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Up to October 2008, members were able to suggest an idea, maybe in just a few words, to the Vampire Rave database and the procurator faced the challenge of hunting down the details and creating a database entry. There was no reward for submitting entries and, over a period of four years, just over 2,500 items were listed
After October 2008, members were able to submit completed entries to the database themselves, the procurator would approve the entry and the member would receive a status credit. In the first 30 days of operation alone 2,067 entries were received - and the databases now cover all of the Dark Network sites.
As with any system there will be glitches, but I am hoping this article will provide a one stop reference to the basics of creating a database submission
Procurators are instructed to accept items that are correct for the database, are not already listed and are 'ready to go' (detail, spelling, punctuation and grammar) - and deny anything that doesn't fit these basic requirements
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Check it out ...
Its a great idea to go into the category that your item seems to fit in and use the search facility there to see if the item you are about to suggest is already listed.
The procurators have other duplicate entry software which activates when the suggestion is received - this sometimes causes a submission to be rejected as a duplicate when the member wasn't able to find it
Spell it out ...
You must remember that the procurators live all over the world, they may not have had the chance yet to see that latest movie or know the characters in it.
The procurators will have different interests to you and simply might not understand what it is you're suggesting.
Simply adding one line at the start of the description can make the difference between an awesome addition or a disappointing rejection. It is this easy
Featuring Joe, the vampire detective ...
Merchandise from the US hit vampire drama ...
If you can see the procurator might not understand what you're going on about - use the additional comments field to explain
While we are on the subject of international understanding - remember that most numbers require an explanation:
Size 8, Price 9.99 Dimensions 4 x 10 x 15 will mean something different depending on the country of the reader
Size 8 [UK], Price $ 9.99 HK and Dimensions 4cm x 10cm x 15cm - will make a lot more sense
Cut and paste
It is generally OK to cut and paste text from sources, but read through it before you click submit. Especially when you're copying from wikipedia ... this example makes very little sense when it is removed from wikipedia
[edit]Plot summary
The story (as shown in the title sequence each episode [1]) is that Duckula has been active as a vampire [2] for centuries. He could only be destroyed by exposure to sunlight or by a wooden stake thrust through his heart. In fact, Duckula has died numerous deaths [Sources required]— but he always returns through a mystic ritual [4], performed once a century, "when the moon is in the Eighth House of Aquarius" Click here for external Links Duckula was first ...
Pictures
Always try to submit the largest size picture you can find, preferably in a jpeg format. It will be resized for a best fit on the entry
On Amazon you can usually find a larger image by simply clicking the picture or by clicking the 'See Larger Image' link.
Note: We cannot use any image with Amazon's copyrighted 'Look Inside' arrow anywhere on it
Try always to remove any white borders from the picture that you submit. Apart from looking better, the white border is included in the resizing - so it leaves you like this
and could arrive for a procurators approval like this !
A free basic image editing program is available from Gimp, although most people will find that printer software bundles often include a basic photo editor
Links
The link must go to the item itself, not just the general website it is on - this allows the system to auto-check when the item has moved or been discontinued.
The best way to give a link is to use the define fields on the suggestion form
Type Website in the define field and the item's address http://... in the value field
To generate an auto-link the define field has to be Website (one word) no other word is accepted, do not add any punctuation to the define fields like colons (:) or commas (,)
Apart from generating auto links, the define and value fields can be used to make a really nice looking entry. Here is a good example of their use:
If you can't find anything to put in a 'set' field, leave it blank - remember the manufacturer is the person who makes the item NOT the website that stocks it !
Length
Some parts of the suggestion form, including the title area, have limits about what can be put in them, it is a good idea to check that it has all fitted
This is most important with links, if the end of the address has been chopped off - it isn't going to work
If the link is simply too long, don't try for a define field, either create a text link at the end of the description or (as a last resort) post the URL n the comments section
Theme
We are very strict on fitting things into the correct category.
It is true that one procurator might think something fits while another one might not, that will always happen especially where a specialised knowledge is required.
Just because you're copying something from a site called 'vampirexxxx.com' doesn't make everything in it vampire - honestly ... go look!
Think vampire - Bats, Blood, Fangs, Blade, Lestat, Dracula etc ... try not to get confused with goth !
Vampire Poetry
We can understand you wanting to have your carefully scripted poem published, really we can.
It must be a clear vampire theme, an outsider reading it 'cold' without seeing the title must be able to recognise that it is definitely about vampirism
You can submit someone else's poetry provided you know who they are and, possibly, have their authority to do it
If you have written it yourself, tell us !! To put 'Mary Smith' as the author when we know you by XxXVampireGoddessXxX will lead to confusion and a denial - its an idea to mention if you require any sort of copyright restriction on it
Plagiarism will be reported to Cancer
The procurators are volunteers who want to enjoy their own membership in the Dark Network too ... it is wrong to expect them to log on here to just work ! Their role involves a lot of policies as well as some technical things
They are often overwhelmed with the simple volume of submissions, sometimes this can take hours each day to sift through
You cannot expect a procurator to rewrite entries or extensively edit entries to earn you a point
All procurators will do their best to help and guide you, but with thousands of entries to process each month, they simply might not have the time.
The procurators will make mistakes. When they do, don't explode - discuss :D
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