hi there ^_^

i am the creator of the anime rec. database (and the anime planet site), i thought i'd come make a few comments about the DB and address some feedback that was given..

first of all, thanks for all the comments! (even though none of you probably thought i'd read this.. found this thread in the counter!)

i did want to point out one major key note about the database: the votes that you see are entirely chosen by users, not by my database code. while the code does grab all the votes and orders them by # of votes, what you see that is outputted is all user inputted.

as a bit of background, this database is fairly new, only about 3-4 months. it has been beta tested and essentially *completely* filled to the point that it's at, by a user group of about 500 people in the hub that I dwell in (in Direct Connect). I didn't want to advertise the tool until it had a fairly solid base, which it is starting to get to (3,300 votes so far, though i know it doesnt appear to be so due to the high number of series with not a lot of votes). because of that, i am completely aware that many series might not come up with the results that you desire.. especially for rare or not as well known series as say, evangelion, cowboy bebop, etc.. which all have a good amount of votes for the top results (10-15 each).

i wanted to also address ammadeau's comments (and the comments in general that have been said about the DB not working well for rare series):

i completely understand the fatal flaw that some series are difficult to make recommendations for. obviously for series such as Eva, they will have obvious top choices (RahXephon, other mecha series, etc). i would venture to say that the only reason you got shows that are *only* of the same creator for UY, is because it happened to have series which were made by the same creator. i think if you were to look at some other rare choices, you would find a wide variety of recommendations, for a wide variety of reasons. helpful? maybe not if you are looking for something exactly the same, when it comes to the long run... although i personally have picked up a number of series because of the singleton recommendations that i might have missed if i had only looked at the top 5. (not sure if everyone saw this, but if you scroll to the bottom, you can click a link and see ALL recommendations, not just the greatest tallied 5).

in addition, there is a comments icon for each series outputted.. if you click that, you see why each user chose that series for their recommendation. i made this mandatory when voting, because just like you said, ammadeau, everyone has a different reason for recommending series, and i think that's great, personally. some people might recommend series because of similar plot, some for similar musical style if it is exceptional (the pair hack//sign <--> noir comes to mind), some for similar animation style... i tell people to be as creative as possible. also, the comments exist for accountability, so the comments can be screened and deleted if necessary, so everything is helpful. but the point is, *you* have the option of choosing which recommendations to take to heart, because right in front of you, you see the reasons why it was chosen! ^_^

regardless, i dont think it is a bad thing for this database to exist to try to have recommendations for rare series, just because it might be difficult.. nor do i see it to be poorly executed. once the userbase of recommenders becomes stronger/more in mass, there will no doubt be a greater variety of things to choose from for rare series recommendations... in the meantime, i think of it as a challenge, myself, to try to come up with those sorts of recommendations. they just arent as linear as other obvious, or popular series.

what the database does need is people like you, or anyone else in this thread, to make some to help out ^_^
didnt want DBZ to show up for naruto? go make a few recs for Naruto and try to have your series bumped up higher in the list (or, have it there in the list at all, so people can read your comment, and maybe be inspired to download what you picked). didnt see el hazard? recommend that too! if any of you want to make recommendations, please let me know. all you have to do is make an account in the forum (the code queries the forum DB), and then i activate the account to make recs. that might seem annoying, but its for quality control... i want people to be accountable for their comments, and i sure as hell dont want the comments ending up like animenfo caliber: completely useless. recommendations are extremely easy and painless to do.. the code is even set up to make opposite pair votes FOR you if you choose, so you make twice as many helpful recommendations for people to see, with no effort.

anyways, i think this was a long enough novel for right now feel free to say any other comments/constructive criticism you might have! id love for some of you to join in on the recommending.. like i said, its a fairly new tool, but i am positive it will get much larger in the near future!

(final note: if you decide you'd like to make some recommendations of your own, you might consider entering the contests that are starting next week... info is at the link i just made. its for making recommendations, but it works off a point system.. so even if you dont have the most votes, you still can win. i have real life prizes for grabs, including 2 witch hunter robin posters, english/japanese manga, and more <prize list is in the thread>)

thanks guys!

-sothis ^_^