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Wulf Gotta trope, dood! from Louisiana Since: Jan, 2001
Gotta trope, dood!
#1: Nov 27th 2010 at 1:35:45 AM

So I don't know if this is one of those things I just now happened to notice, or if there's a trend or somethin' going around, but it seems like I'm seeing a lot of pages with watermarked images as of late. I don't mean when it's official art with (c)Trope Co at the bottom, but stuff with a URL at the bottom like on Quentin Tarantino's page.

Is this... kosher, or should this be one of those things that need to be fixed?

They lost me. Forgot me. Made you from parts of me. If you're the One, my father's son, what am I supposed to be?
Yamikuronue So Yeah Since: Aug, 2009
#2: Nov 27th 2010 at 5:30:26 AM

Usually that means it's copyrighted - should we be using it?

BTW, I'm a chick.
Ultimatum Disasturbator from The Wiggle Room (Old as dirt) Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Disasturbator
#3: Nov 27th 2010 at 5:41:23 AM

Hell no.

have a listen and have a link to my discord server
TotemicHero No longer a forum herald from the next level Since: Dec, 2009
No longer a forum herald
#4: Nov 27th 2010 at 5:44:45 AM

Yeah, no watermarked images. Doesn't look good, and can get us in a lot of trouble.

Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)
Willbyr Hi (Y2K) Relationship Status: With my statistically significant other
Hi
#5: Nov 27th 2010 at 10:50:12 AM

Thirding; it's best that any page with a watermarked image have the image culled and the page be put into Image Pickin' discussion for a replacement.

edited 27th Nov '10 10:50:33 AM by Willbyr

Madrugada Since: Jan, 2001
#6: Nov 27th 2010 at 10:58:05 AM

It's common sense to take them down. People watermark images precisely because they don't want them used without permission. And since we operate under a Creative Commons license, anything we use is assumed to also be available for use under that same license. Using a watermarked image is tantamount to saying "We know that you want a degree of control over where your image is used, and we don't care."

Raso Cure Candy Since: Jul, 2009
Cure Candy
#7: Nov 27th 2010 at 11:02:56 AM

Well a few images like the one on Uranus Is Showing asked the author and said yes as long as the website was there.

edited 27th Nov '10 11:07:07 AM by Raso

Sparkling and glittering! Jan-Ken-Pon!
shimaspawn from Here and Now Since: May, 2010 Relationship Status: In your bunk
#8: Nov 27th 2010 at 11:05:04 AM

that's Uranus Is Showing and I agree, if the author says it's ok as long as you have the website listed it's fine. I remember we got permission for that one.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick
FastEddie Since: Apr, 2004
#9: Nov 27th 2010 at 12:17:29 PM

Just zap 'em and leave an edit reason. We can't know whether permission was received or not, so if it is watermarked, it's out.

edited 27th Nov '10 12:19:38 PM by FastEddie

Goal: Clear, Concise and Witty
Madrugada Since: Jan, 2001
#10: Nov 27th 2010 at 9:24:07 PM

That's not a watermark. That's just a copyright notice. We have a number of images up where we checked with the artist and received permission as long as we left the copyright notice in place or otherwise gave them credit.

A watermark is a faint (or not so faint) image or word printed directly across the image. Like this:

Raso Cure Candy Since: Jul, 2009
Cure Candy
#11: Nov 28th 2010 at 12:05:49 AM

Maybe open a Image Picking discussion for any images removed? Some things are easily replaced its hard to know what is getting taken down....

The ones that have permission leave a note saying "Used with permission"?

And Now the one on Uranus Is Showing I emailed the author myself... That one shouldn't of been taken down.

edited 28th Nov '10 12:59:50 AM by Raso

Sparkling and glittering! Jan-Ken-Pon!
arromdee Since: Jan, 2001
#12: Nov 30th 2010 at 5:25:33 PM

Let's face it, almost every image we have is copyrighted. Even if someone drew it and gave permission, if they drew a copyrighted character, it's a derivative work and violates copyright.

"Fair use" lets you use an image for the purpose of commentary on the work in question, so having a picture of Superman on the Superman page should be okay, but even then, I'm not sure it counts as commentary if you have (making up an example) a trope about heat vision and are using an image of Superman to illustrate it.

FastEddie Since: Apr, 2004
#13: Nov 30th 2010 at 5:28:18 PM

Nope. An image is only not fair use if it is marked as belonging to someone or is the entirety of a work like a cartoon. A full strip or single-cell cartoon, for example.

edited 30th Nov '10 5:29:32 PM by FastEddie

Goal: Clear, Concise and Witty
feotakahari Fuzzy Orange Doomsayer from Looking out at the city Since: Sep, 2009
Fuzzy Orange Doomsayer
#14: Nov 30th 2010 at 7:09:44 PM

What about demotivators from which we removed the border (ex. Curiosity Killed the Cast, which was a "Curiosity" demotivator)?

edited 30th Nov '10 7:10:02 PM by feotakahari

That's Feo . . . He's a disgusting, mysoginistic, paedophilic asshat who moonlights as a shitty writer—Something Awful
FastEddie Since: Apr, 2004
#15: Nov 30th 2010 at 7:14:37 PM

A demotivator is not copywritten, and usually is made with fair-use stuff itself.

Goal: Clear, Concise and Witty
Elle Since: Jan, 2001
#16: Dec 4th 2010 at 10:11:13 AM

The act of creating a work makes it copywritten automatically under US law, though you're right in that demotivaters mostly start as derivative works and are circulated freely (enforce it or lose it).

Fair use arguments aside, using other site's watermarked images is unprofessional. I'm assuming this is about using images off of places like IGN. If it's a piece of someone's artwork, link it back to the source (which may be a work page, a person's Deviant Art page or whatnot), which in most cases will satisfy the attribution requirement, IMO.

Deboss I see the Awesomeness. from Awesomeville Texas Since: Aug, 2009
I see the Awesomeness.
#17: Dec 4th 2010 at 10:36:07 AM

Question, if we link fanart, should we do it in the caption or should we pothole the picture?

Fight smart, not fair.
MetaFour AXTE INCAL AXTUCE MUN from A Place (Old Master)
AXTE INCAL AXTUCE MUN
#18: Dec 4th 2010 at 10:56:55 AM

I prefer to make the pic itself a pothole to our article on the original media, and stick the link to the fanart source in the caption.

Deboss I see the Awesomeness. from Awesomeville Texas Since: Aug, 2009
I see the Awesomeness.
#19: Dec 4th 2010 at 10:59:29 AM

That's my personal preference as well, I was just curious as to whether or not Fast Eddie had a preference.

Fight smart, not fair.
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