Greetings, fellow gamers/people of interest!

I'm lookin' around for spare Halo 4 XP Codes from Doritos/Mountain Dew packages. If you happen to have some that you're not planning on using (maybe you don't own the game) and would be willing to donate them to a lowly Spartaneer trying to save the world from those damn Red Team bastards... I'd more than gladly take a few off your hands.

<3

Send me a note!

And for those wondering, here's my Waypoint:
http://www.halowaypoint.com/en-us/p...../preyfar/halo4

So, apparently, almost every copy of Google Chrome crashed at exactly 12:03PM, EST (17:03 GMT). And it seems to be happening every 5 minutes or so since. Not to everyone, but to a huge majority of people.

What the hell happened? Did the cloud fart? Did Google apply a bad update? What could cause almost every instance of a browser to crash? While Gmail was down, it shouldn't crash a browser. And nothing on Google's side (should it go down) should outright crash a browser. It's interesting. Nothing at Google going down /should/ kill their browser remotely, but the fact it's happening all over is rather interesting.

Big Brother is Crashing™.

(I have over 40+ reports from people citing a crash at that exact same time, so naturally, it's global, as far as I can can tell).

EDIT:
http://www.zdnet.com/gmail-in-wides.....es-7000008568/

And now  hali and myself are on ZDNet over the issue! =D Sweeeet.

http://www.facebook.com/Rogers/app_103139599851953
http://www.facebook.com/Rogers/app_103139599851953
http://www.facebook.com/Rogers/app_103139599851953

Ryan T's "Giving Back" is currently in 3rd place, and is in the running for a $25,000 grant! Help out a fellow fur, read and vote for Ryan T, and help win win the grant. <3

 disasterdog and helpin' out  daiquiri

http://thefurststate.com/newyears/

Anybody going to the NYFB? Sciggles and myself, along with a bunch of our crew, are going to be there. You should, too!

Tis the season for com-mer-cial-ism, FA LA LA LAAAAA...

Okay, maybe that's not how the song goes, but... tis the great season to post your Christmas lists! Have you been good, been bad, naughty, nice? Who's to say (we all are, that's who!).

And here's mine:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/w.....ref=cm_sw_su_w

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Windo.....rt+PC+Pro+700T

That said, in good list deserves another, so post your list(s) to my page! Maybe I'll get one or two people something (if they've been nice on FA!). Who knows. =3

This is just awesome.

http://mysmithmicro.com/marcom/ebla.....index-web.html

Manga Studio Pro is on sale (tonight only!) for $30. The software retails at $300, so that's a 90% savings. It's sort of a no-brainer. =3

Awesome software. Cheap price.

You're an artist, you've got something you want people to see, but how do you get an audience? How do I get better, improve? Questions that comes up a lot.

Rule #1 - Cardio (aka "Networking")

What does Networking mean? Post. Post your art. Post it everywhere. Post it to Fur Affinity, DeviantArt, SoFurry... WHEREVER you can. If people can't find your art they can't see it. Period. Diversity is NEVER a bad thing. Keep moving, keep posting. The more your art is out there , the more places they can find it, the more people are likely to see it.

There's nothing wrong with having a "home base", a site art site you call your home, but never be afraid to branch out. Again, you're trying to get noticed, and if people can't see you... you're not going to get noticed. Simple as that.

Rule #2 - Challenge Yourself

Draw everything. Practice. Don't limit yourself. Draw coffee cups, draw your pets, draw your table, draw all the things. DRAW. ALL. THE. THINGS. Everything.

If you're a furry artist it doesn't mean you have to focus on still life. Few people really want to sketch out a bowl of fruit. But it does mean you should shake things up a bit. You don't want to be known as the guy who just draws wolves, and only wolves, and that's it. That's boring, and it gets dull. Not just for you but for your viewers.

Challenge yourself, come up with games to make drawing fun. For every carnivore... draw a herbivore. Make a rule never to draw the same species twice in a row. Keep it fresh. There's hundreds of different body types, shapes, faces and more. The more you draw the better you'll be at tackling and handling diversity.

It's as simple as this -- if you only draw squares you'll be the best damn artist at drawing squares, but when you need to draw a circle, it may end up far more challenging than it should. Variety is the spice of life (even in art!).

Rule #3 - Practice, Practice, Practice

Practice, practice, practice. And then practice some more. There's an old saying that every artist has 1,000 bad pictures in them before their first really good one. While those numbers may not be accurate, no matter how long you draw, no matter how much experience behind your belt, you will still crank out pictures that are, in a word, shit.

The more you practice the more you'll improve. The ratio of "sketches I hate" to "sketches I love" will start to shift over time, but you have to stick with it. Even if it's only 30 minutes a day... practice.

How to best practice? Just draw. Have fun doing it, but never be afraid to keep at it. Draw the same thing three times in a row. Maybe start to time yourself. Try to get as much detail and motion in the picture in the time allotted. When the time runs up, do it again! Do 10 minute sketches, 5 minute sketches, 1 minute, even 30 seconds. When you have a limited amount of time to capture movement, emotion, you'll start to get better (and faster!) at capturing the important details. It ads up -- even in the tiniest of increments.

Also, never underestimate the value of life drawing classes. See if you can find some local ones. They're cheap, and they'll help you as an artist immensely. Seriously.

Rule #4 - Never Fear Criticism

Criticism can be harsh. It can suck. It can make you take a picture you love and want you to rip your art up. But that's good. That frustration, that anger... you can make it work for you if you listen to what people are some. Yes, some people will be brutally harsh, but some will be honest. Focus on the honest, legitimate suggestions. Listen to what they have to say, and try to incorporate that into your next picture.

Find an artist you respect, and ask them if they have time to offer feedback and criticism. Maybe even some red lines (guides) to help you see where you made your mistakes. Having someone to help mentor or offer suggestions is invaluable. Never underestimate. But also learn not to abuse it. Don't be afraid to ask for suggestions, but don't do it for every single sketch either.

Post WIP (work in progress) and ask for opinions. Sometimes people can point out really glaring errors you've missed. Feedback on a WIP can be invaluable.

Rule #5 - Know the Rules (So You Can Break the Rules)

Knowing anatomy and perspective is vital to being a good artist. You have to understand how the rules work before you break them. Rules exist even in the tooniest of art, and if you don't know the rules you're going to be going in blind.

Learn it anatomy, practice it, and when you're done practicing it, practice some more. This is an area I still have problems in, but anatomy is something you'll always be practicing.

"It's my style" is never an excuse for not knowing proper anatomy. It's a pitfall many artists make. Bad anatomy can make or break a picture, and it's something your fans will recognize. They may not outright say it, but people see it.

Some great, simple anatomy books I recommend:

http://www.amazon.com/Giovanni-Civa.....ywords=civardi

http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Human.....ywords=civardi

http://www.amazon.com/Drawing-Femal.....ywords=civardi

Rule #6 - Imitate, but Never Copy

There's nothing wrong with trying to imitate an artist's style. It's how you learn. Don't be afraid to try to learn and re-create how another artist attempted something. Art is about trying new things, taking what you like, discarding what you don't. Coloring, line art styles, how people work in Sai, Photoshop, etc. There's a lot of information out there.

But never copy other artist's work. Ever. Tracing is BAD. Tracing will NOT teach you anything. It's fine using models as references, but you still need to know anatomy, and tracing will just skip over the most basic fundamentals of knowledge you need to learn form and function.

Rule #7 - References

Build up a reference library. Images you can reference for color patterns, light, eyes or just how things look/work/feel goes a long way. If you draw a lot of dragons build up folders with reference material. Don't just look up dragons though - alligators, geckos, salamanders can all be great reference for fantasy. Again, you have to know the rules before you break them, and real life is one of the greatest muses for your inspiration.

Just a note -- I'm going to be away for a few days for the wedding, and this will put commissions on hold for a while. I need to give my girl a few days of time while we prep for one of the biggest days of our life. =3

If you need to get hold of me, or have questions, please email me and I'll try to get back to you as soon as possible. =3

Voting in the Squishables Open Squish contest is almost over! There's still time to vote though, and help bring a hyena plush to life!

https://www.squishable.com/p/opensq.....sh_hyena_9781/

Seriously, there's just not enough hyenas out there, and they need love! A lot of love. ALL THE LOVE! A vote for Sciggles is a vote for Hyenas everywhere!

I'm Dragoneer, and I approve this message.

If you're in the path of the storm, and you can still read this... stay safe folks. Seriously. <3 You're all awesome.

It's expected to his us tomorrow. I'm hoping it's died off a bit before it slams us in the morning.

EDIT & DISCLAIMER
Someone created a petition to have the Dorsai removed. If you have been to the con, and have had issue with them, I encourage you to sign it. Furfright is an absolutely fantastic con, and I have no ill will to the staffers or the convention itself, but the Dorsai have to go. End of story. The Dorsai are causing problems for users, putting attendees in danger and making threats to get their way. Voice your opinion, sign the petition.

http://www.change.org/petitions/bel.....e-at-furfright

I also encourage you to read Silver's post here:
http://thatdamnwolf.net/post/345154.....8/so-furfright

---

I'd like to extend a personal thank you to the Dorsai. They've really gone above and beyond to make this convention the single most memorial in my 14 years experience attending conventions.

On Friday night, I was harassed and chewed out "Renegade" from the Dorsai. Our encounter ended with him screaming "That's it! I'm calling the police, and I'm having you arrested *NOW*" and other pleasantries, involving me being banned from the Crowne Plaza hotel and never being permitted on premises. Why? I was standing /near/ a door. Not in front of. Not by. Just near. Apparently, in Connecticut, that's illegal (I didn't know this!). When I was asked to move away from said door I said "No". Why? I'm not blocking it. I'm about 5ft away from the door, not blocking it, not causing an issue, and no, I'm NOT moving just because you feel I should.

I stood my ground. And this caused "Renegade" to start screaming at me. He said "Say that to me one more time!" and I responded "Okaaay!". Then he stormed off, screaming I'm calling the police, and I'm going to have you arrested and barred from the hotel!"

Now, I don't know about you folks, but I take being threatened to be arrested and escorted to jail pretty god damn seriously. You're going to have me arrested because I was standing NEAR a door? That's it? Frankly, I'm pissed. This was all witnessed by multiple con staffers and some of the directors, too... who... told me there was absolutely nothing they could do about it. At all. They, as con staff, couldn't help it (and went so far as to encourage me to post my story here).

In the end, the police never showed up (because I really wanted to know why standing in the vicinity of a door is apparently illegal!).

Doesn't end there though! Since then, we've been told by the Dorsai we're not permitted to enter the hotel without a conbadge, and they've demanded to see room keys and other evidence to "prove" we're a part a of the con "or else!". I really don't know what the "or else" was, but when we said "No, no thank you, we're not showing you our personal information" they followed us back through the hotel to our rooms. Trailing us. Stalking us. I'm NOT comfortable with that. We're paying guests of the hotel. Why are we PREVENTED from so much as entering it? Hell, we were even instructed there is a "curfew" in effect, and if you're not in your rooms or are making too much noise after 10pm the Dorsai will have the hotel remove you.

During the fursuit parade, my now good ol' buddy Renegade assaulted a con-goer. They were trying to clear space for the parade to get through, and an attendee with a camera was trying to get into a position to line up a shot. Mr. Renegade went up to him, told him to move, then put both hands on the attendee's chests and shoved him back. Hard. A few dozen people saw this happen, and one of the Furfright staffers was thankfully able to verify it with the witnesses.

To whoever you are... I'm sorry. I hope this isn't your first con, because this isn't what usually happens. But if you're out there... if you're reading this... I hope you speak up about it. It is *ILLEGAL* for convention security to touch, push, shove or lay a hand on an attendee in any way. It is the legal definition of assault.

Look, I understand the need for con security. I truly do. But security should be transparent, and only be there in the event of a problem. Not overbearing. Not a dominating force. And for fuck's sake, always treat attendees with respect. The Dorsai have never ONCE said the word "please". Just "You... move".

I don't go to cons to cause problems. I really don't. I go to GET AWAY from them. Conventions are my vacations, and I don't piss where I play. But in the past 5 years, I've had the Dorsai walk into my rooms unannounced (when the door was left cracked open), slam on the door at all hours of the night telling us to "keep the noise down" while having conversation with about half a dozen times, threatened to be de-badged banned for "standing in a restricted area" when.... the restricted area was the porch on my hotel room that connected to a closed room, screamed at for standing in the middle of a hallway, and my favorite, instructed to move for "blocking" entry to a hallway. A hallway nobody was in. At 4:00am in the morning. With a 12+ clearance in both directions around me.

And seriously, the shit my friends would post would dwarf this journal for all the issues they've had at this con (and others).

I'm done. I'm done with this. Furfright is (was?) my go-to convention. I love this con, and I love the staff, but the security have overstepped their bound year after year, and I'm done with it. I've brought up these issues every year for the past five years to the convention and nothing has ever happened. Hell, I've even been told the Dorsai are not to SPEAK to me unless they went through certain Furfright staff first due to the shit that happened in previous years.

But this... this went too far.

So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, Dorsai. Thank you for threatening me, threatening my friends, random convention goers and everyone else. You've made this experience memorable, and one I certainly will not forget.

Furfright's coming. Did you bring your coat?

Yes, Sciggles and I will be there. =3

https://www.squishable.com/p/opensq.....sh_hyena_9781/

Sciggles has an amazing hyena plush design for Squishables' Open Squish contest. She's in the final voting rounds! If you like hyenas, you NEED to vote! Hyena plush animals are incredibly rare, and Sciggles' design is freakin' fantastic! I may be biased, but I love hyenas... and that's one seriously adorable design.

Help her win! Vote, vote, vote!

[img]https://www.squishable.com/mm5/grap.....9781.jpg[/img]

Register to vote, and make this hyena plush come to life! It's for a good cause - spotty 'yena awareness. =D

https://www.squishable.com/p/opensq.....sh_robot_9943/

She also has an adorably lil' robot up for vote, too!

I went through and reviewed most of the names caught by FA's account creation filter, trying to weed out false positives and make it less restrictive. Trying to improve things to make them less restrictive. That said, there were some gems among them.

With that, I give you the list... of some of the worst of the worst account names people have tried to make on FA. This list has been filtered down by about 60% of what it was initially. I removed any names that personally attacked users or were otherwise false positives. Basically, I trimmed the fat and left the meat. The list is somewhat amusing, if not from an educational standpoint of the Things Users Create™.

The list:
www.pastebin.com/FnXkAL2q

My personal favorite:
TheLegendOfIDontGiveAFuck

Close second:
Doodlecunt

I haven't started the October commissions yet, and I apologize on that. I've been incredibly busy, and will be moving from my old apartment sometime over the next two weeks and have gotten a lil' busy.

That said, if you're still on the list, I'll be contacting you once I'm freet, and we'll arrange for payment then. Trying to get everything else that's in-progress taken care of this week if possible.

Thanks for  ramzkun for reminding me!

Tomorrow is the last day to get register to vote in many states. Not registered? Get off your ass, and get registered before the deadline's up! This election is more important than ever, and you should let your voice be heard. Yes, every vote counts (every last one) so get ready to vote... and get prepped. =3

http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Topics/Voting.shtml

WARNING: Try to turn this into a political argument and you'll be blocked from viewing my userpage. Seriously. Keep it civil. It's NOT hard.

Apologies for the stream. Started lagging, and then I just lost connection completely. =/

[img]http://www.frostdragon.net/fa/fa_ui.jpg[/img]

Currently working on converting pages over and finishing up a lot of templates. Been getting some good assistance from some amazing people. Anyway, figured I'd share. =3 I'll be working on many pages, and posting a changelog when things are posted. No ETA, but I'm working on it near fulltime.

And yes, you can totally play with it.

http://preyfar2.dev.furaffinity.net.....ser/dragoneer/
NOTICE: The dev box is currently down temporarily while we're reshuffling things behind the scenes.

Oh, and the banners are 2200x200. We will NOT be going forward with monthly banner updates, but giving the banner template to the general public. Once a month, we'll pick our favorite banner(s), and add them to the list. Then you can pick-and-choose which banners you like. =3 More info on that the closer this is done.

NOTE: It's NOT finished, many colors are inconsistent, and it's broken in many areas and 90% of it's not been touched -- yet.

NOTE 2: Commenting is really horrible on it. I'll try to get that fixed and revised tomorrow. =3

NOTE 3: The current banner is by  redic-nomad You can see the entire banner here:
http://preyfar2.dev.furaffinity.net.....nner_frost.jpg

Shown to me by  draekosilver. <3

Fuck, Return to Ravnica comes out next week... and I have no money. AUGH! I blame bakasaka for getting back into the game. I used to be a crazy-avid M:tG player back in the day (I've got like 2.5K Ice Age cards, heh).

Wantwantwantwant! AUGH! Why do the damn cards have to be so expensive.

But seriously, do you play Magic? If so, we should totally battle it out at Furfright if you're going. =D

I'm opening for commissions in October! Now is your chance to get in line, and for an awesome picture.

Rates:
* Greyscale/B&W (1 char): 45
* Color (1 char): $65
* $15 per additional character ($20 for highly detailed characters). Max of 5.
* $10 for wings and/or ridiculously detailed characters
* $30 for handdrawn background
* Restrictions: No babyfurs/cubs, bodily waste (of any sort), diapers.

Slot 1:  ztar4
Slot 2:  welshy_Rhys
Slot 3:  OngakuWolf
Slot 4:  nevermint
Slot 5:  kits5786
Slot 6:  Kokoes12
Slot 7:  Acroth

On Tumblr? Give me a follow. =3

http://thedragoneer.tumblr.com/

I'll be using it to share derpy links, art, sketches and other shit I usually don't post to FA.

That was highly unpleasant. I'll post some more details later (and what we're trying to do to prevent it from ever happening again).

That said, I truly appreciate your patience and understanding. This was not quite what we wanted (or expected) to happen.

My buddy  fossil has a proton pack for sale!

It's a 1:1 re-creation of the proton packs from the Ghostbusters game and films, crafted with loving detail, and complete with your own jumpsuit uniform. It's a freakin' awesome deal. Check it out!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAP.....m=251146995214