When uploading files...

You have to ask yourself, am I the author of this file? For example did you yourself create the image with your camera.

If you can't answer yes to that the next question you need to ask yourself is do I have permission from the author to upload this file? For example your wife took it and she is allowing you to upload it.

If you can't answer yes to that the next question you have to ask yourself is this file in the public domain? For example most of the files found on government websites are in the public domain. if you can't determine if the file is in the public domain then by default it has to be considered as copyrighted.

If you have made it this far and none of the above applies DO NOT UPLOAD THE FILE. By doing so not only are you putting yourself at risk for a lawsuit but more important to me and the other members of this community you're putting this web site at risk.

I am assuming a link to a Craigslist ad would be in the public domain. And,... "not my stove, but picture is exactly like mine"......would not?

michaelanthony wrote:I am assuming a link to a Craigslist ad would be in the public domain.

You can link to anything you want as long as it's not porn etc.

And,... "not my stove, but picture is exactly like mine"......would not?

That would not be acceptable because it's not yours.

This is specifically about the upload feature that allows you to upload files directly to my server.

Richard S. wrote:You can link to anything you want as long as it's not porn etc.

Just to clarify as I forgot to mention don't be starting new topics "found this on Craigslist if someone is interested"

What if I want to put up a pic of say , Ron Paul. I'll go to Bing, click Images, type in Ron Paul; and a hundred thousand pics of Ron Paul pop up. How do I know what is in the public domain? I guess I better learn that hotlink technique.

Also, your signature is a Rush lyric. Isn't that copyrighted? Or is it OK since it's credited to Rush.

Plus, sometimes I edit my posts after thinking better of my comments. I see if somebody quotes me before I edit my post, only my original words get edited; the subsequent quote remains intact.

And, I was just wondering, are you able to delete my entire history of political comments? If so, can you comply with the request? I'm worried all my anti-Obama comments might be used to imprison me as he seizes more power.

Respectfully,
Dan

If not for that Dan it'll just be something else ...... like working for yourself! Being independent, and dependent on NO ONE -- that'll probably be a crime soon.


I thought once something is posted on the net, it's fair game for anyone .. unless it has the little © in the pic? This is an area I have ZERO comprehension of.

What if the owners name or website is in there, but no © symbol?

Dann757 wrote:What if I want to put up a pic of say , Ron Paul. I'll go to Bing, click Images, type in Ron Paul; and a hundred thousand pics of Ron Paul pop up. How do I know what is in the public domain?

Everyone of those image is copyrighted, whether they are licensed as public domain is something you'll need to determine. 99.99999% of the time they are not going to be public domain.

Also, your signature is a Rush lyric. Isn't that copyrighted? Or is it OK since it's credited to Rush.

It's an excerpt and covered under fair use.

And, I was just wondering, are you able to delete my entire history of political comments? If so, can you comply with the request? I'm worried all my anti-Obama comments might be used to imprison me as he seizes more power.

Even if I could I wouldn't. You've participated in a discussion here and removal of your comments can completely destroy the continuity of the topic other posters have participated in and other members of the public may be referencing for information. The only exception I'll make to that is personally identifying information such is you posted your home address etc.

SMITTY wrote:I thought once something is posted on the net, it's fair game for anyone .. unless it has the little © in the pic? This is an area I have ZERO comprehension of.

What if the owners name or website is in there, but no © symbol?

As soon as something is authored it is automatically copyrighted, the copyright notice is not required. Unless it can be determined the author of that material has specifically licensed it for public use then by default you can't use it.

As Richard has said almost everything that you find as a digital image on the Internet is copyrighted and you can't legally use it. There are narrow exceptions and it takes an expert reading of the laws to understand it. Restrict your postings to photos you have taken and you will be OK. Same for manuals, complete catalogs, operating procedures, etc. Once your photos are posted here, you have passed your copyrights to Richard, it's not exclusive right but your control of your posting has passed to him. For example I posted several photos of an early Forum Great and Meet event. One forum member is using that image as his Avatar photo. It's no longer my image to control, it's Richards. Does he care? I don't know.

Yanche wrote: Once your photos are posted here, you have passed your copyrights to Richard,

I'm not claiming copyright, wouldn't claim copyright and couldn't even if I wanted too. The copyright remains with you, copyright can only be transferred through legal means with lawyers, contracts etc. If you wanted to create a website "Yanche's images of the Meet and Greet" you can republish them since you still have the copyright and there is nothing in the license granted to me for exclusive use. When you upload a file here or post some text which is also copyrighted by you what you have done is granted me a "soft license" to use that file or text because you agreed to it in the TOS when you registered. On the other hand suppose we had a recipe forum , if I took all those recipes and published them in a book the members that posted them would have grounds to sue and would probably win. That would be outside the scope of the license granted to me.

As a side note if anyone finds their images that were uploaded here being used by someone else on another site you can send me a PM and I'll have them removed.

For example I posted several photos of an early Forum Great and Meet event. One forum member is using that image as his Avatar photo. It's no longer my image to control, it's Richards. Does he care? I don't know.

It's not out of your control Yanche or anyone else. If you or anyone else doesn't want someone using your images in an avatar I would suggest sending them a friendly PM asking them to remove it. If they don't respond send me or one of the moderators a PM and we'll have them removed, in your case Yanche you could just remove it yourself . While we are on the topic of avatars if anyone is using an image as avatar the same rules about file uploads apply to them.