Quote from: SNP on August 15, 2011, 11:31

you're right. sorry, should have reread my comment before posting. I meant that I should have 60% of my normal average for daily dls by now and I have not had a single sale since last night, which is unprecedented for me on a weekday.

Just to let you know it's a big Catholic holiday today, that could be the reason for not getting anything so far (from the larger part of Europe), sales in North America have really just started a few hours ago...

well, thank you, hope it's that though I doubt a holiday like that would cause a total shutdown. I even get dls on Christmas

there is something going on today or my sales are just dried up and that's that. seriously, my sales literally stopped last night. I'm doing my best not to freak out. I'm down by 60% for this time of day and number of dls...unbelievable.

well, FWIW, here are my returns for food, people and business:

http://staceylnewman.smugmug.com/Other/location-search/18544531_68bhTq/

Just because you describe an image as 'most amazing' does not mean it is actually useful. It sounds like you are judging images on artistic merit or technical difficulty which of course have little or nothing to do with stock photography. I know plenty of photographers whose portfolios are full of 'most amazing' images but who have very few sales. It's not because the best match was nasty to them but because their work was not commercially oriented.

I'm referring to what I would consider commercially-oriented files. not Vetta-style stuff. there are a lot of great stock files that also go ignored and it can probably be attributed to their best match placement when indexed. it's a crapshoot. personally I think it's important to apply some strategy to uploading these days with a collection of over 10 million files.

in any case, if there hasn't been a best match change than something else is going on. today has not started off any better than last week. in fact it's even worse. no idea what is going on in terms of dls the last few weeks. up and down, up and down. last few days down down down....sigh

Quote from: SNP on August 14, 2011, 13:35

sales may be sales, but I'm not happy when the best match favours old files. it means new files are being indexed and basically pushed to the back, potentially never to be seen. I stop uploading when this happens for the most part. best match right now is messed....I don't like it even though sales numbers are up and down, generally average for August.

With so many images, both old and new, there has to be a balance struck in the best match. Right now I think they have it about right. For example I've just searched on a subject (omelet) which had over 1400 results. Out of the first 100 images, when sorted by best match, 13 of them had zero downloads. New images are getting their time in the sun but not excessively so.

Don't forget every unproven new image is, at least for a time, displacing older proven work which may be far better. In the past Istock has rewarded artists who continually uploaded tons of mediocre images to the cost of artists who were more selective and uploaded fewer but much better images. In those days images were effectively being killed off once they were 6 months old. That's not the way to build a high-quality library.

I guess I disagree that the best match is optimal right now. I completely agree about striking a balance. and that old (and not necessarily better images) should not displace proven sellers permanently. but, every new file is potentially a best seller and should get some visibility (I don't care if that happens initially or at a later point). the problem is that I believe some files, depending on best match conditions when they are uploaded, never see the light of day.

theoretically these mass uploaders adding poor-quality work should find their files dropping back in the best match due to lack of performance anyways, so I don't believe the best match is designed to reward 'quality' uploaders, which is a highly subjective judgment anyways. conversely, I'm sure there are as many mass uploaders who upload quality work as there are minimalist uploaders who add poor quality images.

just do a search on files that get downloaded versus some of the most amazing but never-downloaded content on sites.

The best match shifts are always going to benefit someone at istock. But the majority are going to (continue to) get screwed.

I don't see how you can state constantly that the majority of contributors are being screwed. perhaps the majority of contributors here - particularly independents admittedly hit very hard at iStock of late. but you can't speak for the majority of iStock contributors though you often state these 'facts'...MSG isn't exactly a statistically relevant sample group of microstock contributors

Today's sales are atrocious. Certainly hoping this best match shift is temporary

I'm seeing older files selling too...today was normal for numbers but strange files were downloaded

I don't normally watch, but overnight sales to this morning are off by about 70%.

mine too. yesterday and today are weird and bad

If you're not aware of Bruce's new project Saatchi Online, here is the link : http://www.saatchionline.com

I don't know Peebert but I see he is the forum moderator there. Here is his profile page:

http://www.saatchionline.com/profile/296792

ETA: I thought you old school folks would find that interesting.

I read about this and thought one of two things, that it will either become another joint iStock venture (like Blurb etc.), or do something to compete with iStock. and someone suggested earlier that Lobo is a plant...just silly and conspiratorial. how do people here know so little about the internal structure of the company they spent so much time despising? Lobo was one of the original originals. He was in a band with Bruce for Pete's sake....he was around before most of us were. he's not a Getty plant....I can't think of anyone less likely to be a corporate spy. 

Who said anything about rejoicing? I care about my numbers and as I said, money up but dls decreasing makes me very nervous, regardless of how well the mothership is doing. My point is simply that contributors suggesting istock is doing poorly are mistaken. I hope the new management understands the importance of taking care of suppliers.

Quote from: SNP on August 07, 2011, 17:01

... incredibly ironic how rude, sarcastic, belittling and uninformed people are with one another here -and yet many some of those same people are claiming to be hurt or affronted by Lobo's sarcasm.

I just hate the fact that we have to pay his wages via our sales. However little it costs ... it's not worth it.

lol, well I hate that my taxes are being used by a majority conservative federal government with their heads up their arses...but what are you going to do?   once in a while I cringe when Lobo drops a more extreme snarky comment towards the more "innocent" posters who happened to post at the wrong place/wrong time when he is pissed at someone else or just especially gritty. but he isn't the first 'bad cop' persona in a situation like the iStock forum. it has its purpose, but is undoubtedly a completely thankless job.