Well well, a visitor. How brave...

A rough looking eyrie regards you coldly. "I suppose you want to know more about the beauty contest, too?" he asked, voice tinged with annoyance. You nod a little and he huffs.

I swear, my owner will pay for this. I'm a hunter, not a teacher." He turns from you and starts walking away. "Well don't just stand there! Come on."

He leads you further into the art gallery, his tail swishing agressively. "Well, the first thing you ought to know is that BCing is not as simple as it looks. Success is not going to happen overnight. It's also not something you're going to get rich off of, so if it's the np you want, it's best you just leave right now.

He eyes you for a moment, waiting to see what you do. When you stay put, he looks foreward again and nods. "Good, then we'll start with the rules.

Trying to decide which picture to vote for can be tough, too. A lot of it depends on personal preferance and opinion. In any case, here's a quick list of things you can think about while trying to decide.

• Pick a species and go through the thumbnails. Take note of any pictures that you like (you can open them up in a seperate window, or bookmark them).
  
  
• View the ones you liked in their full glory (full size). If it's not as great as you thought, then weed it out. Do this until you're left with the ones you still like.
  
  
• Pick out the ones that you suspect may be stolen. (Tips on how to tell which entries are stolen will be discussed later). Weed those out.
  
  
• If you still have multiple "likes", look at the contestants' pet pages. Consider weeding out the pets whose petpages are default.
  
  
• If there's still more than one left, it's up to you. Which do you like best? Which looks like it took more effort? Which is the most original? So on and so forth. Please keep in mind, copy and paste pics take absolutely no time to do.
  

You've probably had it happen before... You're browsing the Beauty Contest when you spot an entry that you know is stolen. It's frustrating to anyone who witnesses this, but cannot find the original to prove the theft, especially if the stolen image happens to place.

You must understand that even if you KNOW the entry is stolen, you cannot report it unless you have evidence: the original picture's URL. Otherwise, innocent players would be getting frozen left and right.

Even if you don't have time to sniff out all the original pieces though, you can still help keep stolen entries out of the winner's circle. How? By not voting for them.

Sometimes you wont know a picture is stolen, though. Oftentimes, thievs will take really old art gallery pictures, or fan art posted off site so that people are less likely to recognize them, and they'll be less likely to get caught. There is a way to spot these however. Follow these guidelines, and you'll soon have the ability to spot a fraud.

Keep in mind that these are just common characteristics of stolent artwork. If a piece falls under one or two of these, it may very well be an authentic entry. However, if it fits into three or more, you may want to reconsider voting for that entry. Follow your instincts. Use good judgement.

Here is a list of the most often asked questions about the BC.

Q: What does "BC" mean?
A: BC is the abbreviation for "Beauty Contest

Q: How do I enter the BC?
A: Get your picture ready, then go to the BC homepage. Click on the "Enter Contest" link and click on it. Scroll down to the pet you wish to enter, click the "browse" button beneath the pet you wish to enter and double click on the image file you want to use. Enter a speech, then click "Enter (your pet's name)".

Q: The contest judge keeps sending me rejection letters. What do I do?
A: This is a problem for many. Make sure your image looks like a neopet and not just a fantasy creature. Also check and make sure you don't have any copyright symbols on your picture. Make sure there are no religous or political symbols on your picture. Be sure that your picture doesn't conflict with any rules.

Q: How do I make a picture?
A: Well, if you have a scanner, you can draw the picture by hand and scan it onto the computer. Be sure to save it as a .jpg or .gif image! If you have no scanner, use some kind of art program on your computer (MS paint, Photoshop and opencanvas are some examples). Again, be sure to save it as a .jpg or .gif image!

Q: How do I resize my picture?
A: Well, you can stretch/skew it on paint...it may make the picture look bad, though. I use my scanner program, Canon Scancraft, as it allows me to resize the picture by a certain percent without ruining it.

Q: Is it still art theft if I change someone else's picture?
A: Yes! Even if you change someone else's image around, it is still considered art theft and you can still get frozen for it!

Q: Can I enter pets on a side account?
A: It used to be okay, but TNT announced in an editorial that you no longer can. A lot of us are upset by this because it seems ridiculous. Hopefully TNT will grow half a brain and realize it's pointless, and come up with a better solution, such as taking away the np/item prize instead. Let's face it, there are better ways of earning np then with the BC.

Q: Are vote trades legal?
A: No; trading votes is ILLEGAL, as in AGAINST THE RULES. It's no different then offering items in return for votes.

Q: What is a "CAP"?
A: CAP is the short term for "Copy and Paste"; it means the picture is something just copied off the site. Real artists hate them because they take very little time to do, even if they're changed. Not all caps are bad--but most of them are.

Q: When does the new contest start?
A: The contests take place weekly. New contests start anywhere from 4:15pm NST to 4:30pm NST on FRIDAYS.

I hope I have answered some of your questions about the BC. If you have more, neomail linksage and ask him. Maybe he can help you.