Fluffball 1 1 Joined MEMBER
Blacklisted
(help)
About

Quitting due to unfair treatment, and disagreements with staff.

Message to the community

As a community, we should be supportive of each other's ideas. There's no place for intolerance here. When tagging, try to leave personal biases at the door, and be mindful of other user's interests.

Tag correction policy

Concerns about my tagging can be directed to my Dmail, or you can message me on Discord. I will gladly explain any changes I have made, or tags that I have created. If it seems that I have been tagging something incorrectly, I will graciously fix my mistakes personally no matter how much effort it may take. The only request I have is that you write to me with a respectful tone, and I will treat you similarly.

Misunderstandings are common, and I am a very active tagger. I want to believe that I don't make too many mistakes, but the nature of the work I do opens the door for uncertainty, and errors.

Did you know you can commend people you feel are doing a good job at tagging, uploading, some other site task?

In the user profile page, you can see the option next to the Sign out button. There are some very fantastic users out there helping out with the site. Let someone know how good of a job they are doing!

About me

I'm a passionate e621 tagger and wiki contributor. This site has immense potential, and I want to put all of my effort into reaching that potential the best way I know how, tagging of course. My focus is mainly on underdeveloped tags, and concepts. I used to be a thorough tagger for the first three years of my journey on e621, and who knows, I may return back to that life some day.

Better Tagging Initiative

Proud supporter of the BTI

The Better Tagging Initiative (BTI) is a grassroots effort to improve the tagging system through better, more pinpointed tags, and comprehensive wiki writing. Long-term issues with the tagging infrastructure will soon be a thing of the past as newer ways of developing tagging solutions are being researched, and implemented to produce modern tag infrastructure.

Primary goals of BTI

  • Enhance our understanding of complex tagging subjects with the help of more detailed, informative wikis that tell users exactly how to identify, and tag any theme they may encounter out there in the vast image library.
  • Enhance our searching by providing a wider array of tagging concepts to better align with what users might be looking for.
  • Reduce the time users have to spend finding what they happen to be looking for both from a tagging and searching perspective.
  • Encourage users to access wiki pages even while searching. Wikis should serve as resources for both taggers, and searchers alike by serving as hubs that inform users how to navigate (use the tagging system) themes to find what they want.

BTI Compliance

BTI Compliance is an objective standard of quality applied to tags, and tag categories. It is a way of verifying that a tag is meeting user needs, and adequately covering the themes that artists are drawing. In order for a tag, or tag category to be BTI Compliant, it should be possible to navigate through most of its essential, commonly drawn, or idea-influencing themes. When looking at a tag, ask yourself "Can I access all of the themes associated with this concept in a few tags?". If you answer "no", then the tag is either non-compliant, or partially compliant, and ripe for improvement. The more BTI compliant tags there are, the better our tagging system will be.

How to join the BTI?

Contact a BTI affiliated member through Dmail , or through the Discord app, and ask.

Expectations

There are no prerequisites apart from an interest to learn, and an aspiration to become a better tagger.

  • It is requested, but not a requirement that members feature this BTI information in their profiles.
BTI Information Template
[section,expanded=Proud supporter of the BTI]

The [b]Better Tagging Initiative[/b] (BTI) is a grassroots effort to improve the tagging system through better, more pinpointed tags, and comprehensive wiki writing. Long-term issues with the tagging infrastructure will soon be a thing of the past as newer ways of developing tagging solutions are being researched, and implemented to produce modern tag infrastructure.

h4. Primary goals of BTI  

* Enhance our understanding of complex tagging subjects with the help of more detailed, informative wikis that tell users exactly how to identify, and tag any theme they may encounter out there in the vast image library.
* Enhance our searching by providing a wider array of tagging concepts to better align with what users might be looking for.
* Reduce the time users have to spend finding what they happen to be looking for both from a tagging and searching perspective.
* Encourage users to access wiki pages even while searching. Wikis should serve as resources for both taggers, and searchers alike by serving as hubs that inform users how to navigate (use the tagging system) themes to find what they want.

h4. BTI Compliance

[b]BTI Compliance[/b] is an objective standard of quality applied to tags, and tag categories. It is a way of verifying that a tag is meeting user needs, and adequately covering the themes that artists are drawing. In order for a tag, or tag category to be BTI Compliant, it should be possible to navigate through most of its essential, commonly drawn, or idea-influencing themes. When looking at a tag, ask yourself [i]"Can I access all of the themes associated with this concept in a few tags?"[/i]. If you answer [i]"no"[/i], then the tag is either non-compliant, or partially compliant, and ripe for improvement. The more BTI compliant tags there are, the better our tagging system [i]will[/i] be.

h4. How to join the BTI?

Contact a BTI affiliated member through "Dmail":/dmails/new , or through the Discord app, and ask. The founder, "Fluffball":/users/313362 may be contacted at anytime.

h4. Expectations

There are no prerequisites apart from an interest to learn, and an aspiration to become a better tagger. 

* It is requested, but not a requirement that members feature this BTI information in their profiles.
* Members should be open-minded about new tags, and new tagging ideas. 
* Members should Neutral, or Down vote BURs, Implications, or Alias requests that appear to negatively affect the BTI Compliance status of a tag.

h4. Final notes

The best way to participate in BTI activities is through our Discord group. One of our affiliated members can help you get connected there. Coordinated community projects is an efficient way of tackling tagging problems, but you may choose to do it mostly independently. We can teach you how to identify and correct problems on your own, or along with us!

[i]Version 1.1[/i]
[/section]
  • Members should be open-minded about new tags, and new tagging ideas.
  • Members should Neutral, or Down vote BURs, Implications, or Alias requests that appear to negatively affect the BTI Compliance status of a tag.

Final notes

The best way to participate in BTI activities is through our Discord group. One of our affiliated members can help you get connected there. Coordinated community projects is an efficient way of tackling tagging problems, but you may choose to do it mostly independently. We can teach you how to identify and correct problems on your own, or along with us!

Version 1.1

If you have any questions about tagging, don't be afraid to contact me. I am very friendly, and would be all too happy to help someone improve themselves as a tagger.

Tagging motto: A place for everything, and everything in its place.

For Newbie tagging advice, click here.

The value of a tag

A tag's value can be measured in how difficult, and time-consuming the concept is to consistently find any other way. The longer it takes to find a concept someone is looking for without a tag, the more worthwhile it is to have a tag for that concept.

There are other ways of defining a tag's value such as the potential to use a vehicle to populate other tags. This saves time while tagging, and helps concepts from going undertagged.

Foundational tags

Foundational tags are tags that are used for concepts that seem to have various distinctive variations on a theme. Foundational tags may come in any size, and there are plenty of examples on the site. A big project of mine is to take big tags (at least 5000 posts) and checking to see if they should qualify as foundational tags (should have subtags). Many tags on the site have grown to huge sizes, and that has made it difficult to navigate and find the different variations produced in these tags.

If you spot a foundational tag without subtags, it is encouraged that you try to identify the major usages and determine if the tag can support subtags. Sometimes the concepts can be found using a combination of other tags making subtags redundant. This method of searching has downsides as it tends to hide relations between the foundational tag in the related themes. It can be confusing from a tagging perspective if not handled properly in affected wikis.

Tag infrastructure

Beneath the tags we use is an interconnected web of ideas, and related concepts known as tagging infrastructure. Every theme will have ideas around it that are similar, but not exactly the same. The same goes for those similar ideas, and so on. It is important for a tagger to understand how a tag relates to its neighboring ideas. Understanding the nature of this web allows us to draw connections between concepts that may not seem obvious were connected at the surface level.

Wikis serve as documentation of tagging infrastructure; be sure to check out the wiki at least once. Not only does it help with tag discovery (finding new ideas), it helps one become familiar with the similar concepts that might get confused with that tag. In case you don't know how to access a wiki page from a post, click the ? next to a tag you see to visit that tag's wiki page.

Completing the infrastructure

An incomplete infrastructure can be thought of as us having an incomplete understanding of how tags and ideas interrelate. To maximize the usefulness of wiki documentation, it is important that the tagging infrastructure be as complete as we can make it. There should be a very good reason to not have a tag, or at least a reference to a related theme mentioned in a relevant wiki. Lack of organization is the biggest cause of lack of clarity. That missing link in the infrastructure could potentially be a bridge between two seemingly unrelated ideas. Without it, one may not easily see that those ideas may share other similarities in how they are drawn / depicted.

If that sounds complicated to you, that is because it is. Even seasoned taggers can get confused with these ideas. I have developed an extensive knowledge on the tagging infrastructure over the years, and I study drawing habits to help us fill in the missing links. The results of my research goes into the creation of new tags, and more informative wiki documentation. If you want to help out, my expertise on this subject can help you get started; all you need to do is let me know you are interested.

Tag bloat myths

Some people hold onto this antiquated idea that too many tags in the tag list on an image is bad, and should be avoided if possible. This may have been relevant in the past, but nowadays it is super common for images to exceed 100 tags. Do not worry too much about the number of tags you are adding, although if you are adding a lot of tags that are used in less than ten posts (as shown on the figure next to the tag name), you may be tagging a bit too specifically.

What is tag bloat?

Tag bloat, in my view, refers to one of two concepts:

- There are multiple tags with meanings that are too similar, or have the same meaning. In such a case, combining the two concepts into one tag through an alias is the ideal solution. Be careful though as some tags will have names that appear like they should mean the same thing, but the usage of the tags are different, and in some cases even incompatible with each other. Check wikis, primary usage, and perhaps even consider potential usage of terms before suggesting an alias. It tends to be difficult to reverse an alias once it gets approved, so better make sure it is worth it.

- A tag has many variations of a theme, but very few to no subtags. When a tag is small, it is easier to find the different flavors of a theme, but over time a tag can grow to such a size that finding the different flavors becomes a challenge. Many tags are notoriously bloated, text, and color tags are examples. Improvements to numerous bloated foundational tags are being worked on, and I have contributed to resolving tag bloat on many tags so far including all of the narrative element tags.

I graciously appreciate any help working on narrative element tagging. Just drop me a dmail, and we can work on fighting tag bloat together.

Proper forum etiquette

  • Be nice and courteous towards others.
  • Have an open-minded attitude that respects the interests of others.
  • Provide constructive criticism. Please do not just tell someone their idea is bad. Build their idea into something that can work instead!
Voting for BURs, aliases and implications
  • The red flag should be used sparingly. If you disagree with an idea, use the yellow flag instead. Leave the red flag for when the change will be harmful (destructive), or has a error that must be fixed before approval.
  • Try not to be too critical over flaws that cannot be easily fixed. It is unfair to punish ideas for uncorrectable issues. A functional, but flawed idea is still a functional idea.

Current tagging projects

I have lots of smaller tag projects, and I jump around a lot. There is always too much to do, and not enough time to do it.

Tag specialization

- Postures
- Sex positions
- Sound effects
- Symbols (hearts, stars, sparkles, etc)
- Bows, and other accessories
- Emanata, and iconography
- Motion and interaction tags (grabbing, holding)

How to become a better tagger

This is not comprehensive by any means, but will contain some advice to avoid some pitfalls newer taggers, and really any tagger may fall into.

Helpful resources

Creating new tags

  • Don't listen to anyone who tells you that you need to have a discussion before creating a new tag.

This is not a requirement, and you should only do so if you have trouble working out the finer details for your tag.

  • Don't allow anyone to tell you your tag idea is useless, or not worth starting.

It is not their business to judge the value of tags. Do not allow others to discourage you from seeking what you want from the tagging system.

  • Before creating a new tag, do a brief check to see if your idea doesn't already exist, and that you aren't making a typo when you make the tag.

As a word of caution, do not assume that an existing tag is being used for the reason you need to use it for. Many tags have specialized definitions.

General tagging advice

  • Read wikis before using unfamiliar tags

Wikis exist for a reason. Some tags such as humanoid, riding, various holding, and grabbing themes have restricted definitions. Be sure you are aware of them. Some tags wont have a wiki; the next best course of action is to observe common usages. It is sometimes acceptable for a tag to have multiple usages, but do keep an eye out on an alternative more specific tag which may already exist.

  • Avoid overtagging

Overtagging is using all tenses or possible synonyms of a concept as tags. Pick one and be done with it. Using all of them will lead to mistags as sometimes different tenses are used for different things.

  • Avoid using slang terms

Slang words often have double meanings, several are invalid, or are being used for the original meaning of the term. For instance, don't use riding to describe cowgirl position, use straddling. Use thrusting instead of humping.

  • Don't confuse singular and plural concepts

Sometimes singular and plural actions are stored in a single tag, but in many cases they are not. Do not assume that the plural version of a term is the tag used for the singular version. Check to see if both versions exist.

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