From Test-Scratch-Wiki
- This tur is about the Scratcher who picks projects to be displayed on the front page. For other uses, see Curator (disambiguation).
A front page curator (commonly abbreviated as FPC) is a Scratcher who, for one week,[1] curates (selects and places on the front page, below the Featured Studios) five projects of their choice on the Front Page via their recent favorites. They can choose whatever projects they like in that week and change them, as long as the projects are not their own,[2] do not belong to a member of the Scratch Team, follow the Community Guidelines, are not marked NFE[citation needed], and do not have animated thumbnails.[citation needed] Although the Scratch Team recommends that curators change their choice of projects on the front page at least twice a week, curators have the option to change the projects as often as they wish.[3]
The front page curator shift used to be two weeks but was changed to one due to a lot of applications. Scratchers cannot become a curator twice:
“ | Well, there's so many bajillions of great Scratchers who've never even gotten to be curator once, I don't think it'd really be fair to let someone go twice.... | ” |
– Lightnin, Scratch Team at MIT[4] |
However, if a Scratcher has applied and not been chosen, they can either update the application or make a new one. Scratchers should not make a lot of applications unless they have been waiting for a long amount of time, usually at least 3+ months:
“ | It's ok to repost your application once per month, but any more often than that can make things get kinda spammy. We do review every application, so don't worry- as long as you've posted once every few months, your application will be considered. | ” |
– Lightnin, Scratch Team at MIT[5] |
The "Projects Curated by" row will not appear if the current curator has under 5 favorite projects.[6]
History
Front page curators were introduced on May 5, 2009.[7] A thread in the Announcements forum declared the future row for the front page. It asked users to apply for the position, and many did. Scratch now uses a studio to accept new curators. Only a small fraction of users have ever been chosen (~1/50000 of registered users, see below for the exact number of curators).
On June 1, 2009, the curator channel slot was implemented, with cheddargirl as the first curator. The original title of the curator channel was "Projects Curated by [user]", with [user] being a link to the current curator's user page. This, however, was changed within the first few days after it was discovered that many Scratchers confused the word "curator" with "creator" and were ignoring the projects favorited by the curator.[8][9] This was changed back in Scratch 2.0, though it still does not link to the curator's user page. Because the design of the channel title was drawing attention away from the projects selected by the curator, the title was renamed to "Projects Selected by Curator" and the link to the curator's user page was removed. The current title of the channel is supplemented with a "Learn more" link, which leads to a studio where Scratchers can apply for the position and learn more about the role. Some people want the link to the curator's Profile Page.[10]
Curators were not available immediately with the release of Scratch 2.0. It was put back on May 30, 2013,[11] and the first curator was OrcaCat. The row was also renamed back to "Projects Curated by [curator]", but without a link.
On the 8th of August, 2015, it was announced that the length of a curator shift would be shortened, from 2 weeks to 1 week, in an announcement by the Scratch Team.[12] Really_A was the last user to have a two-week shift.
“ | We've seen an extraordinary high number of applications to become the Front Page Curator. Alas, we've only been picking one every two weeks. However, in an effort to give more Scratchers an opportunity to be a curator, we're shortening Front Page Curator shift from two weeks to one week. We hope this will help spread the awesomeness that is being Front Page Curator! | ” |
– Speakvisually, Scratch Team at MIT[13] |
Application and Selection
In order to apply, a user creates a small application project explaining why they think they should selected, as well as a sample studio containing examples of projects they would curate. The user is required to explain the types of projects they enjoy and what projects they would curate.[14] The user then posts a link to their curator application in the Front Page Curator Applications studio, and a studio curator of the studio will add the project to it. A Scratch Team member (usually ceebee) will then view the applications and select users to become curators. Curators are generally chosen every Monday.[15] Applying to be a curator does not guarantee the position; in fact, most Scratchers who apply aren't chosen.
Tips for Making a Good Project Application
Making a good curator project application is not difficultTemplate:Cn. Some guidelines for a good application include:
- Giving examples of the type of projects you would curate, including why. A broader spectrum of projects is better than just games, for example.
- Explaining why you want to be a curator. Give specific reasons and examples.
- Telling how you will pick projects. List requirements and limits for the user and the projects you will choose.
- Having added creativity as opposed to just text. Try adding images, audio, music, and interactivity with the user.
- Saying how often you will choose projects.
- Describing yourself a little bit in your application can go a long way. It is important that the Scratch Team members reviewing your application get a better idea of what kind of FPC you would make.
- Making the project neat and presentable will draw attention.
Also, stating the fact that one would want to be a curator and nothing else, will most likely result in not becoming selected as curator.
This studio was approved by the Scratch Team and created so Scratchers could submit their applications to be reviewed. Other users then review the project and give feedback and advice on how to make the application better.
List of Curators
- Main article: Curator (front page)/List of Curators
There have been 501 curators since the program started. The current curator is Tur:İdareci (ön sayfa)/List of Curators.
Curator projects and studios
It is common for a curator to make a curator project. In most cases, their project simply states that they are curator and would appreciate ideas on what to curate.[16] It is also common for these types of projects to contain rules on what the curator will curate so as to help filter ideas before they get posted as a suggestion. Some curators have also added further features to their curator project, ranging from music to a game, and to art work.[17] Others use studios[18] or just their applications[19] for project suggestions. It is recommended that curators have at least 7 projects in their favorites in case a project will not appear on the Front Page[20] Some curators create studios for "backup" projects, in case this occurs.[21]
See Also
- Projects Curated by ()
- Curator (front page)/List of Curators
- How to Nominate Yourself to be a Scratch Front Page Curator
References
- ↑ topic:140510
- ↑ ceebee. (09/08/2015). "please don't curate projects you have made" projects:72643932
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20140623202316/http://info.scratch.mit.edu/Become_a_Scratch_Curator
- ↑ ar-post:683647
- ↑ ar-post:152580
- ↑ Paddle2See. (01/12/2020). "if there are other projects in the favorites row that are okay to display, it will display those. However, if there are not enough projects to fill the row, the row will not display at all (I believe)." users:Paddle2See/#comments-66723503
- ↑ ar-topic:17464
- ↑ ar-post:173705
- ↑ ar-post:350598
- ↑ ar-topic:32544
- ↑ scratch:news#51765462803
- ↑ topic:140510
- ↑ post:1287168
- ↑ projects:19791305
- ↑ topic:148156
- ↑ projects:17134332
- ↑ projects:3226531
- ↑ studios:1565118
- ↑ projects:82934488
- ↑ projects:72643932
- ↑ studios:1566608