A Closer Look On Syria talk:Community portal

Extracting frames from YouTube videos
I suppose you all know how to download videos from YouTube. Extracting individual frames may be more difficult. I use the ffmpeg program and command. It is important to specify the -sameq option to get the highest quality output. (Example command)

-- Petri Krohn 12:15, 20 September 2012 (EST)
 * ffmpeg -i Allahu\ Akbar.mp4 -r 30 -sameq Alep-street-bodies-%4d.jpg


 * To be honest, I don't do that. I just take screen grabs usually, and not even raw ones. I hope that works; I'm already hundreds of images into that technique. And as for downloading ... that has been a problem at times. I give props to the site IX converter, but most other conversion sites have been shut down, don't do Youtube videos, or are limited to audio only. It seems saving videos is frowned onAnd some videos even IX isn't allowed to convert (the host forbids it, conversion stops). There are programs, none it seems that are likely to work on my system. And casual converters will want a site anyway, if possible. So, Petri ... suppose I wasn't sure. What do you suggest to me or to others? (no rush) --Caustic Logic (talk) 00:56, 6 January 2013 (UTC)

Arabic names needed!
Please provide all names also in Arabic, when ever you see them. We cannot access Arabic sources if we do not know how to search for them. -- Petri Krohn 08:15, 7 October 2012 (EST)
 * Good point, and I've been trying to do just that. Maybe not 100% though. I hardly ever am. I'll aim for it though. --Caustic Logic (talk) 00:56, 6 January 2013 (UTC)

Graphic Imagery
We're in large part a visual-evidence based site, and that evidence sometime includes images of things many would rather not see. I don't blame them, but I've been bad about drawing the line in the past. For a starter, here is my list of things to watch out for. The more of these things are seen in combination, the more likely it is to be inappropriate for publishing here. And calculate on the side of restraint and taste - that's a lot of factors. Anyone who finds that a severe limitation, let me know and I might finally create an off-site solution for hosting original images of value we can provide optional links to here. Otherwise, I've just been describing the horrible stuff, which still makes the content unpalatable to most but hey, that's the evidence. --Caustic Logic (talk) 00:56, 6 January 2013 (UTC)

1 dead people

2 large amounts of blood

3 gross/deforming injuries

4 rotting flesh

3 naked private parts (usually not an issue after Youtube)

5 dead children

6 extreme morbid suffering by those still alive


 * Well, I think the most important question is "is it of value". Does the image add anything to the description. I think this is rarely the case in articles which have the headline "x massacre". It's kind of obvious that unpleasant imagery will be involved. And it's always linked, so people who want to dig deeper and check the research will have no problems finding it. While people who just want an overview will not be confronted with too gory stuff which can also be interpreted as appeal to emotion. In principle, I think we're kind of an adult site anyway and don't have to worry about specific "red lines" - if showing it is valuable. --CE (talk) 12:55, 7 January 2013 (UTC)


 * Just to make sure that there's no room left for misunderstanding: This is my opinion and you don't have to agree. I'm not the boss here and if you think an image is appropriate, it is appropriate. No need to outsource anything. --CE (talk) 20:44, 7 January 2013 (UTC)
 * Right on (busy today). Sometimes it is/was to upset people, like the other side does, sometimes with apologies for the total necessity of shocking people against the government. But facts are facts - I will keep the method I laid out, but loosen it up. A few images come to mind (like that guy in the chair on the edge of Aqrab). --Caustic Logic (talk) 00:04, 8 January 2013 (UTC)

Article Ideas
When CE first started this wiki in late June, I took off quickly with two investigations spawning two articles I got published at Syria News.cc in July (Syria: Houla Massacre Star Witness Reconsidered and The Troubling Story Behind one of those Dead Syrian Child Videos). That's an avenue that remains open, but I have never yet done an article #3. At this point, there's more of a team pattern developed, and I'd like to invite CE, Petri, and any lurking members waiting to do something, to collaborate on (or modify) my new idea for a four-part series of fairly short articles. The idea can be hashed over and even worked out best on its own page, say Houla Massacre Mysteries. That'll be filled in a bit shortly. --Caustic Logic 19:45, 12 October 2012 (EST)


 * No, especially this late, we need one good article on how the rebels took over Taldou right before the massacres. It can and should include supporting information in passing. I'll probably just work this out myself sometime, after the Who was in Control page is finished.
 * The page is pretty close, and I've been working on an article. Title or sub-title: The Digital Witnesses Have Their Say. Good twist on the two-witness-sets impasse. The tie-breakers that record just what they see only need translators to put them in proper space-time-context and compare with previous allegations. We know how that comes out, but it's time to summarize and share that. CE - how would you feel about producing a German-language version when it's done? The German scene could maybe stand being shaken up and revived. --Caustic Logic (talk) 10:27, 9 January 2013 (UTC)
 * And Petri - is Finnish worth it to you? A good platform handy? There's at least a few thousand people there, right? (kidding -mostly I didn't specify you because you've been more busy lately, plus whatever its size, Finland doesn't have the same kind of Houla Massacre scene to revive as Germany does) --Caustic Logic (talk) 10:32, 9 January 2013 (UTC)

The One Idea Followed Through On
The Houla Massacre and the Battle of Taldou (part 1)

Report Ideas
The CIWCL has put together (I have, with CIWCL research) two major PDF reports on Libyan war crimes. Syria desrves this even more. The readership of the past ones makes it hard to justify doing again, but man... the stories that could be told. One just on Houla? Or a more ambitious one that lays out Houla, follows the repeat patterns and changes through Qubeir, Tremseh, Daraya, then Aqrab and maybe Maan? The former with a compressed narrative of the latter attached? New platforms and audience targets and authors are all open at the outset, until some decisions are made to solidify things on one track, set for completion. --Caustic Logic (talk) 01:05, 6 January 2013 (UTC)