Update on Share Links from deviantARTA few weeks back we released Share buttons on deviation pages, making it easier for our visitors to express interest in different deviations while on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and Digg. While our intentions were good and many deviants were glad to finally see basic sharing features implemented on deviation pages, we had a lot of feedback from the community indicating concern regarding facilitating the promotion of artwork outside of the confines of the deviantART community. For some, this is because they feel as if the people on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and Digg are those who turn around and end up stealing their art; whereas the folks at deviantART are more respectful of these issues.Conceptually, we understand where you're coming from. Here's what we'd like to propose. When posting to deviantART, you're given an option regarding Sharing; enable or disable. If left ENABLED, you have the nice clean options for othe
Share Links: encourage, discourage, members only UPDATED: MANAGE DEVIATIONSBy popular request, we've implemented the ability to change the Share status of multiple deviations at once. To do so, simply visit Manage Deviations, select the deviations you'd like to update, and click the 'More actions...' drop-down. You're set! ENCOURAGE, DISCOURAGE, & DEVIANTART MEMBERS ONLYYou were right. After much deliberation, with both staff members and community members, we've decided to allow three options in regards to our Share links on deviation pages: encourage, discourage, and deviantART members only. Encourage ...allow comments and Share links Discourage ...allow comments, but disable Share links
Grab your umbrellas; it's raining widgets! Widget flood ...In an initiative to shake things up, and see what happens by removing a lot of widget-related restrictions, we've recently made almost all widgets available on almost all pages -- for Groups only. Caveats ... Some of these widgets may be taken back. We're going to keep a close eye on how they're used, and see whether there's anything we don't want happening. If it turns out that listing your Collections on your Blog just doesn't work, we'll withdraw it. There will be visual glitches. (Happens to the best of us, right? That haircut senior year maybe wasn't the best choice, eh?) Some of the modules are being thrown into narrower columns than they were designed for. We'll fix these cases as they arise, but the issues won't necessarily be top priority. Ready, set, go ...Ready to t
More Groups renovations: see what's new! Home renovations ...They just don't stop! The Devious Technology team continues to tweak and improve Groups left and right. Today's update includes news about the Members, About Us, and Shout Forum widgets. Members ...Getting a facelift and a few more settings, the Members widget now allows you to choose which user-classes within a group get shown (rather than showing all user-classes). You can also choose how many members, within each class, are displayed.Members or About Us, choose a layoutMembers, avatars onlyMembers, usernames only About Us ...The About Us widget is more like a full-fledged page where each member can
New and improved Log Summary!When managing a group, it's important to keep tabs on how well things are flowing -- both good and bad. Released just today, the Devious Technology guys have upgraded and improved the 'Log Summary' function in a group's Private Area.Group administrators can now see what's going on at a glance: How many deviants are requesting to join your group? How many were accepted or denied? How many blogs were submitted in the last week? How many Favorites or Gallery Items were added? Who are your group's Most Active and Least Active members? Is overall Group Activity up, down, or stagnant? Don't believe me? Check out these glowing reviews."I can't express how excellent the Log Summary is when running a group. It's like a full report of what I'm doing wrong in #F-City." -$pachunka"Sparklines!!!!
Join up to three groups! Three, it's the new one!The Groups platform is currently in a closed-beta phase. During the last couple of months, we've rolled out roughly 30 different groups to help us test features, hunt for bugs, and gain invaluable user feedback. During this time, all deviants (Premium Members and non-Premium Members alike) have been able to join and participate in the created groups. However, deviants were limited to joining only one group in an administrative role -- until now.Starting today, deviants have the ability to join up to three groups in administrative roles. (Administrative roles refer to group user classes higher than Groupies or Watchers.) Focused activity means less ghost towns!Being limited to one group was simply too restricting. It quickly became clear that we had many 'super deviants' who were interested in joining multiple groups -- not only joini
Groupie news, conversion updates, and MOAR! Groupies become Watchers!Taking into account deviant feedback, and after much deliberation, we've decided to abandon the Groupies member class and eliminate all Groupie/Watcher ambiguity. Over the course of the last few weeks, we learned that many deviants were confused about the role and purpose of Groupies. To make the Groups platform all the easier to understand, we've decided that simplicity is the best model. To compensate for Groupies being merged with Watchers, we're upping the group administrative member limit to 99. Anyone who is a current Groupie will automatically be converted to a Watcher. If you'd like to be a contributing member of a group, you'll need to re-apply with the specific group(s). If you don't want to contribute and would rather passively keep track of what's happening in your favorite group(s), being a Wat
Message Center Enhancements are here! Message Center Enhancements!A deviant's Message Center is his or her portal into the deviantART community. It's similar to a deviantART-specific inbox that pulls in various details and information deviants have 'subscribed' to in some manner -- through +watching other deviants, commenting on news articles or forum posts, getting alerted about special contests or events via Hot Topics, and so on. The Message Center is a one stop shop for news and updates and is often the very first page deviants check when visiting the site.However, Super Deviants (like those who frequent #hq) might find it more difficult to manage their Message Center experiences. The longer someone has been a deviant and the more active he or she is in the community, the greater the chance that the deviant's Message Center has become bogged down with messages and notices that are less relevant. Kind of like getting junk mail in your inbox.
Groups: Welcome Members! WELCOME MEMBERS!After much feedback from the community, we've created a new Groups social class called Members. Feedback from Groups alpha testers told us that many deviants wanted a social class that was unlimited in size, welcomed deviants to contribute content, but required little effort from group administrators. So, we've answered with gusto! Say it with me... “Me-me-me-mem—members!” BREAK IT DOWN!With the addition of this new class, here's how a group’s hierarchy pans out:1. Administration Founder Co-Founders Moderators (Super Groups only) Contributors2. Members3. WatchersThe Administration makes the group, manages the group, reviews contributed content, and sets member privileges. Admins can
Group Notes: enhancements are here!Hi groupies! Devious Technology has been at it again. And this time, they've enhanced Group Notes to allow for better reading, replying, and record keeping (aka organization).Not only has the Group Notes area been touched with a pretty stick and given a UI face-lift (including a helpful line of preview text for each note), but features like the ability to mark messages as important and archive old messages allow for easier control to what matters most -- bringing your Groups inbox a sense of peace and harmony. Check it out! Get to it! If you're a group administrator with access to Group Notes, these enhancements are now live for your viewing pleasure. :bulletre
New Groups Affiliates feature launched! Ask, and you shall receive! DeviantART's Groups platform has been officially launched and out the door for just under a month. In that time, we've seen the creation of 31,000 groups, with over 1.2 million deviants participating. Looking ahead, we're eager to develop and release the Groups enhancements deviants want most -- the enhancements you tell us will have the most impact on your Groups experience and the Groups ecosystem.With that in mind, we're happy to launch something that's been very high on the list of requests -- the official Groups Affiliates feature! It's easy to get started!1. Navigate to your group(Keep in mind that, by default, only Founders and Co-Founders have the privilege to send affiliation requests.)2. Type the name of the group you want to affiliate
Points: instant good karma!Points: instant good karma!DeviantART is proud to introduce our newest feature: Points! The perfect way to show your friends you care, Points can be used to reward fellow deviants for a job well done, to support commissions, buy awesome gear from deviantWEAR, order Prints, or to simply give a gift with love. The more Points you've got, the more you can share! It's easy to share the wealth!You get Points by gift or purchase and the reasons for sharing are endless! You can transfer Points to someone for an inspirational deviation, wish them a happy birthday, or give props for an amusing comment. When you give Points, you can even include a special note as part of the transfer. Additionally, Points can be used for every purchase in deviantWEAR and throughout the
Just launched: Message Center Stacks v2 Message Center Stacks v2!Our Devious Technology team has been quite busy during the past few weeks, releasing a flurry of feature upgrades and enhancements. Super deviants, such as those that follow #hq, are sure to have noticed the recent Message Center improvements -- like stacked messages. Those upgrades were Stacks v1 and we're now happy to improve on our improvements with Stacks v2! Here's what to expect!A deviant's Message Center acts as the brain of his or her deviantART experience. If the brain is confused, cluttered, and disorganized, it slowly becomes overwhelmed and ceases to function properly -- just like a clogged Message Center. Stacks v2 is our answer to information overload.1. Feedback (comments/reply/activity) stacks2. ON and OFF stack switcher for all views On Off
Just launched: Notes system upgrades! New Notes are here!Those Devious Technology fiends are still at it, burning the midnight oil, to bring you all sorts of good stuff. Last week, they brought peace and harmony to your Message Center with Stacks v2 and promoted the spirit of community giving with Points. This week, they’ve used their ninja-like reflexes to sneak into your inbox and enhance deviantART’s Notes system!So, what’s so seksey about these new notes you ask? Well, just about everything! 1. Cleaner dynamic interface. It’s faster than a rocket ship!2. Simplified organization with folders. Unclutter your inbox by simply dragging and dropping messages into folders. <
Quick Update: Solution to Resizing IssueUpdate: Auto image resizing serves a large part of the deviantART community, but there is definitely a certain segment of the community it serves less.We were moving quickly when making these changes and shouldn't have rolled them out without better foresight.We have since reverted things back to the way they were.We'll continue to work on this project so that it better serves the entire community. Again, our apologies to those we upset. ------We're hearing you loud and clear on the resizing issue. We've lost no data or ability to change things back, etc. so no panic. We are working on a solution immediately and will release it as soon as possible and I do mean very very shortly.More info here.. check back.Posting this then heading right back to help the team implement solution.Apologies! This is totally stupidpants on our part! -- A
Let's Play Llama Trading Game! Llama Lovin'!Llama Badges launched on April 1st, 2010 at 12:00 AM Pacific, resulting in shenanigans and tomfoolery of epic proportions. This llama influx -- referred to by some as Llama Lovin', Llamageddon, or Llamapocalypse -- has taken the community by storm with 1,911,942 Llama Bagdes distributed by 414,940 unique deviants. That's a whole lot of love! Let's Play Llama Trading Game!After noticing that many deviants were using Points to bribe (for lack of a better word ) their way to Llama-based success, we've automated the process for deviants who want to participate in Points to Llama Badge transactions. Our new Let's Play Llama Trading Game automates the Point-giving process in exchange for Llama Badges. For example!Pretend +spyed really wants Llama Badges. He could offer to pay 'X' Points
New llama levels and Badge Pages! Fellow llama herders!You may have noticed that today is a momentous day in the field of llamas. Due to their unexpected popularity, we have decided to tweak the llama levels a bit, in order to maximize fun and fairness for every deviant around -- from llama aficionados to those who simply dabble in llamas from time to time. What llamas? Glad you asked!Behold, the new breakdown of llamas! (If you dislike spoilers and wish to achieve the levels by pure surprise, then keep scrolling.)= 1 (Llama)= 10 (Super Llama)= 50 (Albino Llama)= 100 (Super Albino Llama)= 500 (Ninja Llama)= 1,000 (Fancy Llama)= 2,500 (King Llama)= 5,000 (Spartan Llama)= 7,500 (Wizard Llama)= 10,000 (Golden Llama)There you have it! So many awesome reasons to stay connected to the community and to search out new and undiscovered deviants. Share the wealth, my friends. Share it.
The Search Bar returns and new Splinter Mode! OHAI THAR!Remember that one time when we launched Version 7 and deviants were all... .Then we released an update to Version 7, addressing community concerns, and deviants were less... .Now, as promised, we've implemented changes to fix some of those concerns and we hope deviants will be... !! SEARCH ON EVERY PAGE!Have you been searching for search? If so, your search is over -- we've got what you've been looking for. To enable a search box on every page, simply click the down arrow to the right of the deviantART logo at the top of the screen and select 'Stick Menu'. This will enable a stickied customizable menu that you can edit to include your favorite hangouts on deviantART! (Full-view the images below.)
This just in: updates to v7 deviation pages! Ch-ch-changes are here. You will like!Ask and you shall receive! After sifting through and analyzing a whole lot of feedback from the community, we're making the first round of changes to the v7 deviation pages, with a focus on image display and artist's comments. Here's what's new! The deviation image now displays larger (for tall images). Artist's comments have a new style, and are no longer cut-off half way. The bottom-bar of thumbnails when navigating left and right is gone, so that it doesn't cover up the new, larger image! The "blurry" image used during the loading process has been replaced with an old fashioned dA loading graphic. deviantART loves you!Like these changes?
Menu ch-ch-changes have arrived! Menu ch-ch-changes have arrived!A few more tweaks have made their way to a deviantART Menu near you! The menu beside the deviantART logo is now super-wide and organized, so that hunting and pecking for your favorite page links is no longer required.The main menu does lose its customization ability in favor of giving the same organized menu to all deviants, but the Stick Menu (now with more space for items) retains all its ability to be customized!~$HeidiP.S. - Mhmm, mhmm, yes...
Testing deviation pages! Which team are you on?! TESTING DEVIATION PAGES!As mentioned in +spyed's previous Deviation Pages & A Quick Meditation blog, we're introducing A/B testing to certain areas of the site -- beginning with deviation pages.Rolling out changes on deviantART is a big deal and we're well aware that any change we make, no matter how big or small, affects millions of people. A/B testing two similar, yet different, versions of our deviation page will allow us to gather data and effectively compare which version performs better and is better received by the community.By the time you read this blog, we'll have already implemented our new deviation page testing. When viewing deviation pages, you'll either see version A or version B. Deviation pages for deviants in the version A bucket will remain the same. They'll look
Shiny new features to devWATCH! Time to make friends!Everyone likes making a new friend, whether it be at school, work, the playground, a bus stop, or anywhere in between. Every deviant you add to your watch becomes your friend. We know that you devWATCH people for a variety of reasons. It could be that you love their gorgeous art, their always entertaining journals, or their heartfelt comments. Whatever the case, we want to make it easy to make friends. Isn’t that how life should be? Now, it’s simpler than ever to add and organize your friends!See this image? Pretty normal, right? Behind it awaits a whole world of magic. So, we dare you, go to a soon-to-be friend’s page and click on this button. What happens?BAM! That deviant is instantly added to your watch list and you get to customize your settings right then and there. Want to upgrade t
deviantART muro: Save and Load, and Custom Sizing Hai guyz! You asked, and we listened! The two most requested additions to deviantART muro are now yours for the low, low price of free! Our new 'Save and Load' and 'Custom Canvas Size' features have arrived! Save and LoadWe've been so impressed by the remarkable art created through dA muro. Everyone's style is different and the amount of time it takes to create these masterpieces varies from artist to artist. While some pieces may take a small amount of time to create, larger works can take hours, days, months, and years to reach perfection. But no one wants to keep their browser open for that long! To solve such an issue, we developed a way that allows you to work at your leisure.Notice that the 'Image' dropdown now reads 'File,' and is over 9000% more functional! Look at those seksey 'Open File' and 'Save File' options!
deviantART on TumblrEarlier today, deviantART launched a Tumblr blog to showcase the many skills of our deviants. We feel that this is an opportunity to bring the community's talents outside the walls of deviantART. Deviants are always trying to find new ways to showcase their artwork to new audiences and as the largest art community on the Web, we're constantly trying to find innovative new opportunities to help artists get exposure. What We'll FeatureThe deviantART Tumblr will showcase Daily Deviations, up and coming deviations, deviants and deviations that receives a surge of attention around the blogosphere, news, Muro drawings, and shenanigans that happen inside the deviantART #hq.But don't worry, we'll only only feature works with Share links enabled. How We'll Give Deviants ExposureWhen we highlight the work
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If left ENABLED, you have the nice clean options for othe
UPDATED: MANAGE DEVIATIONS
Encourage ...
Widget flood ...
BREAK IT DOWN!
Ask, and you shall receive! 
It's easy to share the wealth!
Message Center Stacks v2!
Here's what to expect!
On
Off
) their way to Llama-based success, we've automated the process for deviants who want to participate in Points to Llama Badge transactions. Our new Let's Play Llama Trading Game automates the Point-giving process in exchange for Llama Badges. 
.
The deviation image now displays larger (for tall images).
Time to make friends!
So, we dare you, go to a soon-to-be friend’s page and click on this button. What happens?
