Can’t upload some images to Launchbox DB

[MarkRMWalker]

I’ve recently started uploading covers, media and snapshots to the DB again after a long break and am having trouble with this new interface not allowing me to upload certain images.

It keeps on giving me an error when I try to upload cart and disc images even though they are in jpg or png format. I have converted these files between these formats but it still shows an error and says they should be transparent. I am not having this trouble with box covers or snapshots in jpg or png format and have not tried clear logos yet. I have a bucket load of missing cart and disc pictures for the Apple II but can’t upload them.

is this a known problem or am I doing something wrong?

Edited May 26 by MarkRMWalker

[faeran]

On 5/25/2024 at 10:56 PM, MarkRMWalker said:

I’ve recently started uploading covers, media and snapshots to the DB again after a long break and am having trouble with this new interface not allowing me to upload certain images.

It keeps on giving me an error when I try to upload cart and disc images even though they are in jpg or png format. I have converted these files between these formats but it still shows an error and says they should be transparent. I am not having this trouble with box covers or snapshots in jpg or png format and have not tried clear logos yet. I have a bucket load of missing cart and disc pictures for the Apple II but can’t upload them.

is this a known problem or am I doing something wrong?

What is the error message that you receive when you try and upload the image? Also, are you able to provide one example image here for us to take a look at?

[Dan Patrick]

On 5/25/2024 at 9:56 PM, MarkRMWalker said:

I’ve recently started uploading covers, media and snapshots to the DB again after a long break and am having trouble with this new interface not allowing me to upload certain images.

It keeps on giving me an error when I try to upload cart and disc images even though they are in jpg or png format. I have converted these files between these formats but it still shows an error and says they should be transparent. I am not having this trouble with box covers or snapshots in jpg or png format and have not tried clear logos yet. I have a bucket load of missing cart and disc pictures for the Apple II but can’t upload them.

is this a known problem or am I doing something wrong?

One thing that's confused me in the past is jpg vs jpeg. It only accepts jpg files. That could be a factor.

[MarkRMWalker]

I have attached 2 examples (PNG & JPG) i have being trying to upload into the Apple II section as North American Carts..

When i submit the JPG file as a cart i get the error message - Upload Failed: File extension error. Please upload a png file for Clear Logo, Box - 3D, Cart, and Disc.

When i submit the PNG file as a cart i get the error message - Error: This image type requires a transparent background.

As a test to rule out possible issues with file format I tried to upload these files as Box Covers and both formats were accepted.

 

Edited May 29 by MarkRMWalker

[MarkRMWalker]

3 hours ago, Dan Patrick said:

One thing that's confused me in the past is jpg vs jpeg. It only accepts jpg files. That could be a factor.

That was the first thing i looked at and used Photoshop to resave them in JPG and PNG formats just to make sure. Still no luck. 

I have always used PS in the past for editing the thousands of submissions i have made to LB and had no issues. But that was under the old interface.

Edited May 29 by MarkRMWalker

[JereBear]

1 hour ago, MarkRMWalker said:

That was the first thing i looked at and used Photoshop to resave them in JPG and PNG formats just to make sure. Still no luck. 

I have always used PS in the past for editing the thousands of submissions i have made to LB and had no issues. But that was under the old interface.

Does it work for you if the cassette actually has transparency?

[MarkRMWalker]

No I have not tried that, but that should only be a requirement for Clear-Logo's not Cart's or Disc's. Occasionally people post these with transparencies like CD's for example but that should not preclude JPG's or non transparent PNG's from being uploaded.

[C-Beats]

11 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

No I have not tried that, but that should only be a requirement for Clear-Logo's not Cart's or Disc's. Occasionally people post these with transparencies like CD's for example but that should not preclude JPG's or non transparent PNG's from being uploaded.

Recently we added logic to the database that for Clear Logo's, Carts, and Discs the image should have transparency within the image. The image types are designed and used within the application in a way that a transparent background is required for them to appear correctly. As such it made no sense that we allowed images with solid backgrounds to be uploaded to the database.

[MarkRMWalker]

7 hours ago, C-Beats said:

Recently we added logic to the database that for Clear Logo's, Carts, and Discs the image should have transparency within the image. The image types are designed and used within the application in a way that a transparent background is required for them to appear correctly. As such it made no sense that we allowed images with solid backgrounds to be uploaded to the database.

Are you deliberately trying to make it more difficult for people to contribute to this project?

I understand your argument to do this but many contributors will be discouraged/confused by the error and not contribute out of frustration. So:-

A) like me they encounter the error and give up; or

B) can’t or won’t take the time to add a transparency layer.

Either way the database suffers. Why would you do this for such a limited use case. Outside of clear-logos (a category already seperate) and spinning CD’s, which most people understand intuitively need a transparent layer, the vast majority of submissions are solid background use cases. And what about the the vast majority of discs and carts that already exist without this attribute, they are not going away whilst you have made it less likely that their number will increase.

I now have dozens of carts and discs that I have already cropped and prepared that need more work before I can contribute to appease the limited use case of spinning CD’s.

 “The road to hell is paved with good intention”.

 

Edited May 29 by MarkRMWalker

[JereBear]

Yeah is a tough one. I love the idea of stricter rules and guidelines.

Stuff should be done right the first time. Nobody has to go back and fix things after the fact.

But it will cut down on submissions and we might miss out on stuff... even if it isn't perfect.

Quality vs Quantity.

[MarkRMWalker]

As far as I can see, and please correct me if I am wrong, the only times I’ve seen transparencies used for discs and cart is for the spinning CD (which is a nice aesthetic) what are the use cases for transparent 5.25”, 3.5”, cassettes and cartridges.

 We already have a category for clear-logos why don’t we just add another category CD’s that checks for transparencies.

This DB is not just a nice addition to a great front end it is also an archive for retro gaming history. Ok, hardcore contributors will bite the bullet and comply but I believe a very large number of casual contributors will just give up at the first barrier. How much rare images will be lost because a well meaning contributor doesn’t understand the requirement or does not know how to create a transparent layer or indeed has the software to do so.

Yes “quality versus quantity” is a good and worthy target but what about the “KISS” principal.

Edited May 29 by MarkRMWalker

[C-Beats]

14 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

Are you deliberately trying to make it more difficult for people to contribute to this project?

To be blunt, yes. We have been pretty blessed by some amazing contributors to our database that have put in a LOT of effort to make it as good as it can be. I personally feel like we'd be doing them a disservice by allow poor submissions through. Users will tend to remember the negative they see in the DB when scraping, not the positive and so for every one or two poor submissions they tend to outshine a few hundred quality ones in the users mind. To allow that to happen willingly seems pretty disingenuous to the people that have been putting in all this effort to provide quality submissions. 

14 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

the vast majority of submissions are solid background use cases

Yes, the background of the UI the image is placed on, not of the image itself. The UI background is black and you have carts selected and all you see are various squares all with different backgrounds then you're UI looks some tacky crap from the 90s hosted on GeoCities. Even the grid view of LaunchBox looks far better with transparent images than one with solid backgrounds. Also there is the dilemma of where do we draw the line? Should we start allowing pictures with the scanners desk underneath wood grains and all? How bout someone holding the tape/cassette, I mean the tape is THERE right? I think allowing stuff like that just opens us up for even worse submissions because, "solid backgrounds are permitted!"

14 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

I now have dozens of carts and discs that I have already cropped and prepared that need more work before I can contribute

While I can see things like this being frustrating, we believe that the improved end product is worth the increased time it took to get there. No one is stating that this may not take longer, if submissions count drop because it takes more time for each one no one will NOT understand. I feel a lot of this sentiment we see from contributors are from some self imposed calling to some higher purpose of filling our database that sometimes gets a bit unhealthy. We appreciate any effort you can provide, but if it cuts into time you need in your personal life for any real reason then feel free to take that time for yourself, it's yours! The sacrifice is appreciated but not needed. As stated before we have a pretty large number of contributors which affords each one to be able to take a break when needed and not have the overall quality of the DB suffer too greatly.

12 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

This DB is not just a nice addition to a great front end it is also an archive for retro gaming history

While having this archive is a great secondary win from our database it is NOT it's primary purpose. The primary purpose is a companion database to the frontend clients using it. The fact we can be a part of something used to preserve information and media on an artform we all love is FREAKING AWESOME, but ultimately sometimes needs to take a backseat to the primary directive. This may be one of those times. Transparent images work far better for literally anything you are using the image with and so we had to make the call that they were a requirement for submission. You're correct that it may reduce submissions, which IS unfortunate but we believe is required to best succeed at the primary purpose of our database.

12 hours ago, MarkRMWalker said:

KISS

We are, "Keep it sexy silly!"  (sorry couldn't help myself...)

[C-Beats]

Think something may have happened with your post @kurzih, unsure why it showing you quoting something not said. May have hit the quote and then overwritten it with your own question.

[kurzih]

1 hour ago, C-Beats said:

Think something may have happened with your post @kurzih, unsure why it showing you quoting something not said. May have hit the quote and then overwritten it with your own question.

Nevermind, I was just trying to continue on the topic of transparent media files that it would be nice to have the spinning disc animation on all Disc media for all platforms. Currently I think it's only on a limited amount of platforms.