FAQ

GENERAL

• What is Sparkshot?

  Good question. Sparkshot is an art hosting platform that requires users to reveal the art by purchasing pixels in groups of one or more. Each purchase reveals those pixels and more of the underlying art.

  Once all pixels have been purchased the art is fully revealled and we unlock the ability for the art to be downloaded and made free to go and live a life of its own. The art's page will remain on Sparkshot with the comments and metadata provided by the patrons.

• Why don't I just launch my art to a site that doesn't hide the pixels?

  That's certinaly been the traditional way, however what Sparkshot allows artists to do is monetize the reveal of the art before it's able to be copied across the internet.

  This enables artists to get paid for their work by slowing down the launch but doesn't prevent images from going viral and gaining a rich audience once released.

ARTIST

• Is there are particular type of art you prefer?

  Not really. We are interested in maximizing the creative freedom of the artists. Since this platform is good at allowing viewers look at the art up-close to the pixels, large sections of the image with uniform-colored pixels are perhaps less interesting, however for some types of art, this style might be perfectly appropriate.

• What kind of art can be submitted?

  We are believers in free speech in free expression. However, the art we allow is curated and we would like to keep the content on our site safe for work and younger audiences. If we find there there is demand for 'edgier' artistic content, we would like to section off a portion of this platform in the future.

• What size images can I upload?

  Sparkshot accepts non-transparent PNG images of up to 1000 x 1000 pixel resolution.

  HOW TO PICK THE RIGHT SIZE IMAGE

  Selecting the perfect image size to upload is the first step on an artist's crowdfunding journey.

  We created this guide table below to help select the right size art for your goals. Think about the size of support base you can reach and whether you're looking to complete the crowdfund quickly. Even a small group of dedicated users can reveal a big piece of art, it will just take them longer.
  NOTE: Sparkshot has no timelimit on how long art needs to take to reveal.

  Supporters can reveal up to 300 pixels in a single transaction. Depending on their goal, maybe they're looking to reveal a chunk of hidden art, or want to make a creative shape, consider that the average transaction will be less than 300 pixels.

  ART SIZE	EXAMPLE SIZE	NO. PIXELS	SUPPORTERS
  VERY SMALL	32 x 32	1 - 1024	1
  SMALL	140 x 140	1025 - 20,164	30
  MEDIUM	315 x 315	20,165 - 100,000	100
  LARGE	500 x 500	100,001 - 250,000	400
  GIANT	700 x 700	250,001 - 500,000	1000
  EPIC	1000 x 1000	500,001 - 1,000,000	3000

• How do I upload my art?

  Here's a short video walking through the upload process

  Artists must use the upload process and provide us:

  • A Title

    The title for the art is displayed on the main browser window as well as when viewing the art itself. A good title is something that helps capture the imagination of the user, especially at the start as they won't be able to see the image until enough pixels have been purchased.

  • A Description

    To add more detail of about the art you can add a description which is displayed in the info panel when viewing the art.

  • Web Address ID

    We will generate a suggested ID from the title you enter, but you can tweak or change it based on your taste. NOTE: ID's are unique as they form the link to a piece of art.

  • The Image

    The reason why we're here. Sparkshot accepts any art in PNG format at resolutions of 1000x1000 or less. Once you add your art to the uploader we'll display it to make sure that it's the right image you want to use.

  • [OPTIONAL] Price Image

    By default we price each pixel at 1 Satoshi (1,000 mSatoshis). However you can set your own price for each pixel by providing a greyscale PNG image of the same dimensions. Each pixel in the greyscale image can be painted to set the price of the same pixel in the art. The prices are calculated based on the grey tone (Clamped) from 0.125 Satoshi to 16 Satoshi.

    white #ffffff rgb(255, 255, 255) = 0.125 Satoshi/pixel
    ...
    black #000000 rgb(0, 0, 0) = 16 satoshis/pixel

  SPARKSHOT FEATURES A BUILT-IN WALLET

  Sparkshot offers a built-in Bitcoin wallet which can handle all the Bitcoin and message signing portion of your upload, so there's no need to get freaked out if you don't know what this section describes.

  • A Bitcoin Addresss

    A Bitcoin address is a public address which looks something like this 1BvBMSEYstWetqTFn5Au4m4GFg7xJaNVN2. Sparkshot uses Bitcoin addresses to verify the artist without requiring any personal identification such as a name, email address or phone number.
    The address is displayed with the art and acts as the artist idenity, if multiple pieces of art are uploaded using the same Bitcoin Address they will all be associated under that identity.
    All good Bitcoin wallets provide you with an address, please use a full wallet that does and not a custodial wallet.

  • A Signed Message

    After you've provided the art file and other key details we generate a message for you to sign using the provided Bitcoin address. This process authenticates the art to you (or more accurately the Bitcoin address) as the owner and artist of the work.

    Most good Bitcoin wallets provide you with a way to sign messages, such as Electrum

    

  • Upload to Curation

    Submitting this package places the art in our curation queue for approval. We don't let art from go live straight away to allow us to first ensure that to the best of our abilities that the content is appropriate and does not break any laws.

    Due to the delay before going live, you can optionally provide contact information such as an email address if you want to be notified. Note that we do not use the email address for any other purpose, but we understand that by giving an email address you are creating a record, which is why we have left this as an optional choice.

• How are Pixels Priced?

  Pixels are priced in Satoshis, the base unit of Bitcoin currency. By default all pixels are priced at 1 Satoshi, but can be overriden by adding a Price File during the upload process.

  A Price File is a greyscale image using the same dimentions as the art image. Artists can create one of these prior to uploading, setting price point of each pixel by painting them one of 8 shades of grey.

  The table below shows which grey shade is associated with each price point.

  Shade	Price	Shade	Price
  #000000	16 Satoshi	#888888	1 Satoshi
  #222222	8 Satoshi	#AAAAAA	0.500 Satoshi
  #444444	4 Satoshi	#CCCCCC	0.250 Satoshi
  #666666	2 Satoshi	#FFFFFF	0.125 Satoshi

  We recommend artists use different price points to help indicate the different areas and features of the hidden art. Not only is this a way of setting how much crowdfunding the art can bring in, it can also help supporters understand which pixels might be worth revealing first to bring out interesting parts of the image.

  Example Image and Associated Price File

  In the example image the artist has set different elements of the art to be different prices. The campfire has been set to black (16 Satoshi), indicating that this is an area of interest to the image. They also set the character and bag to be different shades from the general background of the image. The top portion is set to white, which is the cheapest price point. Finally, they added "Hello" to the price even though it didn't correspond with the art as a way of hiding a message in the art which supporters might find if they look hard enough.

  

  

• Can users change my art?

  Sparkshot wants artists to do what they do best, this is not a crowdsourced piece of art, the final image is exactly what the artist created. Users can only do the following:

  • Reveal one or more pixels by paying for them via the Lightning Network
  • Chose which pixels they reveal. People can get creative with their selection and form shapes and silhouettes, which can be viewed as art-like but do not change the original art.
  • Add a message to a payment, which is like our version of a guest book. It doesn't change the art at all, but allows users to leave a comment.

• What happens to the art once it's revealed?

  Once the final pixel has been paid for we reveal a download button which allows any one to download the .png file and do with it what they will just like any other image on the internet.

  We continue to host the art in our Gallery view, which allows users to browse all completed works including all of the messages and purchase data. So all purchases stay viewable forever via the original url link.

  Once complete the artist is free to host the art wherever they wish too as they continue to own the image. We only ask that they don't do this beforehand because that would spoil the fun of uncovering the mystery of the hidden art.

• Will you promote my art?

  Our goal is to provide a platform that enables anyone to upload their art and have a link that can be shared freely. We understand that an artist is the best at knowing who their audience is and where that audience might be, and the link we provide uses the Open Graph standard which means on sites and social media that support it, pasting the link will expand to reveal details about the art: an image of its current state, the title, description and artist Bitcoin Address.

  Beyond providing a link, we also have a browser view where users can discover art via a search, so employing a good title and description can aid discoverabilitiy. The browse view will also push art up the index ranking if it is performing well to further boost well recieved work.

USING SPARKSHOT

• You pay for pixels?

  When the art is launched we strip away all the pixel data, without those pixels the art is, well, not really much art. To reveal it users can select one or more pixels and purchase them. This instantly reveals those pixels to everyone, unlocking that piece of the art forever.

  When paying for pixels you contribute to the reveal of the art and allow the world to see more of it. Whilst it's hard to say whether you own the pixels or not, it's data and can be replicated perfectly, what is possible is that you can prove that you made the purchase thanks to the underlying cryptography. Each transaction is more than just a simple database look up for pixels, it's actually uses some fancy mathmatics that ensures each transaction is unique and uniquely identifiable.

  In all this does mean that if the art you contribute to revealing goes viral you can prove you were part of that journey.

• What are these messages I see?

  Users can do more than just purchase pixels to reveal the art, there's also a special meta layer that allows each purchase to be accompanied with a message. The more pixels selected for purchase, the longer the message can be; up to 255 bytes long (computers care about bytes, so we do too).

• What's the difference between a message and a live chat message?

  When a users purchases one or more pixels they may add a message to the purchase that appears in the timeline for the art forever. There is also a chat message box which allows users to freely send messages, however these messages are not saved and are only seen by whoever is looking at the art at that time. Once a user leaves the art the message is gone.

  Live messages allow people to converse and react to purchases, but they're not meant to form part of the purchase history of the art. If you want to leave a permanent message, then you have to pay for pixels and do it that way.

• I selected some pixels but they were revealed before I got the chance to purchase them.

  The art is a finite space and each pixel is first come first serve, and selecting a pixel for purchase does not reserve it for you. A pixel is reserved once an invoice is produced, if the invoice is not paid for before it times out, then the pixel is released back into the pool for someone else to purchase.

  Once a pixel is purchased we update all connected users to reveal the pixel, if you have it selected at the time it will deselect automatically.

• Why does the invoice have a timer?

  When you request an invoice we reserve the pixels you've selected to give you the chance to make the purchase, but we can't reserve them forever as there's only a finite number for each piece of art. If the invoice is not paid by the time the timer runs out the invoice is cancelled and the pixels are released back into the public space for invoicing by anyone.

  The beauty of the Lightning Network is that payments are extremely fast so once paid you should see your chosen pixels appear within a few seconds.

• How long does it take for art to be revealed?

  It depends on a few factors. The larger the image, the more pixels need to be paid for until the full art is revealled. So artists should consider releasing smaller pieces of art if they want to help sell all the pixels quicker.

  Promotion is another aspect, the more people engaged in your art the quicker it has the chance for being paid for.

• How long can my message be?

  Typically the maximum number of characters can be 255, as long as there's enough pixels selected to reward with that total.

  The longer version is that the message length is calculated in bytes not length. The standard latin alphabet is one character per byte, so 255 characters is the maximum. But other alphabets and symbols such as Emojis are different, and take up more space. So a message in emoji will be much smaller than 255 characters, as small as about 30 emojis.

MODERATION & RIGHTS

• Does uploading the art mean I no longer 'own' my art?

  No, we do not ask for the transfer of copyright ownership of this art. We are happy to allow artists to seek additional revenue from the art (prints, mugs, t-shirts, etc.) in other ways once it has been debuted here.

• Can I remove art once posted?

  We ask you not to seek to remove your art once posted as it serves to retain the history of how the art was revealled of which each step was paid for by users who added their own work via leaving messages and pixel selction.

• How can I report offensive or illegal/infringing art?

  If you believe a piece of art is illegal or infringes on copyright/trademark and should not be hosted please contact us with any supprting evidence using this form.

• Someone stole my art and uploaded it here

  If you believe your art was stolen please contact us and provide any evidence that can help prove you were the original artist using this form.

• I want to report an offensive message

  We don't have any control over messages that are sent by users when purchasing pixels, however we can flag messages so that they either do not appear to users by default (NSFW), or do not appear for any users (Doxing, or messages of a legal nature).

  Please send us a message via this form if you see a message which you believe should be flagged as either NSFW or removed.

• Do you have a commitment to free speech/expression?

  Yes, we have made this an identityless platform to protect peoples right to free expression. We are committed to the principals of the First Amendment inthe United States of America in application.

  It follows that we reserve the right to take down messages that involve the release of private personal info and calls to violence.

• What is your moderation policy for images?

  • Tasteful, no pornography
  • Safe for work in most circumstances
  • This app also functions as a teaching tool for Bitcoin and the Lightning Network, so we want people to be able to demo this application in front of all audiences.

EARNING & PAYMENT

• How long do payments take on the Lightning Network?

  Lightning Network is designed to settle Bitcoin payments within a few seconds, however the network is still in its infancy and the occasional failure or delay can occur as payments fail to find a route through the network or channels expire.

  When submitting Bolt11 invoices for payment please allow a few minutes for Sparkshot to process the payment. If you do not receive your Bitcoin before your invoice expires please contact us on @sparkshot_io or sparkshot@protonmail.com and we can investigate.

• Can I earn Bitcoin by selling art on this platform?

  Yes! However for the time being, our process involves sending Bitcoin to artists manually. Note that we will require artists to cryptographically authentic with messages signed by the private key tied to each art submission, so do ensure that you retain ownership of the private key you utilize.

• How do I get Bitcoin?

  Get a Wallet

  First you need a wallet, somewhere to store and spend Bitcoin from. For Sparkshot you don't need much to join in the fun, and for easy of use a mobile wallet can provide you with what you need to get started. Which ever wallet you choose, it must support the Lightning Network standard, which currently is not that many due to how new this technology is.

  For a fast way to start using Sparkshot you could use a custodial Lightning Network enabled wallet such as Blue Wallet which is available for both iOS and Android. Please do research on this as new wallets and existing wallets are being updated all the time and we cannot guarentee that Blue Wallet is the best or even good choice. The main rule here is do not put more Bitcoin in that you're able to lose should something go wrong.

  Get Bitcoin

  Once you've got a wallet on your device or phone, then a quick way to get Bitcoin is via an ATM. Depending on where you are in the world, ATMs might be easy or hard to find. Coin ATM Radar lists over 5000 ATM locations world wide.

  Another option is by using Local Bitcoins which will help you connect with someone in your country who you can purchase Bitcoin from.

• What's an mSatoshi?

  A Satoshi is a unit of currency in Bitcoin, 1 Bitcoin equals 100,000,000 Satoshis (Yes, that's a lot). An mSatoshi is 1/1000th of a satoshi. These are truly small amounts of value what we call nanotransaction value. Because the Lightning Network can deal with very small payments, it's theorised that even a Satoshi might become too large an expense for nano payments in the future, so it allows for payments to be made in mSatoshi amounts.

• Can I pay with Paypal or other service?

  No, Sparkshot is a Lightning Network-native application, the very core of the platform is based upon the Lightning Network payment protocol, which whilst far from a mainstream system, we believe has many benefits over existing systems like PayPal.

  Some benefits of using Lightning Nework and Bitcoin:

  • Payments are confirmed within a few seconds
  • Payments are final and cannot be reverted by nefarious users
  • Bitcoin is universal currency so there's no need for any converstion
  • There's no 3rd or 4th or 5th party taking a cut of the transaction, enabling cheaper and fair prices
  • Bitcoin is censorship resistant and payments cannot be blocked by a government or other body of power

TECHNICAL

• Is this application open source?

  Not at this time.

• How do we know the art on display is authentic?

  A couple ways. First, the artist signs a SHA256 checksum of the original art image upon submission. Upon 100% completion of the art, this image matching the checksum will be released to the public. Second, a Merkle root for the art is provided. As pixels are purchased, a Merkle proof of the pixel info against that Merkle root is made available.

• What are the technical limitations of the art that can be accepted?

  • Format: .PNG
  • Color: Transparent pixels are translated to white #ffffff and colors are interpreted as 24-bit color
  • Maximum Width: 1000 pixels
  • Maximum Height: 1000 pixels

• Does this work on phones and tablets

  Sparkshot isn't currently configured to work correctly with touch screens. It might be possible to use, but we currently only support desktop browsers.

• Can I edit the site to see the pixels before they're paid for?

  Sorry, there are no tricks here. We're not just hiding the pixels in the web browser, the pixel data is sealed up and can only be revealed through a confirmed transaction.

• What is the Lightning Network?

  The Lighthning Network is a payment protocol that people can use to transfer Bitcoin payments over at near instant speeds.

  Many speak about how slow Bitcoin is to send payments, which prevents it from being used for simple and fast purchases. Lightning Network works on a different set of principles and sits on top of the Bitcoin network, which allows it to provide fast, secure and finalized payments, meaning that unlike services like PayPal users cannot reverse a charge to fake spend, making it a good fit for transactions between anonymous users.

  To learn more about Lightning Network we recommend Jameson Lopp's Lightning Network resources for a deep dive into the technology.

• What is your Lightning Network Node?

  If you would like to connect to our Lightning Network node we host Station Zebra

  02e389d861acd9d6f5700c99c6c33dd4460d6f1e2f6ba89d1f4f36be85fc60f8d7@54.188.180.102:9735

  

• Does this platform provide DRM for the art?

  DRM does not work. It is pseudo-cryptography and we aren't afraid to say it. This platform utilizes cryptography for providing monetization of the act of releasing the art data from private status to public status.

• Is this decentralized?

  This is a Lightning Network application hosted on centralized servers which relies on the decentralization of Bitcoin and the Lightning Network to function. As part of this application's specific design, the pixel and data is released into public upon being purchased. That information is available to be re-hosted elsewhere with no restriction.

  The application does not have any strict dependencies on any centralized platform, so we could re-host it on commodity hardware anywhere. Furthermore, the developers and operators of this platform are centralized in meat space and incorporated as a legal entity.