's not like clicking the "thumbmail this image" box is an undue burden on the poster. And the image hosting sites invariably offer a "thumbnail link," which allows posters to provide easy, one-click access to the full image in the rare cases when that's actually necessary.

(Edited for clarity)
Last edited by dasein on 2017-01-09 15:06, edited 2 times in total.

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mor
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#2 Post by mor »

You can add to those reasons the fact that large images more often than not simply don't fit on most viewports.
I think in fact that today the most common resolution is 1366x768 (mine) which hardly ever gives a user more than 500-600px to spare north-south.

I happen to be one of those who has fast internet and no bandwidth concerns, but yes thumbnails please, or even better, link to images. ;)

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#3 Post by Head_on_a_Stick »

I enforce a rigid 62,500px limit over at forums.bunsenlabs.org, I wish I could do the same here :twisted:

Good post dasein, well said!
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#4 Post by Segfault »

Over at Gentoo forums there are no attachments of any kind, nobody is missing them. Need help? Copy and paste your code, or pastebin the log.

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#5 Post by dasein »

Head_on_a_Stick wrote:I enforce a rigid 62,500px limit over at forums.bunsenlabs.org, I wish I could do the same here :twisted:
Freedom hating Nazi! :razz:

I realize that I'm probably in the minority, but I wouldn't mind seeing these obnoxious little bandwidth wasters subject to an actual forum rule that was both publicly announced and ruthlessly enforced (one warning to a customer, with repeat/chronic offenders banned outright).

(But that's just me.)

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#6 Post by Bulkley »

Using thumbnails is a really good policy which I will try to adhere to however I have a personal problem with graphical creation: I'm useless at it. Each and every time is a brand new learning curve. Getting any kind of image on a forum page is such an uphill battle that I usually give up. I go years between attempts. I feel like that school kid who can't do math. If someday I manage to post a full page thumbnail I hope you will forgive.

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#7 Post by phenest »

As someone who only has mobile broadband, I'd like to see an outright ban. I'd prefer to have some sort of choice of whether to download a large attachment.

We already have a thread entitled "What does your desktop look like?". If everyone were to upload several HD JPG's to that thread, then that becomes a lot of bandwidth. Do we really need threads like that?
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#8 Post by GarryRicketson »

If you are not sure how to make the thumb nail, or simply don't feel like
taking the extra time, the easiest way is just post the link to the image,
Example:
Click to view image

Code: Select all

[url=http://path/to/image]Click to view image [/url] 
or just the url : http://path/to/image.png

When they don't either use a thumb nail, or resize the image to something
that fits better,.. usually anything less the 600 wide, will fit in the boards window,
Large images, only about 1/4 of it shows, are useless, and you can not see the entire image,plus the only way to see it as "full screen" is to >copy image location the paste it into another browser tab,.......like wise a thumb nail is usually to small to see any detail, but at least if they put the url into a "image link" , it is easy to just "click" it , if you want to view it.
I like a thumb nail though because it gives some idea as to what it looks like,

In this thread, http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php? ... 50#p632689
I explained how to do the thumb nail , if it is "imgur",...other storage sites
are different, but a simple search:
key words:

Code: Select all

How to create  a thumb nail on <name of storage site >
This is how I got the instructions for "imgur",.....

Code: Select all

How to create a thumb nail on imgur 
by phenest » Do we really need threads like that?
Well, "need" ,..maybe not necessary, but many members , including me
do enjoy sharing their DE's and WM's ,,,I enjoy looking at the different ones,
But of course if you don't like the thread, you do not have to view it,
also there are many other topics/threads, that probably are not
"necessary",...especially in the "off topic" board, but the same applies, many forum members seem to enjoy them. But that would be another topic.
I use a "mobile broadband" device, and there is no need for a "out right ban",...
See the link I posted above,.... using a text browser, no images, unless I really want to view them, then I can, but any way, with a text browser, images are a "non issue",...no matter if the use thumb nails or huge full size ones,...they don't show, and don't slow the browser down.

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#9 Post by Hallvor »

Maybe it's just me, but I do not like thumbnails or links. It means more clicks.

If people are worried about their data usage because of images, all images can be disabled in Iceweasel - or one may just as well use a dedicated text only browser.

https://www.cnet.com/news/convert-firef ... y-browser/
http://lynx.browser.org/

Or maybe a data compression proxy.

No offense, but the world moves on. Most of us are not on 14.4 kbps dialup modems anymore.
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#10 Post by roseway »

I'm sorry, but that's a very selfish attitude. There are lots of people in the world who have to make do with slow internet connections, and their online activities are made extremely difficult by graphics-heavy websites. And all you're complaining about is one extra click on the few occasions when you need to see a full-resolution image on a help forum?
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#11 Post by Hallvor »

roseway wrote:I'm sorry, but that's a very selfish attitude. There are lots of people in the world who have to make do with slow internet connections, and their online activities are made extremely difficult by graphics-heavy websites. And all you're complaining about is one extra click on the few occasions when you need to see a full-resolution image on a help forum?
All people have preferences, and if having preferences is the definition of having "very selfish attitudes", then we are all very selfish indeed. It is not like I am suggesting forcing anyone to do this or that. Ultimately it is each individual's choice to do what they want, within the rules of whoever is paying the hosting bills.
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#12 Post by dasein »

wizard10000 wrote:Looks like this - clickable thumbnail below:
My notion of a proper thumbnail for that image--20% smaller still and provides a serviceable visual hint of what lies behind it:
Image
Last edited by dasein on 2017-01-09 15:00, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#13 Post by dasein »

wizard10000 wrote:Your thumbnail is 26KB, mine is 33KB. I win.

:mrgreen:
Both are good in the sense that they are both <2% of the original.

(And mine is 20% smaller, so *I* win. :razz:)

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#14 Post by dasein »

wizard10000 wrote:Okay, you win.
Yay me!

(Of course, I can't legitimately take credit, since it was postimg who actually did the thumbnailing)

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#15 Post by phenest »

Hallvor wrote:If people are worried about their data usage because of images, all images can be disabled in Iceweasel
Better still, it can be done in the User Control Panel on this forum. No need to disable all images, just attachments.
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#16 Post by Hallvor »

Nice.
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#17 Post by Head_on_a_Stick »

I like to use http://scrot.moe for hosting duties.

Once the image is uploaded, the "Embed Codes" tab underneath the picture has a series of links, the "Thumbnail image (linked) — BBCode" is the one I always use — just copy&paste the link directly, no need to change anything.
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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#18 Post by 4D696B65 »

dasein wrote: Both are good in the sense that they are both <2% of the original.

(And mine is 20% smaller, so *I* win. :razz:)
Reminds me of this, sorry for being offtopic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFX53b_rmWg

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images

#19 Post by dasein »

Can one go offtopic in an offtopic thread?

(Just askin')

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Re: Please learn to thumbnail images and code boxes

#20 Post by GarryRicketson »

But it isn't a "off topic" thread , in Forum stuff & feedback

But any way, Can we add a topic, to the thread, instead of starting a whole
new topic ?
Hope the OP does not mind, but another thing that I find annoying is when
people post huge amounts of "output",..with out using code boxes,..
Actually , here I combined the 2 or three topics,
Attachments, How to post a screen shot and use code boxes

Thanks
P.S. Now I remember, maybe it isn't that important to some people,
but , if one gives it some thought , If using code boxes makes it easier to read,
and makes the output or code display correctly, well it seems to me like it
would be important to make the post as readable as possible , to help make it
more likely to get attention.
I don't usually even bother to try to read all the code or output, when the OP
does not seem to feel it is important enough to take the time,less then 1/2 second to click the code box option, and put it in code boxes.
Like wise, since some times one can copy/paste part of the code, or the error message into a search engine, and find good results.
Without code boxes, it is difficult to do that,..like wise if I want to try part of
it, as a script,... without the code boxes, the code, output or script may not
be accurate either.
look at this, with out code boxes;
Example :) x :x x: :X
And then with code boxes:

Code: Select all

 Example :) x :x x: :X 

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