How to submit a Project to Mini-ITX.com
Posted on August 19, 2003

We've collected a large number of Mini-ITX Projects over the past year, each taking a unique shape and approach - Robots, Toasters, Cuddly Toys, Memorabilia, the list goes on. Anyone who submits a project is fully credited, and goes on to internet fame and fortune. Probably.

But there's plenty more things left for everyone to create and mutilate!

Here at Mini-ITX, we'll pretty much post anything - as long as it's Mini-ITX based, and it's written up nicely in English. In fact we have many projects waiting to go up right now, some in more completed states than others. Each one can take several hours to put together - though in the right format, they can take minutes. Our selection criteria is a combination of several factors...

How to get your project to the front of the queue:

1. Send something new. Have we got something like your project already? If we have, your version might need something spicy to make it interesting! We do try to post original projects. If your project is already posted elsewhere (personal pages excluded), we may not post it (though we may link to it from our news page if it is very interesting). Other sites are of course welcome to link to your project page on our site. If you are contacted by a magazine for inclusion (quite possible), please ask them to mention that this and other projects are online at www.mini-itx.com!

2. Take decent photos. Take a little time to setup some lights around your project, or use daylight. Beg, borrow or steal a decent digital camera. Try to take several shots of the completed project from its best side, to use on the front page. We prefer uncropped, unedited photos in landscape format - ideally straight from the camera and at least 800x600 pixels.

3. Document the construction process. Try to take photos of the entire construction process. If you already built your project, take the top off and show us how it was put together.

4. Write up your project. There is no "standard" format for a write-up, and we don't want to impose any creative restrictions by giving one. Take a look around the site for examples of what other people have done. Having said that, an introduction is always useful. And you should have at least a sentence of text describing or referring to each picture in the project. If you have extra pictures of note, we can always make a gallery at the end of your project. If you want to write lots of text - go ahead! Use a spell checker. Try to write in sentences. Be humourous. Other sections you could have: a parts list; a software list; diagrams of any clever circuitry; a conclusion. If you don't speak English (how are you reading this?) - ask somebody to translate your project. Take your time on the write-up - the less editing we need to do, the more likely your project will go up quickly.

5. Send your project to us in a friendly format. This should be a single directory containing the project images and an HTML/text file of the write-up, zipped up and attached to a nice email. Don't worry if the filesizes are large - we can shrink pictures down, but we can't blow up small ones. Number each picture consecutively as you want it them to appear in the project. Start at 01, e.g. pic01.jpg, pic02.jpg ... pic10.jpg - this helps us a lot! If you know HTML, create a single page (without any formatting) linking each picture in order, then add your text for each one, and include the remainder of the write-up. Alternatively, create a simple text file for your write-up, and put the filename of each image where you want it to appear. We will cut and paste from these into our templates, so the easier the better. Don't use MicroFudge Word!

6. Think of a nice name for your project. We have limited space on the right hand side, so if you have a long name, we'll make up a short version to put there. Anything you like, as long as it isn't rude...

7. Send your details. Put your email address in your write-up, along with the name of your project, your name, and where you come from. People will be able to contact you through our feedback form. Email-collecting robots won't - you can use your real email address if you like.

8. Send Money. (This is method is GUARANTEED...)

Send your final project to: feedback@mini-itx.com

Don't be disheartened if we don't reply immediately. Our mailbox gets full very quickly, we get distracted by shiny objects easily, and we can take several days to reply. Sometimes we forget completely! But if a project arrives perfectly meeting the criteria above, and we're not doing something else, we'll often start work on it right away...

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