Which Updates Would You Keep, Which Would You Not Keep

[geolarson2]

I thought I'd start this thread as a place to discuss the "must have-must keep" updates, the "oh, what might have been" ones, and the "it could have gone better" ones.

Hard drive space is limited, so the question becomes, which updates are worthy of saving on your hard drive as well as saving to DVD (better have a backup, after all, because none of us knows when the motherboard's going to frizzle out) and which are worth saving to DVD but not necessarily keeping on the ol' HD. (Not that I'd just throw away any--after all, these women put at least some effort into their updates, and no one should just be tossed aside as irrelevant or a waste of space.)

With regard to the "Wowee!" updates, I think they can be discussed in individual model threads. With the "oh, if only we got a second shot" ones, perhaps in the "Who'd you like to see come back" thread might be the better place to discuss those. So we're left to the "A for effort, maybe; C, D or--say it ain't so--F" for the rest to go down here. Now, having said that, this could also be a place for folks to discuss what went right and what wrong with some updates. I'm sure that whomever I list could find champions elsewhere, so with the general rules applying let's talk about those shoots that seemed to miss the mark and why, not as a place to bash the gentlewomen.

I'll start with Brandi. She was pretty, yes, but as Rob said, she didn't quite look as she did in the photos she submitted. She was very shy, willing to only go so far in her update. I'm not sure if I feel good for her for trying, in spite of personal difficulties she apparently, or if I feel bad for her because it felt like she wanted to do more, but held herself back.

Next up, Sasha (2008). She was gorgeous, yes, but there was something too over-the-top for me with her, too "commercial" about her presence. By that I mean that it seemed to me like she was acting for the camera, not being herself during the shoot. In other words, this update seemed to me to be a lot more like one of those standard porn shoots we're all familiar with, and not what we've come to expect from FTV. One of the great strengths of FTV has been that Rob has this knack for putting the gentlewomen at ease, and while it seemed to me like Rob was trying here, he just simply wasn't successful. To me it looked like Sasha was performing to a stereotype rather than just being herself. Now having said that she did seem like a nice women and she certainly is beautiful, so if she & Rob were able to try it again, I'd love to see Sasha be Sasha.

And last for this note, Lenka. This is one of those contributed updates rather than one Rob himself produced. She's pretty, but she's also bland. We know what she looks like naked, but I didn't get a feel for who she is. One reason I chose to join FTV was, as I mentioned, Rob's ability to put the gentlewomen who model for him at ease, to let themselves as women shine through, not just as eye-candy but as human beings. This update is just eye-candy with no emotion, no passion. For me, its a shame because I feel like more of a pervert watching a video like this than I do watching someone do something more extreme when that someone else has spoken "to me" through the camera. In this update, the images seemed more important than the woman herself. In the updates Rob produces, its the woman who comes first, and the images he takes compliment her as a person. Personally, I would love to have seen how Rob would have treated Lenka. I suppose its a matter of perspective though--there are lots of sites that produce cheap images & videos that just feed the stereotype of porn, and there are others where its the artist's vision that drives a shoot. Here at Danielle FTV, FTVGirls, Lia 19 and Alison Angel, there's more of a collaboration between Rob and the gentlewomen--that's it, I think, a collaboration--that translates beautifully in the images & text we've come to appreciate, and, while the video is beautiful, and Lenka is a knock-out, that mutual effort is missing unfortunately.

So there you go, folks, let's see what you have to say--agree? Disagree? Wishes, hopes & dreams? I'm sure, though, that regardless of how we feel after watching each update we all respect and admire these gentlewomen because they are, at the very least, willing to give this a try. :)

[Natal]

For a moment I thought you were refering to the 2007 Sasha ;). I've just got around to looking at her update while working back through the archived material. In her case I think she was being herself (based on everything else I've read about/from her). The 2007 Sasha is definitely an interesting woman. Not the usual type of girl on FTV of course, since she was at the very end of her career, so "shy" wasn't a question. Heh...she was more of an LTVgirl :)

2008 Sasha on the other hand was clearly hamming it up.

[FTVGirls_Rob]

I do have one solution for you though GeoLarson -- get a 1 terabyte drive haha. I noticed that saving the entire collection of FTV content (my own backup) is about 800GB right now.

Part of the reason I put up the 'members' favorite' (3-5 star rating) in the members' update area is to direct more attention to the best updates for 2008.

[geolarson2]

I do have one solution for you though GeoLarson -- get a 1 terabyte drive haha. I noticed that saving the entire collection of FTV content (my own backup) is about 800GB right now.

Part of the reason I put up the 'members' favorite' (3-5 star rating) in the members' update area is to direct more attention to the best updates for 2008.

Actually, I came close. I have 2 external hard drives, a 500 gig devoted to nothing but FTV (filled) and a 320 gig most of which is consumed with FTV. My own membership ran out a week or so ago and ultimately downloaded virtually the entire site. There were just a handful of updates I didn't download for one reason or another (mostly because I either ran out of time or wasn't keen on the video format: avi), but of what I did, I've kept everything, and who knows, in 6 - 9 months I might sign up again and carry on where I left off (just missed Orianna by 1 day, consarnit!). And by then hopefully I'll have a PC that works properly, can handle the higher def format and will have added more hard drive space (dare to dream ...). And, for what its worth Rob, the members' favorites ratings were a really good way of catching what was good, really good, and mind-numbingly jaw-dropingly outstanding, so thanks for that added benefit!

[Raymond (Studio6Girls)]

I do have one solution for you though GeoLarson -- get a 1 terabyte drive haha. I noticed that saving the entire collection of FTV content (my own backup) is about 800GB right now.

Part of the reason I put up the 'members' favorite' (3-5 star rating) in the members' update area is to direct more attention to the best updates for 2008.

I have two 1-TB Harddrives. One for all my "normal" stuff and one for FTV and various other "Adult" or private content. Not only do I save the photos and video but I also save the models cover and a screenshot of the "comments" and "descriptions" So, far I've downloaded all of 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. I've also done various models from earlier that I liked and am working on eventually getting the whole site down. haha

[the Dutch mountains]

Hard drives are becoming cheaper and cheaper. I always try to keep everything, so I have about 5 TB in my computer.

What I also do however is edit the movies. So when I download like 1 hour of movies from an update, I cut away any material I don't find interesting, so sometimes that results in a movie of 30 minuten, sometimes in a movie of 5 minutes... This way I can save each update, but use less diskspace.

[Geezer]

Ha! Ha! The joke is on me. I recently bought a 200 GB external HD thinking it would be plenty big enough. Now, it's nearly full already!

I do have to ask myself...why save all of the photos and videos from FTV? And, now, Danielle's materal, as well. They are always on the site if I want to see them again! And, really, since it's for my own personal use, with no sharing, just how often do I look at any one model's update?

My only answer is for "historical purposes" for times when other forum members mention a particular girl and I want to revisit her material.

[grande351]

I doubt I'll ever be able to download all of the early FTV updates. I've only been a member for 6 or 7 months, and with all of the great new updates, plus Danielle's site, I just don't have the time. I'm sure there's some I'll try to get, though.

My desktop only has a 145GB hard drive, so I've been relying on usb drives for quite some time. A word of warning about these. I've had two drives fail on me in the last year. One had about 100GB of photos on it and the other took almost 250GB with it! :mad: Be careful! If there's anything that you really need to save, burn it onto a DVD. I just bought a burner for that purpose. The second external drive could be recovered, but the software costs around $200.

My next computer will have one of those new 2TB drives!!! Maybe with a Blu-ray burner and an HD monitor too.....ok, just dreaming there :D

[mart]

Hard drives are becoming cheaper and cheaper. I always try to keep everything, so I have about 5 TB in my computer.

What I also do however is edit the movies. So when I download like 1 hour of movies from an update, I cut away any material I don't find interesting, so sometimes that results in a movie of 30 minuten, sometimes in a movie of 5 minutes... This way I can save each update, but use less diskspace.

You cut up Rob's videos:eek: that's sacrilege lol.:D

I have three 500gb external drives and two of them are filled with Alisonangel, Lia19 and Ftvgirls. I never keep videos on the computer for long.:)

[Raymond]

I do have one solution for you though GeoLarson -- get a 1 terabyte drive haha. I noticed that saving the entire collection of FTV content (my own backup) is about 800GB right now.

Part of the reason I put up the 'members' favorite' (3-5 star rating) in the members' update area is to direct more attention to the best updates for 2008.

I currently use this hard drive since I back-up EVERYTHING. http://www.g-technology.com/products/g-raid.cfm

It's a slightly more expensive than other drives but it's well worth it. The quality is superior.

Since you figure the time and energy it take to download all the FTVContent and anything else you may have. I mean if I lost just my iTunes library, it'd cost me thousands of dollars and days to redo it.

[Raymond]

Hard drives are becoming cheaper and cheaper. I always try to keep everything, so I have about 5 TB in my computer.

What I also do however is edit the movies. So when I download like 1 hour of movies from an update, I cut away any material I don't find interesting, so sometimes that results in a movie of 30 minuten, sometimes in a movie of 5 minutes... This way I can save each update, but use less diskspace.

You edit the movies? Now that is commitment. And 5-TB? What do you do for a living? I have trouble filling my 2-TB

[Geezer]

I wonder what percentage of members actually download and save the photos and videos compared to those who merely stream them and forget them?

I download MOST of the models' photo sets before working my way through them and deleting shots I don't personally enjoy. Because of the time it takes to download videos, I wait until I see photos that give me a warm fuzzy that the videos will be super hot. Once I do download, and watch, a particular video, I change the file name to one that describes what it's about.

[Internetvidz]

I do have one solution for you though GeoLarson -- get a 1 terabyte drive haha. I noticed that saving the entire collection of FTV content (my own backup) is about 800GB right now.

Part of the reason I put up the 'members' favorite' (3-5 star rating) in the members' update area is to direct more attention to the best updates for 2008.


I have a 500gb external.....BUT I am considering a 1TB just for my FTV files.....and that is deleting updates I do not want....I am just leaving room for it to grow!

[WhyYou]

I have 2 - 1TB internal drives for my OS and programs and a 320 GB external drive for storage. I have the external drive about 1/2 full and more than half of that is just FTV videos and pictures. I will not save evey update, I really don't have the space for that.

[Dilbert49]

I've rarely downloaded full picture sets. I usually scan through them pretty quickly and save only the few that particularly interest me. My primary interest is video. I usually download all the videos for a particular update. Then, when I get the chance to watch them, I will keep the clips that are of the most interest to me. This allows me to conserve space. I currently have almost 1TB (total) storage available for all my files.

I have "edited" (basically spliced together) some of the older updates which consisted of more (and shorter) clips (Selena (2003), for example, which is still one of my favorites). I have done little editing of any kind otherwise.

[FTVGirls_Rob]

I still have a backup hard drive (of about 200gb) of my favorite collections from things I would download from sites back in 2002 and earlier. Bustyamateurs.com, busty.pl, alsscan classic, etc..

[Jeffrey99]

I wonder what percentage of members actually download and save the photos and videos compared to those who merely stream them and forget them?
Depending on site and number of photos in a set, I'll either browse through them on the site or download the zip and delete the ones I don't want to keep later.

As for video, mainly depends on the model. If I really like the model, I'll keep it all. Otherwise I'll just keep what interests me.

[grande351]

I still have a backup hard drive (of about 200gb) of my favorite collections from things I would download from sites back in 2002 and earlier. Bustyamateurs.com, busty.pl, alsscan classic, etc..

Sounds as if there's some stuff on there I'd really like! ;)

As for myself, I'm kind of a digital pack-rat. I save everything! I've got about 5 external HD's that I use. I really should get rid of some of it, though. I can't wait until I get my new computer. I'm going to get a 2TB internal drive.

[Raymond]

I'm going to get a 2TB internal drive.

That's good, but always get a RAID External Hard drive also. Image what would happen if that ONE 2TB drive failed. Disaster. :eek:

[69Joe69]

I keep all the Updates - I save them on my external Harddiscs ...

[Anoree]

That's good, but always get a RAID External Hard drive also. Image what would happen if that ONE 2TB drive failed. Disaster. :eek:

Right. You should always have the important data at least at two independent places.
I have the webcam transcriptions saved at my home network's central storage server. A couple of weeks ago, that server didn't want to start anymore, before I did another backup. ("I'll do that next weekend ...")
Boy, was I sweating. I thought I might have lost the transcripts. It turned out a rarely used harddrive in that server had died, blocking the POST test at boot. No big loss there.
I copied my storage area onto an external drive immediately after the server was up again. ("Phew!")

Back to the topic:
I save everything I get about Danielle. (No surprise there, right? ;))
Of FTVGirls I store some sets, but most of it I just watch online and leave it at that. I do hope that the updates keep on being available in years to come, as long as the site exists. (Rob, please give us a warning if you want to close it down sometime in the far future. ;))

[grande351]

That's good, but always get a RAID External Hard drive also. Image what would happen if that ONE 2TB drive failed. Disaster. :eek:

Good advice. Now I always back up my most important files. I've had two external drives fail on me already! I didn't back stuff up then but I've learned my lesson.

[Geezer]

I just save all of the photos and videos on a single One TB external hard drive. As for "backup," I figure FTV is good for that! I can always download the media again if my drive goes bad.

[mart]

Well i have all Lia19 and Alisonangel's videos and picture sets on a 550 gb external harddrive. I did have quite a lot of videos from FTV but unfortunately that harddrive got corrupted some how, i managed to save the drive but lost all contents. The only FTV girl i actually have left is Amy Reid who is on the one i have Lia and Alison's on.

[ChorniyVolk]

Don't know what this obsession with external drives is, I just finished transferring all the files from my externals to one of my internal drives, much better really, faster speed (well, that's assuming we're talking about SATA2 vs USB2), more convenient as it's inside the computer, and it's always connected, always one when the computer is so there's no hassle.

Not to mention that prices are better too.

[Raymond]

Post Deleted by Raymond

[Internetvidz]

I actually use an external for my only storage of these types of files. I do this for two primary reasons.

1) I only use a laptop and though I can have up to 1.2tb in hard drive space, I currently only have a 320gb.

2) I do not want my son or someone else using my laptop to "stumble" across my pervert....I mean "art" files ;)

[ChorniyVolk]

I think we're talking about using them as storage and emergency back-ups. At least that's what I use them for.

Internal harddrives do that just fine, actually better, as I said. And hell, if we're throwing in "emergency" in, it's probably easier, in the case of an emergency, to move your files over to a drive that's plugged in and internal, or access them from there.

But hey, that's just how I like it, maybe you guys like to carry yours around for whatever reason, or it's just more comforting to have your backup outside the actual computer.

Just figured I'd mention it.

Or I guess Internetvids brings up a decent enough point, though #1 doesn't directly state it, if you're on a laptop adding on more drives or swapping out for bigger drives isn't really a great idea, or sometimes isn't even possible, and I suppose if you have kids around and share computers then #2 applies.

But otherwise, no excuses.

[Anoree]

But otherwise, no excuses.

I disagree. Just a few points:


There are drives out there which can be connected via eSATA, giving the same performance as internal drives.
In case of a power surge or mainboard failure, an internal drive is at immediate risk of collateral damage.
External drives can easily put into a fireproof safe or some other place not vulnerable to theft, fire, water or whatever.

True, external drives are a bit more expensive. They may give a bit more safety, though, if handled right. (The drives built into the external boxes are usually normal, internal drives, too.)

But we're drifting away from the topic of the thread. We should slowly return to it. ;)

[Mel]

I guess this is a "no duh" but I keep the files with barefeet or flip flops, unless the girl is exceptional then I keep it all because... Really, don't we all horde our porn like nuts in the winter. Most of us will never look at that old stuff anyway. With Hayley in HD, how can I go back to my favorite girl and most blown out shoot, Melissa in 2002?:eek:

[ChorniyVolk]

I disagree. Just a few points:


There are drives out there which can be connected via eSATA, giving the same performance as internal drives.
In case of a power surge or mainboard failure, an internal drive is at immediate risk of collateral damage.
External drives can easily put into a fireproof safe or some other place not vulnerable to theft, fire, water or whatever.

True, external drives are a bit more expensive. They may give a bit more safety, though, if handled right. (The drives built into the external boxes are usually normal, internal drives, too.)

But we're drifting away from the topic of the thread. We should slowly return to it. ;)

Sure, but external drives have their own negative points. But yeah, not the point of the thread.

[TheDoctor]

Back to topic, please. The external Hard Drives can be discussed at large in the "Tech Talk" (http://danielleftv.com/forum/showthread.php?t=292) thread.