# BasePaint FAQ (WIP)

*Disclaimer: This project is still a WIP. Things might change!*

## 🔵 General
**Q: How does BasePaint work?**
A: [BasePaint](https://basepaint.xyz/) is a shared pixel canvas. The community makes art for 24 hours.

After which, the canvas locks, and an open edition NFT of the artwork is available to mint for 24 hours. 90% of the profits of the OE are distributed to the artists proportional to the number of pixels they painted. 10% goes to the protocol.

**Q: Where are the smart contracts?**
- [Brush](https://basescan.org/address/0xD68fe5b53e7E1AbeB5A4d0A6660667791f39263a)
- [Painting & Canvas Minting](https://basescan.org/address/0xba5e05cb26b78eda3a2f8e3b3814726305dcac83)
- [Animated Canvas](https://basescan.org/address/0xc59f475122e914afcf31c0a9e0a2274666135e4e)
- [Onchain Referral](https://basescan.org/address/0xaff1A9E200000061fC3283455d8B0C7e3e728161)
- While the NFTs are minted from the Painting and Mint contract, the majority of minting goes through Onchain Referrals since release (03.14.2024).

**Q: How do I get my name to show up in the chat instead of 0xABC…123?**
A: Get an ENS on Ethereum via [ENS](https://app.ens.domains/) or register a Coinbase `.cb.id` name via "Coinbase wallet app" (click Claim free profile [here](https://profile.coinbase.com/)).

## 🖌️ Brushes

**Q: How does the brush work?**
A: Mint a brush [here](https://basepaint.xyz/brush). Standard brush cartridges include 100 pixels that reset with every new canvas. Every canvas you paint on builds your streak.

**Q: How do I get an artist (rare) brush?**
A: Paint good artwork, collaborate in the chat, get other artists with bigger brushes to nominate you.

**Q: Can I combine multiple brushes?**
A: No. The dApp selects the brush with the highest paint count in your wallet as default.

**Q: What is a flagged brush?**
Brushes that have contributed graffiti or other acts of pixel vandalism are flagged and frozen from contributing to future canvases.

**Q: Should I buy a brush on secondary?**
A: **You probably shouldn't.** Brushes are upgraded and downgraded based on contributions. There's no guaruntee that the brush you buy will have that pixel count forever. Plus, lots of brushes are flagged, meaning they can't paint at all! "Bots are dumping flagged brushes and the brushes will not be unflagged if purchased because of wash trading." More [here](https://twitter.com/basepaint_xyz/status/1694563753608815081).

## 🎨 Painting

**Q: What rules should I know before painting?**

😊 **Be Kind**: Be nice and patient with each other. We're all here to learn and create together.

🖌️ **Be Original**: Don't copy another artist's pixel art that you found online.

🥸 **Be Yourself**: One brush per painter. Use your brush invites on new artists and not yourself!

🧠 **Be Creative**: Help others but don't trace existing work, spam with unnecessary pixels (blobs, checkers or borders), or change the color of existing art.

⚠️ **Keep It Clean**: No QR Codes, crypto project names, logos, offensive symbols, etc.

🎨 **CC0**: Your artwork on this canvas will be released under a CC0 license that makes it free and public domain.*

**Q: How do I paint?**
A: After obtaining a brush, left click to add pixels, right click to erase any pixels you've contributed. Explore the toolbar on the right for more options, including an undo button, zoom, and overlay.

PRO TIP: Always reload your tab after saving to ensure your pixels are being counted properly.

**Q: What are the keyboard shortcuts?**
A: The numbers on your keyboard correlate to the color choices.

**Q: How do I save my work so others can see my contributions?**
Any pixels you've added to the canvas will not be onchain or viewable to others until you click the save button.

**Q: Can I mint my own contributions?**
Yes! After saving your pixels, you have the option to mint your own contribution as a separate NFT. These are part of the ["BasePaint Work In Progress"](https://opensea.io/collection/basepaint-wip) collection.

**Q: If someone overwrites my pixels, do I still get credit for contributing to that space?**
A: Yes. All contributions are counted toward the artwork and your daily streak.

## 🗳️ Voting

**How does voting work?**

1. BasePaint team chooses a color palette
2. You visit https://basepaint.xyz/theme
3. Connect your wallet
4. Vote for an existing theme or add a new one
5. On the next day, the top-voted theme becomes that day's theme

*Note: All you need to cast your vote is your BasePaint artwork NFTs. The more NFTs you have, the higher your voting power (according to the rules of Quadratic voting). For now, you can only vote for one theme per day, but we are working on many improvements to the flow.*

**What kind of themese are appropriate?**
* **🟢 Do** Submit themes that are inspired by that day's palette.
* **🟢 Do** Try to submit themes that will encourage creativity and be appropriate for the CC0 license.
* **🚫 Don't** submit themes that are based on an existing brand, influencer, celebrity figure etc. due to rights issues. These will be reserved for official collaborations when we have their permission 😅
* **🚫 Don't** submit themes that are offensive or otherwise generally not appropriate for a community canvas.

*The BasePaint team reserves the right to delete inappropriate themes, votes spent will not be returned*

## 🤝 Ambassador Program
Get 25-100% of the protocol fee for telling people about BasePaint. Read more about it [here](https://x.com/basepaint_xyz/status/1765835819594744146).

## 💰 Claims, Streaks, Troubleshooting, Etc.

**Q: How do I withdraw the fund I earned after the mint?**
A: Use the official website UI https://basepaint.xyz/claim or claim through the contract directly (call `authorWithdraw` method with a list of days you contributed).

**Q: What are streaks used for?**
A: 🙊