There are a few negatives about DA but generally it is a very positive experience. Like almost everyone else on this site I love the thrill of submitting work and awaiting the responses. We all want our ego's stroked and our artistic vanity cuddled by views, comments and faves. But I really enjoy looking at others work. I get to see landscapes and views of the world I have never seen before. I get to see waterfalls I will never visit. Buildings old and new. I get to see icons photographed to death, sometimes from new and exciting angles sometimes from traditional angles but in different lighting or weather conditions. But as importantly, I get to measure my work against others. I look at some work and say to myself "yes, I used to take photo's like that." It is important that your work/art moves on and improves. And that is why it is important to look at work that inspires. Those who I watch and those pictures I fave usually aspire me to improve my technique. I still have a way to go before I perfect my art. If I ever give up trying to improve, then I will give up. I will have lost the artistic battle. I used to listen to a series of college lectures on the history of photography on podcast. Sorry, I can not remember the American lecturers name but he quotes that "every photograph has already been taken." There is some humbling truth in that statement but my response is "not by me"