Third-Party Lens Review Database now online!

**Adam** · 03-14-2008, 09:32 AM

The PentaxForums.com Third-Party Lens Review Database

Today, I'm happy to announce that our 3rd-party lens review database is finally finished and available for public access! After lots of work and several user contributions, the database now also contains some 70 lens entries to start things off! I also greatly appreciate all the donations made to help fund this project!

Although it's based around the same system as our Pentax lens review database, there are some key differences which make it unique and much more flexible that the original database. Please note that:

While both databases allow users to review lenses, this new database also lets forum members add new lens entries. This means that if a particular lens is not yet listed, users don't have to wait for an administrator to add it. Users may also upload photos for each lens. We're making this distinction because there's a much larger number of 3rd-party Pentax lenses available, and thus, the same level of organization cannot exist in this new database.
Lenses in the new database will NOT be listed in any particular order within their respective categories. Therefore, it is crucial that members make use of the search feature in order to locate lenses and make sure that no duplicates are being added.
Categories for the major 3rd-party lens manufacturers have been made. If you wish to upload a lens made by a company other than those listed, please upload to the miscellaneous category.
No original Pentax lenses may be upload to or review in this database. This includes, but is not limited to lenses in the SMC-A, F, FA, M, K, DA, and DFA series.
There is a sub-section in the miscellaneous category allowing you to upload and review non-Pentax teleconverters. I will soon be adding entries for the original Pentax teleconverters to the original database.
The "Add a Lens" link found at the far-right portion of the database navbar will allow you to upload a new lens to the database. Once that's done, you will be able to post reviews. If a particular lens is already present in the database, you can post reviews just like in the previous database.

I hope that you enjoy the database, and I'm looking forward to seeing it to fill up with new lenses and reviews very quickly! Remember that this isn't a replacement for the original database, but rather a standalone system only for non-Pentax lenses. Links to it from the forum index and the "quicklinks" menu will soon be available.

Click here to access the third-party review database!

If you have any questions about usage of the database, please post in this thread! Enjoy!

mattdm · 03-14-2008, 12:32 PM

Hmmm. How about the ability to edit a description? I just uploaded info for the Tokina 19-35mm, and it converted some punctuation to smileys where it shouldn't have.

**Adam** · 03-14-2008, 02:56 PM

You should be able to edit any lenses that you uploaded yourself- there's an "edit" link on the main lens listing.

*Gruoso* · 03-14-2008, 03:10 PM

Excellent news. Thank you Adam

*JCSullivan* · 03-14-2008, 07:01 PM

Thanks Adam AND those who helped. This is something many of us have been waiting for and hopefully people will populate the information in it.

mattdm · 03-14-2008, 07:29 PM

Originally Posted by Adam

You should be able to edit any lenses that you uploaded yourself- there's an "edit" link on the main lens listing.

Yeah, works now. I tried that immediately after uploading and got a permission denied error of some sort.

*Mechan1k* · 03-14-2008, 07:35 PM

What sort of information are you looking for in the desscriptions for each lens???
How much detail do we need to put in???

**Adam** · 03-14-2008, 08:00 PM

Originally Posted by mattdm

Yeah, works now. I tried that immediately after uploading and got a permission denied error of some sort.

I had to tweak a small setting that I overlooked earlier to restore permissions

Originally Posted by Mechan1k

What sort of information are you looking for in the desscriptions for each lens???
How much detail do we need to put in???

You can include full technical details or merely a short description- it's up to you, but the more, the better!

*Peter Zack* · 03-14-2008, 08:08 PM

Adam. When you hit the home button, all the sub forums show up including the "lens review database". Where is this 3rd party database found? Will it have a seperate sub forum or be at the top of that page as a "Global announcement". Were you able to use the data we had created in that thread a few months ago?

**Adam** · 03-14-2008, 09:10 PM

I'll be putting links to the 3rd-party database in a few minutes (to the quick links menu and the forum index), and yes, the lenses in that thread are already in the database.

*m8o* · 03-14-2008, 09:35 PM

Originally Posted by Mechan1k

What sort of information are you looking for in the desscriptions for each lens???
How much detail do we need to put in???

Probably not as much as I just did in the review I just added (Sigma 300mm f/2.8). I need a professional newspaper editor to go over my writings...

**Adam** · 03-14-2008, 09:55 PM

The forum link is now up, but I think I'll actually hold off with the other link until we have at least 100 reviews in the database. Once again, enjoy!

*JCSullivan* · 03-15-2008, 06:22 AM

Adam, what do you mean by

Upload only one photo unless variations exist

Should we not upload images of the mount, front, etc.
Thanks

*Peter Zack* · 03-15-2008, 06:49 AM

do the main images have to be added by Adam? I couldn't see a spot to upload an image to the main page.

**Adam** · 03-15-2008, 08:34 AM

Originally Posted by JCSullivan

Adam, what do you mean by

Should we not upload images of the mount, front, etc.
Thanks

That means that unless more than one model of the same lens was produced, you shouldn't add more than one photo.

Originally Posted by Peter Zack

do the main images have to be added by Adam? I couldn't see a spot to upload an image to the main page.

What do you mean by by "main images"? Are you referring to the lens photos?