PassThePopcorn (PTP): News

[Len]

New (Rules) Year's Update


New UHD/x265 rules
Today, we're officially allowing x265 UHD Blu-ray encodes. We've tested the waters for a while now, so many of you may have already thought this was official. For you there is no change. The rules are the same as have been enforced for the past few months, and they're the same as for HD. See the relevant rules below. We've pretty much copied the HD rules, so there should be no surprises.

Also, because we decided to go with '2160p' rather than the '4K' term we've been using for a while, some of you will have to update your notifications and auto-dl scripts.

Formats Explained wrote:

3.3. Ultra High Definition:
3.3.1. Ultra high definition torrents are torrents with a resolution higher than that of high definition torrents. The common resolution is 2160p. 2160p refers to a maximum resolution of 3840 horizontal and 2160 vertical pixels.
3.3.2. Sources featuring HDR (High Dynamic Range image) and/or 10-bit (color depth) must be encoded as such.
3.3.3. Ultra high definition torrents must use either the x265 codec or h.265 format and the MKV container. Any x264, XviD, or WMV encodes in this category are not allowed.
3.3.4. They must be sourced from UHD Blu-rays or WEB or any other source with a resolution higher than the end product. Upscaled HDencodes will be deleted.
3.3.5. For more information on ultra high definition torrents see the relevant section on coexisting.



Co-existing wrote:

4.3. Ultra High Definition:
4.3.1. Two 2160p encodes may coexist for each movie.
4.3.1.1. Within each category, the goal of having two encodes is to maximize both movie retention and movie quality. Coexisting and trumping do not depend on the file size alone of each encode.
4.3.1.2. If both slots are occupied, the torrent with less seeders can be trumped solely for quality based reasons.
4.3.2. For more information on ultra high definition torrents see the relevant section explaining formats.



In regards to UHD, we've also started using the following feature tags:

HDR10
Releases that comply with the HDR10 standard should be tagged as such. This is, for example, the case with most BD-sourced UHD content.

Dolby Vision
Full disc releases of Dolby Vision content should be tagged as such. Releases with Dolby Vision must also be tagged with HDR10. Remuxes and encodes can not yet feature Dolby Vision.

Dolby Atmos
Used for uploads featuring an Atmos audio track.

DTS:X
Used for uploads featuring a DTS:X audio track.



Please note that while x265 is now an allowed codec for UHD encodes, it may not be used to encode HD and SD. Likewise, x264 may not be used for UHD encodes. UHD sources can be used for HD and SD encodes, and these encodes must only use x264.


Staff Changes
Siege and Excalibur have both chosen to step away from their staff responsibilities due to AFK interests and possibilities. Siege has, for the better part of a decade, been FLS with us, even before such a class existed. He has long been the mentor of newer FLS.
Excalibur, though a relatively short tenure as moderator, has been a great part of the staff team. Mostly unknown to regular users, he has been a stable of our account management efforts. Both will be sorely missed.

But it's not all bad. Curious and observant users will have noticed that we have recently promoted Gurdil from FLS to Moderator. Most of their energy will be spent on torrent management, so many uploaders will likely come across them in the future.
Some will also have noticed the return of Crystal to our staff team. Crystal was formerly a significant part of the staff team a few years ago, and we hope to utilize their knowledge and energy once again.


Contest Winners
It's been a while now since our Birthday upload contest ended, and in case you forgot, here are the winners.

Debaucherous
1st Place
A €150 gift certificate to Pulsed Media!
30,000,000 points!
A Custom Title
And One Year of VIP!



r0nnie
2nd Place
A €100 gift certificate to Pulsed Media!
20,000,000 points!
A Custom Title
And One Month of VIP!



SilentJay
3rd Place
A €75 gift certificate to Pulsed Media!
15,000,000 points!
A Custom Title
And One Month of VIP!



embeejay
4th Place
A €50 gift certificate to Pulsed Media!
10,000,000 points!
A Custom Title
And One Month of VIP!



Dennimarks
5th Place
A €25 gift certificate to Pulsed Media!
5,000,000 points!
A Custom Title
And One Month of VIP!


The following uploaders won a €20 gift certificate to Pulsed Media! as well as 2,500,000 + 2,000,000 points!, a Custom Title, and One Month of VIP!
Diyat
syncretic
BilbosGoat
sibi22
Kulesterol


The following uploaders won a €20 gift certificate to Pulsed Media! as well as 1,000,000 + 1,000,000 points!, and a Custom Title!
Angelwings99
mrthe
Artifaxx
zrg888
mylokb


And finally, DingCroft was the lucky winner of our random bonus of 19,800,000 BP!


Christmas Freeleech
Today also marks the end of Christmas. And so here are some freeleech of the favourite Christmas movies from the staff team. Enjoy!

A Mom for Christmas [1990] by crystal

Christmas and Olivia Newton-John, that is all you need to know.



Black Swan [2010] by Gurdil

Not quite sure this qualifies as a Christmas movie but hey, whatever. Happy holidays!



Elf [2003] by ChunkyLover53

How can you not love Will Ferrell at Christmas?



The Great White Silence [1924] by Nuked

It's always Christmas in Antarctica!



How the Grinch Stole Christmas! [1966] by YoshHash

A Beautiful story about a creature wanting to save a village from capitalism



It's a Wonderful Life [1946] by paperk

Quite simply my favourite Christmas movie



It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown [1992] by alamak

Still a favorite of mine, there will always be a place in my heart for Charlie Brown 



Meet John Doe [1941] by Zantus

One of the best and most beautiful Christmas movies ever, sadly somewhat lost in shadow of It's a Wonderful Life and the fact no one can be bothered to distribute a proper release.



One Hundred and One Dalmatians AKA 101 Dalmatians [1961] by DarkSky

Somehow the only animation in this list.



Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town [1970] by Blackstrap

The best Rankin/Bass Christmas movie. Enjoy!




So once again, from all of us to all of you, enjoy the new year!

PTP staff