> I like the "round-robin" variation of the ping-pong idea.

Sounds like fun, although it is not as self-organizing and each
individual player will be idle most of the time. After pondering
over this for a while, I came up with the following variation of a
self-organizing concurrent multi-player povray ping pong (SOCMP4):

0. A round is opened by posting a starting image for generation 0
    and declaring a ping interval P (in days, probably).

1. Anyone who is interested can create a modified version of this
    image and post it before the ping interval elapses, using the
    phrase "generation 1" in the subject. After the interval has
    elapsed, the next turn is automatically considered open.

    (Although no organized supervision is needed, any kind soul
    may post a reminder at this point that turn 1 is over and the
    next deadline is in P days. Anyway, due to the nature of the
    proceedings, it shouldn't be too terrible if someone posts
    a late submission).

n. Anyone who is interested can create a modified version of one
    of the generation n-1 images, generously scavenging from the
    other generation n-1 images to the hearts desire.
    And should, of course, post it before the ping interval elapses,
    using the phrase "generation n" in the subject. After the interval
    has elapsed, the next turn is automatically considered open.

!  I suppose this thing should end after a fixed number of generations.
    The end result will usually consist of more than one image.

!  As a slight technicality, all submissions should be posted as
    a reply to the original post, and not as a reply to whatever
    image you ripped most of (ahem, make that learned most from),
    to avoid scattering generations in the thread.

!  Needless to say, participants and spectators may freely comment
    on any image which has been posted.

I am aware that rule 1 is completely unnecessary, but leaving
it out would probably have strengthened prejudices on the poor
communication skills of mathematicians ;)

Considering time zones, weekends, and other distractions, I'd
recommend P = 7 for the first attempt, which has the additional
advantage of deadlines at a fixed day of the week. Of course,
a really fast-paced thread would also be interesting.

Enough. I already dread rereading this in the light of a new day ;)

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