ABPC FAQ
Version 1.2
Last Update: November 27, 2004

Q: What can I post here?

Comic book covers
Comic book stories
Comic book ads
Comic strips (daily and/or Sunday)
Comic-related material (premiums, graphic novels, record album covers of
comic characters etc).
Comic-related art

Q: Where are all the current comics, why don't I see those posted?
A: APBC is not here to hurt the comics industry. We do not post comics under
a year old. Support your local comic shop.

Q: Can I plug my business and/or post ads to the group?
A: No, this is a binaries group. Commercial posts should go to
rec.arts.comics.marketplace.

Q: Have you folks ever tried using PDF files?
A: Yes. This point only gets raised by newcomers, however. Get a good
graphics viewing program and you will not be telling us of the wonders of
PDF files.

Q: Is there an archive of previous posts?
A: No, not as of now. There are several ftp sites with prior posts. Other
FTP sites can be found in #comicshop on IRC's newnet servers.

Q: What is the file-naming convention?
A: There is none, but try to use underscores instead of spaces, and also try
to make the filename fairly descriptive. Make use of the zero file or a
separate text or NFO file for detailed descriptions if necessary.
Filenames should contain the book name, issue # and page #. It is
strongly suggested that they be in that order. An example of a
well-designed filename is Superboy091-07.jpg. This tells anybody looking at
the file that it is the 7th page of Superboy issue #91. We suggest that
you do not start your filenames with a number, except in the rare case where
the book name starts with a number.
Also, try to make sure your filenames will read sequentially; that is to
say, in the order they are intended to be read. For example, it should
not be Superboy091-7.jpg above, because that way the filenames will be read
in this order: Page 1,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,2,20, etc. Of course, if
Superboy #91 had been a 132 page book, the proper page number above would
be Superboy091-007.jpg. Note that the same applies to the issue # as well;
if the comic you are scanning has over 100 issues (or is likely to exceed
it soon) use three digits for the issue number: Superboy091-07 rather than
Superboy91-07.
Many posters also add the story name after the comic, issue # and page #.
This is particularly useful for comics where there are several stories
in the issue. Others sometimes use the feature character name instead (for
books with stories featuring different characters)-for example,
Detective301-10Batman.jpg.
Please keep in mind that Mac users are limited (unless they are running
OS10), to a 31 character file name. Also some popular Windows CD burning
programs (such as Nero) filenames are also limited to the 31 character
restriction.

Other points:

1. No flaming for violations, simply point to this section of the faq.
2. Mac filenames are limited to 31 characters so keep this in mind.
3. All files are welcome regardless of filenaming.
4. Explanation of reason for reasonably standard filenames: We are now
dealing with approximately 30,000 comic pages per month. The volume
requires some reasonable standardizing of filenames, if we are to be able to
collate the comics usefully.
5. For comics with multiple volumes a V# at the end of the title is
useful.
6. If you are not certain of the comic's title, check the indicia of the
comic, an Overstreet or other Comic Guide or the Grand Comics Database.


Q: How do I download the binaries?
A: Your best bet is to use a newsreader that automatically joins files.
FreeAgent works well, and more options are available if you buy a license
for Agent. Most Macintosh users suggest Hogwasher, which can be found below
in the links section.

Q. When I download the binaries with Outlook Express, I only get the top part
of each page.
A: We do not recommend using Outlook or Outlook Express, but if you must,
here is what you have to do to download the entire picture. Most posts to
ABPC come in 2-3 parts. You have to manually join together the parts.
Suppose you see the following headers in a list:

AtlasProject_[66of67] - Tales_of_Evil_03_p20.jpg (1/2)
AtlasProject_[66of67] - Tales_of_Evil_03_p20.jpg (2/2)

You can see that the headers are very similar except for the very end part
(1/2) vs (2/2). That tells you that the first header is part one of two
and the second header is part two of two. Highlight both headers and right
click. Make sure the parts are in the right order!
Choose combine and decode from the pop-up menu. Now you will have the
complete picture.

Q: How do I view the binaries?
A: Once you've downloaded them, use a decent graphics viewer or "paint"
program to
view the files. Some viewers are:

ACDsee : http://www.acdsystems.com/index.htm (Who's computer is this?)
IfranView (freeware) : http://www.irfanview.com/ (Who's computer is this?)
Photoshop : http://www.adobe.com (Who's computer is this?)
PaintShop Pro : http://www.jasc.com/ (Who's computer is this?)

Q: How do I post binaries?
A: Most news-readers will also let you post. Even Netscape and Outlook have
rudimentary posting software included. But the most popular posting
software is PowerPost, which is also freeware. Some other posting
applications are:

Peck's Post
Agentpost

Note: Try to keep your files (or file segments) around 8000 lines or lower
to facilitate uploading and downloading.

Q: I don't want to post something that's already been done....
A: Look for the complete comics list posted monthly by Brain Death; posted
every 2 days by MaxBigfoot, or get the most recent one from the
#comicbooks chatroom on newnet. Although the complete comics list is not
perfectly complete, what is on there is guaranteed to have been done.

Q: My scans look like crap, how can I improve them?
A: Lose that $29 scanner and upgrade. After that, it's a topic for another
newsgroup (there are a few). The Scantips web page, listed below is a
great place to start.

Q: What about re-posts?
A: Make your request (politely!) and someone will probably get to it in a day
or two. Don't request more than one or two full comics at a time. Please
avoid posting resposts in the main group. The repost group is:

alt.binaries.pictures.comics.reposts

When requesting a repost, please put the poster, comic name, issue # and
page(s) in the header of your request. We request that you do NOT post a
message just saying Repost Request in your header. We are all such nice
people, this means that everybody in the group will have to read your post
to see if it's something they posted. An example of a well-formed repost
request might be as follows: Attn: Brain Death-Repost Request
Adventure371-24.jpg. Note that with a header like there is no need for an
actual message.

Q. I my news provider doesn't have alt.binaries.pictures.comics.reposts. How
do I get it?
A: First, make sure that you periodically refresh your groups list through
your newsreader to see if it has been recently added. If you've done that
and it's not there write, an email to your news provider requesting the
group. This group is carried by almost all the major News Providers, so
they should have no problem adding it.

Q: How should I scan comics?
A: Make the scans big enough so people can at least read the comic. Most
posters scan at 150dpi to 300dpi. Some further reduce the scans to
decrease the size of the image, but still keep it readable. They do
this using a graphic program like PaintShop Pro, Arcsoft or the others
already mentioned.

Q: Doesn't scanning hurt my comics?
A: No. Scanning won't hurt your comic anymore than pointing a flashlight
at them for a few seconds. Zero damage is done. The idea that scanning
comics hurts them is an urban myth. Not unlike a man dressed up as a
Bat running around in Gotham City punishing criminals. Soome damage may
occur due to the extra handling of the book, however. Use your best
judgment.

Q: Why scan comics?
A: Each poster has their own individual reasons for doing so, among them:

- Love of the medium.
- Archival purposes.
- Because the comics aren't "key" issues, they are forgotten.
- We hope to improve the industry. Comics need to be advertised, and
free samples of quality stuff is the best advertising there is.

Q: Do you guys have an IRC channel?
A: Yes we do, it started with weekend get togethers and has turned into a 24
hour, 7 days a week channel. You'll find ABPC regulars there just about
any time of day.

The channel is #comicbooks and resides on newnet. If you have questions
about IRC, Mmmbacon posts a weekly invite, usually on Friday's with very
detailed and specific instructions on how to connect to IRC and our channel.
There is also a comic trivia game set up by some of the group in #hacsa
also on newnet.

Q: What are PAR files?
A: PAR files are not used that commonly in abpc at the present time, but
where they do occur they are files that can be used to fill in a hole or
two in the comic posted. For example, if you are missing only a page or two
from Fantastic Four #250, but you have PAR files from it (files with a
.PAR, .P01, .P02, etc., extension), a program called SmartPar was
originally used to recover the missing files, but has been superceded by
FSRaid.

SmartPAR (site may not be around any more) -
http://www.disc-chord.com/smartpar/index.html (Who's computer is this?)
FSRaid - http://www.fluidstudios.com/fsraid.html (Who's computer is this?)

Q: What are files ending with cbr/cbz?
A: Cbr are renamed rar files and cbz are renamed zip files. You can either
rename back to .rar or .zip with a file renaming program or just open them
in any archive software like
winzip/winrar. They have been renamed to associate comic book archives
with
CDisplay for easy viewing.
CDisplay (a windows program) can be found at:
http://www.geocities.com/davidayton/CDisplay (Who's computer is this?)
An alternative for Mac and Linux can be found at:
http://www.sketchyorigins.com/comics/forumdisplay.php?f=47 (Who's computer is this?)

Resources and Web Pages:

http://www.tucows.com (Who's computer is this?) Viewers and other gear
http://www.versiontracker.com (Who's computer is this?) Viewers and other gear
http://www.download.com (Who's computer is this?) Viewers and other gear
http://www.scantips.com (Who's computer is this?) Essential scanning primer
http://www.ghoul.net/cca/guide.html (Who's computer is this?) Comic scanning tips

More:

Grand Comics Database (truly amazing):
http://213.203.29.50/sok.html (Who's computer is this?) or:
www.comics.org

Silver Age DC Checklist:
http://www.geocities.com/dstepp.geo/Archives/main2.html (Who's computer is this?)

Golden Age Checklist of Major Heroes:
http://www.execpc.com/~icicle/GACHKLST.html (Who's computer is this?)

Index of superheroes and supervillains:
http://www.geocities.com/~dstepp/Archives/ (Who's computer is this?)
(note: link is busted as of 2/21/02)

Golden Age Batman Chronology (highly recommended for Bat-fans)
http://www.intelcities.com/Hobby_Lane/argent/batman.htm (Who's computer is this?)
(note: link is busted as of 2/21/02)

News-readers/posters:

Gravity by Microplanet is a powerful reader.
It allows you to access multiple servers from one location.
http://www.microplanet.com/ (Who's computer is this?)

Power Post (Posting software)
http://www.cosmicwolf.com (Who's computer is this?)

Power Post yEnc version (Posting software)
http://powerpost.free.fr/ (Who's computer is this?)

Suck the Best
http://net-toys.8k.com/ (Who's computer is this?)

Agent and FreeAgent
http://www.forteinc.com (Who's computer is this?)

Pecks Post
http://www.eburg.com/~rattlhed/ppp06b.zip (Who's computer is this?)

Hogwasher (Macintosh)
http://www.asar.com/hogwasher.html (Who's computer is this?)

Thoth (Mac)
http://www.thothsw.com (Who's computer is this?)

MT Newswatcher (Mac)
www.smfr.org/mtnw/

Viewers/Graphics Handlers:

PaintShop Pro
http://www.jasc.com (Who's computer is this?)

IfranView
http://members.home.com/rsimmons/irfanview/english.htm (Who's computer is this?)

ACDsee
http://www.acdsystems.com/products/acdsee (Who's computer is this?)

Graphic Converter (Mac)
http://www.lemkesoft.de (Who's computer is this?)

Galleries:

http://members.home.net/fartpipe/index.html (Who's computer is this?)
Mighty yet modest cover gallery

Silver Age Marvel Cover Gallery
http://www.geocities.com/~nick-fury/ (Who's computer is this?)

Comics Reading Room
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Starship/9837/ (Who's computer is this?)

Tips

1. Patience!

2. Do things that build the group. Encourage newcomers--they are the
experienced posters of tomorrow.

3. Before requesting reposts please check http://www.newzgroups.net/mynews (Who's computer is this?)
Most of the pages you need will appear there. If not available there,
request a repost indicating you've already looked. It is a very good idea to
request reposts in the reposts group-alt.binaries.pictures.comics.reposts.

4. When posting please include the Issue title and number in the file
name.

5. If you notice that your ISP repeatedly misses files, consider
subscribing to an independent newsgroup service. Many are available
that have better retention, better throughput and more newsgroups than
are available through your local ISP.

6. Lurking is fine...But we hope that you will also contribute your
available material to the group. Scanners are now cheaper than ever
and the members of the group will help you with any questions or
problems you may experience when learning to scan or post.

7. SFV files: Some posters have been using SFV files to verify their
posts and/or downloads. Here are links to the software and instructions
for it's use:

Download Quick SFV Freeware version 1.61 for Windows here:
http://www.abpec.com/neonvincent/qsfv161.exe (Who's computer is this?) - needs to be updated, try:
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Mouse/4668/index.html (Who's computer is this?)

SFV32nix v1.2 for Linux:
http://www.abpec.com/neonvincent/sfv32nix-1.2p1.tar.gz (Who's computer is this?)

macsfv.sit for Macintosh:
http://www.geocities.com/hacsa2000/index.html (Who's computer is this?)
follow the MacSFV link.


Directions for Windows users:

Run Qsfv161.exe to install the program.

Open Windows Explorer and browse to the set of files you're about to upload.

Highlight all of the files, then right click on any one of them.

Click "Create .SFV File" from the popup menu.

Name it to go along with the rest of the set and click OK!

It takes less than ten seconds and can spare you the trouble of replying to
questions about what was the last file in the set, how many files total, was
there a cover, what was the name of a missing file...

For a downloader to verify any set accompanied by an SFV file, simply install
the same program as above, then make sure the SFV file is in the same
directory
with the images being checked. Right-click the SFV file and choose "Verify
All"
from the popup menu. Again, it takes less than ten seconds! You'll get a
report as to what files, if any, are corrupt or missing, or else you'll get
"All files OK"


Updates:

08.22.01 Changed link for Power Post 2000 to reflect new link.
11.30.01 Removed Empress FTP information. Thanks go out to Empress for the
time and effort to providing the service. You will be missed!!
03.07.02 Added questions on PDF files. Listing of filenames in the header
of repost requests added. Several updates/additions to website addresses.
04.11.27 Added cbr/cbz extension question. Updated par section.

>>>> Membership Timeline, Volume Index and Condensed List 060818.zip <<<<