New Folder & File Name Structure for Image Releases &Torrent

[skibulk]

@Wurm

Customizing torrent zip settings complicates things. I realize that compressing the image files is useless, but it doesn't hurt anything, so why not leave it? Then again, apps these days can read files directly from zip, and may be faster uncompressed.

I think we should just leave the date blank - adding them extra labor.

About Crops

I've seen websites use crops as previews - since the cards themeselves are not readable at thumbnail size. They also save bandwidth. The HQ Card Generator can render cards with updated oracle text or classic frames using the crops.

We have different crop regions for at least:

Alpha+
Unlimited
Revised+
Fifth+
Eighth+
M15+

And some more:

Futureshifted (Regular & Full-Art)
Split (5ED, 8ED & M15)
Flip (8ED & M15)
Full-Art Land (8ED & M15)
Extended Art Promos
Planeswalkers (3 & 4 Abilites / 8ED & M15)
Tokens (5ED, 8ED, M15 / Text, No-Text)
Planes
Schemes
Vanguard
Various Oversized Cards

I have not compiled cropping dimensions for these. Determining the optimal region is actually a bit complicated. 300DPI crops were never made for old sets, so we have no precident there. Sometimes crop measurements for one set are 1 or 2 px off on other sets. So we end up cropping a few px off each side of the artwork, to accommodate various printing offsets. It's a matter of trial and error to find the best region. Try not to be too liberal with cutting pixels off the edges. You want to keep as much as possible. I would start a batch outside the artwork and gradually move the crop inwards. Test multiple sets. Ideally non-square artwork should be overlaid with some kind of black-out mask. The idea is to use a full-card transparent black-out overlay. Then have the script trim solid black pixels on all sides. In this way, users will be able to easily add custom masks for future sets.

[Huggybaby]

Crops are also used for cell phone apps, etc. MWS also can use them.

People often like old art but want the updated card text, and crops allow that.

[charlequin]

I gave the crops a shot, but I took a slightly different approach: rather than using all black, I used a PNG with a transparent area (to be displayed), a black area (to be masked), and a white area (to be cropped away.) That way we can avoid using relative measures for the actual crop and have the option to set the crop window differently:



vs.



This wouldn't be too hard to work into the set release process; if we made the crop actions independent of the full ones it wouldn't be too hard to run a default batch with the regular mask, then smaller batches for PWs, tokens, etc. where appropriate.

[skibulk]

@Charlequin I think the entire artwork should be included - as in my example above. Your examples are cut off?

I think the idea is to move the burden cropping (along with resizing) to a script, so that we don't have to worry about making them, and so they don't have to be included in the torrent.

As I was just telling Kudit:
I believe a simple spreadsheet would be user-friendly and future proof (anybody could update it). Columns could include image path (with wildcards as the default) and mask names. Then each set release would only require a handfull of entries to update.

For Example:
/8ED/*, 8ED.png
/M15/Ajani Steadfast.jpg, M15-Planeswalker-3.png
/*/*, M15.png

[kudit]

Having a spreadsheet would be nice, but as you saw in my PM, sometimes there is no simple way of categorizing what mask to use which is why I suggest using the whole database instead of a spreadsheet so manual overrides are done once in a centralized place that can be reused should we still be tasked with generating crops.

Since the crops for the HQ Card generator and such require individual customization, perhaps that is best left as a task for that project instead of the people scanning and putting up high res scans. The projects that need them will likely be better served by having a consistent high res torrent released sooner without the crops than making everyone wait for crops to be tweaked when the majority of apps do not need or use the crops.

[charlequin]

@Charlequin I think the entire artwork should be included - as in my example above. Your examples are cut off?

Yeah I was just trying the concept out, I didn't take the time to make an accurate mask yet.

That said, it's not actually possible to get the full artwork of M15 format tokens into a crop box for the standard aspect ratio unless you add a ton of blank space, a la:



Even the smaller-art tokens (those with a text box) are much taller than the standard crop format, and the vanilla tokens are much, much taller. If we were starting the project now I'd say to crop them to different actual sizes but I'm not sure whether token images in a different size will be useful.

Since the crops for the HQ Card generator and such require individual customization, perhaps that is best left as a task for that project instead of the people scanning and putting up high res scans. The projects that need them will likely be better served by having a consistent high res torrent released sooner without the crops than making everyone wait for crops to be tweaked when the majority of apps do not need or use the crops.

Yeah, it is much easier to get together a torrent when we just have to worry about a single size. While, again, I expect to continue releasing all new content on MEGA in every format we've supported until now, I think we'd be much more likely to have a comprehensive source available for people if we focus that effort purely on XLHQ-quality fulls and put a little elbow grease into giving people the tools to rename, resize, and crop them for their own purposes.

[MTGCardslist]

Here is my structure

If it can give you any ideas

You might dislike the Token, Foil, Extra as it holds the exact same structure (if any cards) as the adjacent folder for the simple reason that i don't want sub-folders in the sets folder. It impairs the search when your looking a specific cards in a bloc by windows search. But it also hold the same structure for the reason that one person that might want them in there, can simply move & merge with windows 7+

But since your keeping all versions of a card, 200, 300, 600, crop ...well you might like them merged

I also don't count as a foil a card that cannot be non-foil

You might want to copy past it in notepad as it looks much better...

+---Compilations Sets
| +---Basic Sets
| | +---1993 12 - Collectors' Edition
| | +---1993 12 - Collectors' Edition International
| | +---1995 07 - Chronicles
| | +---1996 11 - Multiverse Gift Box
| | +---1998 11 - Anthologies
| | +---1999 11 - Battle Royale Box Set
| | +---2000 12 - Beatdown Box Set
| | +---2001 12 - Deckmaster
| | +---2003 03 - Eighth Edition Box Set
| | +---2005 07 - Ninth Edition Box Set
| | +---2006 09 - Timeshifted
| | +---2010 06 - Duels Of The Planeswalkers
| | +---2013 06 - Modern Masters
| | \---2015 05 - Modern Masters 2015
| +---Duel Decks
| | +---2007 11 - Elves vs Goblins
| | +---2008 11 - Jace vs Chandra
| | +---2009 04 - Divine vs Demonic
| | +---2009 10 - Garruk vs Liliana
| | +---2010 03 - Phyrexia vs The Coalition
| | +---2010 09 - Elspeth vs Tezzeret
| | +---2011 04 - Knights vs Dragons
| | +---2011 09 - Ajani vs Nicol Bolas
| | +---2012 03 - Venser vs Koth
| | +---2012 09 - Izzet vs Golgari
| | +---2013 03 - Sorin vs Tibalt
| | +---2013 09 - Heroes vs Monsters
| | +---2014 03 - Jace vs Vraska
| | +---2014 09 - Speed vs Cunning
| | +---2014 12 - Duel Decks Anthology
| | | +---2007 11 - Elves vs Goblins
| | | +---2008 11 - Jace vs Chandra
| | | +---2009 04 - Divine vs Demonic
| | | \---2009 10 - Garruk vs Liliana
| | +---2015 02 - Elspeth vs Kiora
| | \---2015 09 - Zendikar vs Eldrazi
| +---Event Decks
| | \---2014 05 - Modern Event Deck
| +---From The Vault
| | +---2008 08 - Dragons
| | +---2009 08 - Exiled
| | +---2010 08 - Relics
| | +---2011 08 - Legends
| | +---2012 08 - Realms
| | +---2013 08 - Twenty
| | +---2014 08 - Annihilation
| | \---2015 08 - From the Vault Angels
| +---Introductory Sets
| | +---Others
| | | \---1996 10 - Introductory Two-Player Set
| | +---Portal
| | | +---1997 06 - Portal
| | | +---1998 06 - Portal Second Age
| | | \---1999 05 - Portal Three Kingdoms
| | \---Starter
| | +---1999 07 - Starter 1999
| | \---2000 07 - Starter 2000
| +---Premium Deck Series
| | +---2009 11 - Slivers
| | +---2010 11 - Fire And Lightning
| | \---2011 11 - Graveborn
| \---Theme Decks
| \---2006 07 - Coldsnap
+---Core Sets
| +---1993 08 - Alpha
| +---1993 10 - Beta
| +---1993 12 - Unlimited
| +---1994 04 - Revised
| +---1995 04 - Fourth Edition
| +---1997 03 - Fifth Edition
| +---1999 04 - Sixth Edition
| +---2001 04 - Seventh Edition
| +---2003 07 - Eighth Edition
| +---2005 07 - Ninth Edition
| +---2007 07 - Tenth Edition
| +---2009 07 - Magic 2010
| +---2010 07 - Magic 2011
| +---2011 07 - Magic 2012
| +---2012 07 - Magic 2013
| +---2013 07 - Magic 2014
| +---2014 07 - Magic 2015
| \---2015 07 - Magic Origins
| \---Sample Deck & Deck Builder's Toolkit
+---Expansion Sets
| +---01 - Basic Block
| | +---1993 12 - Arabian Nights
| | +---1994 03 - Antiquities
| | +---1994 06 - Legends
| | +---1994 08 - The Dark
| | +---1994 11 - Fallen Empire
| | \---1995 10 - Homeland
| +---02 - Ice Age Block
| | +---1995 06 - Ice Age
| | +---1996 06 - Alliances
| | \---2006 07 - Coldsnap
| +---03 - Mirage Block
| | +---1996 10 - Mirage
| | +---1997 02 - Visions
| | \---1997 06 - Weatherlight
| +---04 - Tempest Block
| | +---1997 10 - Tempest
| | +---1998 03 - Stronghold
| | \---1998 06 - Exodus
| +---05 - Urza Block
| | +---1998 10 - Urza's Saga
| | +---1999 02 - Urza's Legacy
| | \---1999 06 - Urza's Destiny
| +---06 - Masquerade Block
| | +---1999 10 - Mercadian Masques
| | +---2000 02 - Nemesis
| | \---2000 06 - Prophecy
| +---07 - Invasion Block
| | +---2000 10 - Invasion
| | +---2001 02 - Planeshift
| | \---2001 06 - Apocalypse
| +---08 - Odyssey Block
| | +---2001 10 - Odyssey
| | +---2002 02 - Torment
| | \---2002 05 - Judgment
| +---09 - Onslaught Block
| | +---2002 10 - Onslaught
| | +---2003 02 - Legions
| | \---2003 05 - Scourge
| +---10 - Mirrodin Block
| | +---2003 10 - Mirrodin
| | +---2004 02 - Darksteel
| | \---2004 06 - Fifth Dawn
| +---11 - Kamigawa Block
| | +---2004 10 - Champions Of Kamigawa
| | +---2005 02 - Betrayers Of Kamigawa
| | \---2005 06 - Saviors Of Kamigawa
| +---12 - Ravnica Block
| | +---2005 10 - Ravnica (City Of Guilds)
| | +---2006 02 - Guildpact
| | \---2006 05 - Dissension
| +---13 - Time Spiral Block
| | +---2006 10 - Time Spiral
| | +---2007 02 - Planar Chaos
| | \---2007 05 - Future Sight
| +---14 - Lorwyn Block
| | +---2007 10 - Lorwyn
| | \---2008 02 - Morningtide
| +---15 - Shadowmoor Block
| | +---2008 05 - Shadowmoor
| | \---2008 07 - Eventide
| +---16 - Shards Of Alara Block
| | +---2008 10 - Shard Of Alara
| | +---2009 02 - Conflux
| | \---2009 04 - Alara Reborn
| +---17 - Zendikar Block
| | +---2009 10 - Zendikar
| | +---2010 02 - Worldwake
| | \---2010 04 - Rise Of The Eldrazi
| +---18 - Scars Of Mirrodin Block
| | +---2010 10 - Scars Of Mirrodin
| | +---2011 02 - Mirrodin Besieged
| | \---2011 05 - New Phyrexia
| +---19 - Innistrad Block
| | +---2011 09 - Innistrad
| | | \---Double-Faced
| | +---2012 02 - Dark Ascension
| | | \---Double-Faced
| | \---2012 05 - Avacyn Restored
| +---20 - Return To Ravnica Block
| | +---2012 10 - Return To Ravnica
| | +---2013 01 - Gatecrash
| | \---2013 05 - Dragon's Maze
| +---21 - Theros Block
| | +---2013 09 - Theros
| | +---2014 02 - Born Of The Gods
| | \---2014 04 - Journey Into Nyx
| \---22 - Khans Of Tarkir
| +---2014 09 - Khans Of Tarkir
| +---2015 01 - Fate Reforged
| \---2015 03 - Dragons Of Tarkir
+---Non-Legal Sets
| +---Online Exclusive Sets
| | \---Masters Editions
| | +---2007 09 - MTGO Masters Edition
| | +---2008 09 - MTGO Masters Edition II
| | +---2009 09 - MTGO Masters Edition III
| | +---2011 01 - MTGO Masters Edition IV
| | \---2014 06 - Vintage Masters
| \---Un-Sets
| +---1998 08 - Unglued
| +---2004 11 - Unhinged
| \---2004 11 - Unhinged Alternate Foils
+---Special Events Cards
| +---Alternate Art Lands
| | \---Basic
| +---Arena league
| | +---Basic
| | +---Extra
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token
| +---Book Inserts
| | \---Basic
| +---Box Topper Cards
| | \---Basic
| +---Celebration Cards
| | \---Basic
| +---Championship Winner
| | \---Basic
| +---Champs Events
| | +---Basic
| | \---Foil
| +---Comic Inserts
| | \---Basic
| +---Convention Promos
| | +---Basic
| | +---Extra
| | \---Foil
| +---Friday Night Magic
| | +---Basic
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token
| +---Full Box Promotion
| | +---Basic
| | \---Foil
| +---Gateway
| | +---Foil
| | \---Variant
| +---Grand Prix
| | \---Foil
| +---Happy Holidays
| | \---Foil
| +---Holiday Gift Box
| | \---Foil
| +---Judge Gift Cards
| | +---Extra
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token
| +---Junior Series
| | \---Foil
| +---Launch
| | \---Foil
| +---Legend Membership
| | \---Basic
| +---Magazine Inserts
| | +---Basic
| | \---Foil
| +---Magic Game Day
| | +---Basic
| | +---Foil
| | \---Variant
| +---Magic Player Rewards
| | +---Basic
| | +---Extra
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token
| +---Others
| | \---Basic
| +---Prerelease Events
| | +---Basic
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token
| +---Pro Tour
| | \---Basic
| +---Release Events
| | +---Basic
| | +---Foil
| | \---Token Foil
| +---Store
| | \---Walmart
| | \---Foil
| +---Summer of Magic
| | \---Foil
| +---Two-Headed Giant Tournament
| | \---Foil
| +---Video Game
| | +---Basic
| | +---Extra
| | \---Foil
| \---World Championship
| +---Basic
| \---Foil
+---Token, Foil, Extra
| +---Compilations Sets
| | +---Basic Sets
| | | +---2000 12 - Beatdown Box Set
| | | | \---Foil
| | | +---2001 12 - Deckmaster
| | | | \---Foil
| | | +---2013 06 - Modern Masters
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2015 05 - Modern Masters 2015
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---Duel Decks
| | | +---2007 11 - Elves vs Goblins
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2008 11 - Jace vs Chandra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2009 04 - Divine vs Demonic
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2009 10 - Garruk vs Liliana
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2010 03 - Phyrexia vs The Coalition
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2010 09 - Elspeth vs Tezzeret
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2011 04 - Knights vs Dragons
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2011 09 - Ajani vs Nicol Bolas
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2012 03 - Venser vs Koth
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2012 09 - Izzet vs Golgari
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2013 03 - Sorin vs Tibalt
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2013 09 - Heroes vs Monsters
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2014 03 - Jace vs Vraska
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2014 09 - Speed vs Cunning
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2014 12 - Duel Decks Anthology
| | | | +---2007 11 - Elves vs Goblins
| | | | | \---Token
| | | | +---2008 11 - Jace vs Chandra
| | | | | \---Token
| | | | +---2009 04 - Divine vs Demonic
| | | | | \---Token
| | | | \---2009 10 - Garruk vs Liliana
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2015 02 - Elspeth vs Kiora
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2015 09 - Zendikar vs Eldrazi
| | | \---Token
| | +---Event Decks
| | | \---2014 05 - Modern Event Deck
| | | \---Token
| | \---Introductory Sets
| | +---Others
| | | \---1996 10 - Introductory Two-Player Set
| | | \---Extra
| | +---Portal
| | | +---1997 06 - Portal
| | | | +---Demo
| | | | \---Extra
| | | \---1998 06 - Portal Second Age
| | | \---Extra
| | \---Starter
| | \---1999 07 - Starter 1999
| | \---Extra
| +---Core Sets
| | +---2007 07 - Tenth Edition
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2009 07 - Magic 2010
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2010 07 - Magic 2011
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2011 07 - Magic 2012
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2012 07 - Magic 2013
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2013 07 - Magic 2014
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---2014 07 - Magic 2015
| | | +---Clash Pack (Fate and Fury)
| | | +---Extra
| | | +---Promo
| | | \---Token
| | \---2015 07 - Magic Origins
| | +---Clash Pack (Armed and Dangerous)
| | +---Extra
| | \---Token
| +---Expansion Sets
| | +---07 - Invasion Block
| | | \---2001 02 - Planeshift
| | | \---Foil
| | +---14 - Lorwyn Block
| | | +---2007 10 - Lorwyn
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2008 02 - Morningtide
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---15 - Shadowmoor Block
| | | +---2008 05 - Shadowmoor
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2008 07 - Eventide
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---16 - Shards Of Alara Block
| | | +---2008 10 - Shard Of Alara
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2009 02 - Conflux
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2009 04 - Alara Reborn
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---17 - Zendikar Block
| | | +---2009 10 - Zendikar
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2010 02 - Worldwake
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2010 04 - Rise Of The Eldrazi
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---18 - Scars Of Mirrodin Block
| | | +---2010 10 - Scars Of Mirrodin
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2011 02 - Mirrodin Besieged
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2011 05 - New Phyrexia
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---19 - Innistrad Block
| | | +---2011 09 - Innistrad
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2012 02 - Dark Ascension
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2012 05 - Avacyn Restored
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---20 - Return To Ravnica Block
| | | +---2012 10 - Return To Ravnica
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2013 01 - Gatecrash
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2013 05 - Dragon's Maze
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---21 - Theros Block
| | | +---2013 09 - Theros
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2014 02 - Born Of The Gods
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | \---Token
| | | \---2014 04 - Journey Into Nyx
| | | +---Extra
| | | \---Token
| | +---22 - Khans Of Tarkir
| | | +---2014 09 - Khans Of Tarkir
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | +---Promo
| | | | \---Token
| | | +---2015 01 - Fate Reforged
| | | | +---Clash Pack (Power and Profit)
| | | | +---Extra
| | | | +---Promo
| | | | +---Token
| | | | \---Ugin's Fate
| | | \---2015 03 - Dragons Of Tarkir
| | | +---Extra
| | | +---Promo
| | | \---Token
| | \---23 - Battle For Zendikar
| | \---2015 10 - Battle For Zendikar
| | +---Extra
| | \---Token
| +---Non-Legal Sets
| | \---Un-Sets
| | +---1998 08 - Unglued
| | | \---Token
| | \---2004 11 - Unhinged
| | \---Foil
| \---Variant Sets
| \---Commander
| +---2011 06 - Commander
| | \---Foil
| +---2012 11 - Commander's Arsenal
| | \---Extra
| +---2013 11 - Commander 2013 Edition
| | \---Foil
| +---2014 06 - Conspiracy
| | +---Extra
| | \---Token
| \---2014 11 - Commander 2014
| \---Token
\---Variant Sets
+---Archenemy
| \---2010 06 - Archenemy
| +---Main Deck
| \---Scheme Deck
+---Challenge Deck
| +---2013 09 - Face the Hydra
| +---2014 02 - Battle the Horde
| +---2014 05 - Defeat a God
| +---Prerelease Events
| \---Release Events
+---Commander
| +---2011 06 - Commander
| +---2012 11 - Commander's Arsenal
| | +---Main Deck
| | \---Scheme Deck
| +---2013 11 - Commander 2013 Edition
| +---2014 06 - Conspiracy
| | +---Main Deck
| | \---Scheme Deck
| \---2014 11 - Commander 2014
+---Planechase
| +---2009 11 - Planechase
| | +---Main Deck
| | \---Planar Deck
| \---2012 06 - Planechase 2012 Edition
| +---Main Deck
| \---Planar Deck
\---Vanguard
+---1997-99 - Basic
+---2005 - Vanguard MTGO 1
+---2008 - Vanguard MTGO 2
+---2014 - Vanguard MTGO 3
+---Prerelease Events
\---Release Events

[kudit]

Yeah, it is much easier to get together a torrent when we just have to worry about a single size. While, again, I expect to continue releasing all new content on MEGA in every format we've supported until now, I think we'd be much more likely to have a comprehensive source available for people if we focus that effort purely on XLHQ-quality full and put a little elbow grease into giving people the tools to rename, resize, and crop them for their own purposes.

Yeah, so can we agree that the "Source" torrent will just have the largest quality full cards and people can create additional torrents for crops/artwork crops as needed?

I just figure it makes sense to be consistent with the extras. Having the tokens in the main folder and the tips/ads in another feels weird to me.

I agree that it makes sense for the extras and tokens to be separate. My structure proposal is below. It's not as browsable as MTGCardlist's suggestion, however, it will be easier for scripts to process automatically and the people managing the torrent don’t have to come up with where to put things or how to categorize things. A script could be written to create MTGCardlist's structure from my structure, but it would be more difficult to go the reverse direction as there is lots of categorization and branching.

My goal is to make it easy for people scanning and uploading to publish new cards in a consistent and deterministic manner that can easily be processed by scripts to minimize the need for manual fixing/categorization/and processing which should allow sets to be published faster and let developers spend more time on their apps instead of on processing image data.

Cards would be named according to the oracle name (there are some cards with typos in the printed name) with the extension “.jpg”. Extended latin characters (accented characters) should be replaced with the simplified version and Æ replaced with AE. Ideally Split cards would be named as in gatherer, but since / is usually a special character, split card and flip card names should be separated with two hyphens separated by a space (- -) as this character combination never appears in a card name (unlike a single hyphen or an underscore). (I thought about simply using two hyphens, but my system likes to replace two hyphens with an emdash at this combination is even less likely to be used in a card name.) Cards with identical names (basic lands or tokens with multiple versions) should be numbered in order of card number or multiverseid if there is no card number (MTGCards.info has some card numbers, but they aren’t official nor consistent and gatherer is an official source). Emblems and circles of protection which contain a colon (which is also a special character) should have “: “ (colon-space) replaced with “ - “ (space-hyphen-space).

Each set would be a folder with the normal cards and the following sub-folders of cards where appropriate:
_Marketing (for tip cards and ad cards. I also have a plan for naming these so that any tip card can be uniquely identified and named and categorized so that the card names are deterministic and not arbitrarily numbered.)
_Prerelease (since often named the same as the normal cards and new sets have lots of these cards)
_Promos (for the usual buy-a-box, gift box, launch, game day, and intro pack cards)
_Tokens (and emblems and checklist cards)
_Special (for things like challenge deck/heroes path cards/etc)

Having the underscore prefix should keep these at the top when sorted alphabetically and having a consistent name will make it easy for scripts to navigate.

All images are the full card including the complete border in the largest size quality available. I would also suggest adding an image optimization step to keep file size down without adding compression artifacts to the images. I use the free open source imageOptim for Mac to process images which works well.

All the set folders would be named using its shortcode in a single base folder. Again, this may be harder to browse, but will be much easier for scripts to process and automatically import new sets when available and doesn’t require any fuzzy categorization of things so will work for all future sets. A new set is simply a new folder added to the torrent and all the special cards are included so they don’t have to be spread out over multiple folders.

For set shortcodes, I would suggest using either the codes used by Wizards in Gatherer for set symbols (eg: http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Im ... e&rarity=R) or the set codes listed in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_M ... ering_sets or of course you could use the codes I developed for my database at http://deckmaster.info (which match up with the gatherer codes where available). The codes used in my database are below.

Appendix A: Set Shortcodes by release date
1E: Alpha Edition
2E: Beta Edition
2U: Unlimited Edition
AN: Arabian Nights
PRM: Promotional
AQ: Antiquities
3E: Revised Edition
LE: Legends
DK: The Dark
FE: Fallen Empires
4E: Fourth Edition
IA: Ice Age
CH: Chronicles
HM: Homelands
AL: Alliances
MI: Mirage
I2P: Introductory Two-Player Set
VAN: Vanguard
VI: Visions
5E: Fifth Edition
AST: Astral
PO: Portal
WL: Weatherlight
TE: Tempest
IDW: IDW Promo
ST: Stronghold
P2: Portal Second Age
EX: Exodus
UG: Unglued
UZ: Urza's Saga
ATH: Anthologies
GU: Urza's Legacy
6E: Classic Sixth Edition
PK: Portal Three Kingdoms
CG: Urza's Destiny
P3: Starter 1999
MM: Mercadian Masques
BR: Battle Royale Box Set
NE: Nemesis
PR: Prophecy
P4: Starter 2000
IN: Invasion
BD: Beatdown Box Set
MPR: Magic Player Rewards
PS: Planeshift
GURU: Guru Lands
7E: 7th Edition
AP: Apocalypse
OD: Odyssey
DKM: Deckmasters: Garfield vs. Finkel
TOR: Torment
JUD: Judgment
ONS: Onslaught
LGN: Legions
SCG: Scourge
8ED: 8th Edition
MRD: Mirrodin
DST: Darksteel
5DN: Fifth Dawn
CHK: Champions of Kamigawa
UNH: Unhinged
BOK: Betrayers of Kamigawa
SOK: Saviors of Kamigawa
9ED: 9th Edition
RAV: Ravnica
DCI: DCI Promo
GPT: Guildpact
DIS: Dissension
GPP: Grand Prix Promos
CSP: Coldsnap
TSP: Time Spiral
TSB: Timeshifted
PLC: Planar Chaos
FUT: Future Sight
10E: 10th Edition
MED: Masters Edition
LRW: Lorwyn
EVG: Duel Decks: Elves vs. Goblins
MOR: Morningtide
SHM: Shadowmoor
EVE: Eventide
DRB: From the Vault: Dragons
ME2: Masters Edition II
ALA: Shards of Alara
DD2: Duel Decks: Jace vs. Chandra
CON: Conflux
DDC: Duel Decks: Divine vs. Demonic
ARB: Alara Reborn
M10: Magic 2010
V09: From the Vault: Exiled
HOP: Planechase
ME3: Masters Edition III
ZEN: Zendikar
DDD: Duel Decks: Garruk vs. Liliana
H09: Premium Deck Series: Slivers
WWK: Worldwake
DDE: Duel Decks: Phyrexia vs. the Coalition
ROE: Rise of the Eldrazi
PPR: Promo set for Gatherer
ARC: Archenemy
M11: Magic 2011
V10: From the Vault: Relics
DDF: Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret
SOM: Scars of Mirrodin
PD2: Premium Deck Series: Fire and Lightning
ME4: Masters Edition IV
MBS: Mirrodin Besieged
DDG: Duel Decks: Knights vs Dragons
NPH: New Phyrexia
CMD: Commander
M12: Magic 2012
V11: From the Vault: Legends
DDH: Duel Decks: Ajani vs. Nicol Bolas
ISD: Innistrad
PD3: Premium Deck Series: Graveborn
DKA: Dark Ascension
DDI: Duel Decks: Venser vs. Koth
AVR: Avacyn Restored
PC2: Planechase 2012
M13: Magic 2013
V12: From the Vault: Realms
DDJ: Duel Decks: Izzet vs. Golgari
RTR: Return to Ravnica
CM1: Commander's Arsenal
GTC: Gatecrash
DDK: Duel Decks: Sorin vs. Tibalt
DGM: Dragon's Maze
MMA: Modern Masters
M14: Magic 2014
V13: From the Vault: Twenty
DDL: Duel Decks: Heroes vs. Monsters
THS: Theros
C13: Commander 2013
BNG: Born of the Gods
DDM: Duel Decks: Jace vs. Vraska
JOU: Journey into Nyx
MPT: Magic ProTour
MD1: Modern Event Deck 2014
CNS: Conspiracy
VMA: Vintage Masters
FNM: Friday Night Magic Promos
D15: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2015
PRE: Prerelease Cards
M15: Magic 2015
CP1: Magic 2015 Clash Pack
V14: From the Vault: Annihilation
DDN: Duel Decks: Speed vs. Cunning
KTK: Khans of Tarkir
C14: Commander 2014
DD3_EVG: Duel Decks Anthology: Elves vs. Goblins
DD3_JVC: Duel Decks Anthology: Jace vs. Chandra
DD3_DVD: Duel Decks Anthology: Divine vs. Demonic
DD3_GVL: Duel Decks Anthology: Garruk vs. Liliana
J15: Judge Promos 2015
UFP: Ugin's Fate Promos
FRF: Fate Reforged
CP2: Fate Reforged Clash Pack
DDO: Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Kiora
DTK: Dragons of Tarkir
TPR: Tempest Remastered
MM2: Modern Masters (2015 Edition)
ORI: Magic Origins
CP3: Magic Origins Clash Pack
V15: From the Vault: Angels
DDP: Duel Decks: Zendikar vs. Eldrazi
BFZ: Battle for Zendikar
EXP: Zendikar Expeditions

[charlequin]

While we're currently grouping set-related promos together for convenience for our MEGA releases, I would want to keep them separate in a torrent for one reason: we rarely (if ever) have a complete set in time to release the main set with extras, which would mean a lot of torrent churn when they're released. I would rather have each set be added once and not need to be changed in the torrent. I started a discussion in the promos thread but in general I think it makes sense to handle the promo distribution differently than the main sets.

[kudit]

Could you not just add the promos folders when they're ready? What do you mean by "torrent churn"? Perhaps there's a better way of addressing the problem. Perhaps have additional folders in the root for the shortcode + "_Prerelease", etc as they're ready?

[skibulk]

I think this is getting out of hand. We need to get back to basics. All the sets just zipped with the official 3-letter set code in a single folder. Then we need a script to unzip and orgainze the files according to all these proposed structures. Just XLHQ images. Variant sizes and crops can be distributed via MEGA.

How often are we going to be updating the torrent? We don't need to do it every set. Once a year is fine.

We could use placeholders for missing promos.

[charlequin]

I think this is getting out of hand. We need to get back to basics. All the sets just zipped with the official 3-letter set code in a single folder. Then we need a script to unzip and orgainze the files according to all these proposed structures. Just XLHQ images. Variant sizes and crops can be distributed via MEGA.

This is all I wanted to do in the first place.

To me still the thing that's an open question is handling of promos:

• Do promos go in the torrent at all, or do we distribute them in some other way?
• Does each "type" of promo get its own zip, or is there one big "promos" zip? (I have no opinion on this one)
• Do we include promos with sets, or keep all promos separate? (I would lean to the latter)
• What do we use for our codes? (I like the "pXYZ" format but I'd be happy with anything as long as I have a specific list to work from.)

[kudit]

The reason I have a _Prerelease folder and a _Promos folder is because the newer sets have promos of all the rates and that might conflict with an intro pack promo or a launch promo with the same name. I think it makes sense to include in the set folder as they'll likely be released with the set and trying to manage a folder with multiple promos from unknown sources could be messy (plus things like the conflicts mentioned above). I would prefer not using pFRF as the set code for the conflict reason above plus that would essentially double the number of folders in the root which also seems bad. I'm happy to publish and maintain a page for shortcodes to help with consistency.

[Wurm]

I think this is getting out of hand. We need to get back to basics. All the sets just zipped with the official 3-letter set code in a single folder. Then we need a script to unzip and orgainze the files according to all these proposed structures. Just XLHQ images. Variant sizes and crops can be distributed via MEGA.

This is all I wanted to do in the first place.

To me still the thing that's an open question is handling of promos:

• Do promos go in the torrent at all, or do we distribute them in some other way?
• Does each "type" of promo get its own zip, or is there one big "promos" zip? (I have no opinion on this one)
• Do we include promos with sets, or keep all promos separate? (I would lean to the latter)
• What do we use for our codes? (I like the "pXYZ" format but I'd be happy with anything as long as I have a specific list to work from.)

• If promos make a substantial number I wouldn't mind them in the same torrent (or a separate one). If not a zip with all of them in Mega/Mediafire would be good enough. I still didn't delve into promos, how many do you have?
• I think a zip for each type or folders inside one zip would be better.
• Separate.
• I like the "pXYZ" format. Looks good enough for me.

Btw, how complete would be the promos archive? Are many still missing? Is the following Missing Promos list the only ones still to be scanned in XLHQ?

Thinking about it, I'd very much like a promos torrent. Would you consider making one?


Respect to the torrent, I'm thinking in updating it every time a block is released. More specifically, when the 2nd set of each block is scanned and processed. So twice a year. What do you think?

[MTGCardslist]

Was merely suggesting since I saw it was a post to maybe build a new structure

Nothing to worry about...it may be too much of work to script it... and keep updating mutiple folder structure...

On my end I update manualy my files according to my structure

One thing I might want to point out is that is is something difficult to figure out all the new pics on that downloads site...since you have to open all the folders to see which ones are the most recent sub folders