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March 10, 2009 08:37 PM
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It would be a neat feature if Mahalo Answers automatically retrieved images and stored them locally.
However, uploading photos to services such as Photobucket is against some terms of service and could be considered copyright infringement. So, it would stand to reason that if Mahalo cached images locally that it would be inappropriately distributing them as well.
I think that Mahalo does a good job of citing images automatically. A URL appears below each and every photograph. Also, most users ALSO site the parent website that they received the photograph from.
Here is a good example:
http://www.mahalo.com/answers/home-and-garden/whos-selling-on-the-big-island
I hotlinked an image direct from the source website. That website was referenced not once but twice. The real estate agent should be happy that someone may stumble across the image listing here and maybe be interested in that house or another one that s/he has listed. If the real estate agent was smart, they would update the image with a sold sign and a matrix of other properties that were for sale.
So, while hotlinking maybe isn't the best case scenario, some webmasters desperately want the free traffic they receive from Mahalo. Their URL appears in (usually) qualified, targeted answers that will bring in interested folks from all over the Internet.
Webmasters who don't want the traffic should disable image hotlinking either specifically for user contributed sites such as Mahalo Answers or completely to remove the possibility of this "bandwdith theft".
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It's not really bandwidth theft since Mahalo Answers is providing a sourced URL with every image, and the images are linked back to the sites that provide them, which in turn can result in traffic to the site. I'm sure the sites that have an image added to Mahalo Answers, are not upset that they are being linked to.
There are other services that do the same thing. In a way this is good for Mahalo Answers as they do not have to worry about storage, yet in a way it can be detrimental since they are not caching the images. Likewise, with a video, if it is not playable, it causes the same issue of a hole in the answer. If the image is changed, it can create a problem if it was not the correct image, which is part of the challenge to using URLs instead of uploads or image capturing.
It would be nice if Mahalo Answers developers put some time into this and figured it out so that the images would not go away. They may be working on something like this.
If you have any suggestions, contact them at feedback@mahalo.com and this just might give Mahalo the insight to do something about the hot linking of images.
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Answered Question
Mahalo is adding a tip to all questions that don't offer a tip.
Why do Mahalo users hotlink their images?
I use photobucket and a source credit for images I place in response, but I've noticed that a lot of responses here contain images that are hotlinked, that is to say directly linked to the website hosting the image. Isn't that bandwidth theft?
Plus if the image on the site is changed or deleted, it will create holes in answers.
Plus if the image on the site is changed or deleted, it will create holes in answers.
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| March 10, 2009 09:03 PM |
However, uploading photos to services such as Photobucket is against some terms of service and could be considered copyright infringement. So, it would stand to reason that if Mahalo cached images locally that it would be inappropriately distributing them as well.
I think that Mahalo does a good job of citing images automatically. A URL appears below each and every photograph. Also, most users ALSO site the parent website that they received the photograph from.
Here is a good example:
http://www.mahalo.com/answers/home-and-garden/whos-selling-on-the-big-island
I hotlinked an image direct from the source website. That website was referenced not once but twice. The real estate agent should be happy that someone may stumble across the image listing here and maybe be interested in that house or another one that s/he has listed. If the real estate agent was smart, they would update the image with a sold sign and a matrix of other properties that were for sale.
So, while hotlinking maybe isn't the best case scenario, some webmasters desperately want the free traffic they receive from Mahalo. Their URL appears in (usually) qualified, targeted answers that will bring in interested folks from all over the Internet.
Webmasters who don't want the traffic should disable image hotlinking either specifically for user contributed sites such as Mahalo Answers or completely to remove the possibility of this "bandwdith theft".
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Other Answers (1)
March 10, 2009 09:00 PM
That's the way Mahalo Answers allows its users to add photos. If you answer a question and click on "Photo" you will see that you will have to enter a link in the form of a .jpg, .gif, or.png file. Mahalo Answers links to these sites hosting the images. It's not really bandwidth theft since Mahalo Answers is providing a sourced URL with every image, and the images are linked back to the sites that provide them, which in turn can result in traffic to the site. I'm sure the sites that have an image added to Mahalo Answers, are not upset that they are being linked to.
There are other services that do the same thing. In a way this is good for Mahalo Answers as they do not have to worry about storage, yet in a way it can be detrimental since they are not caching the images. Likewise, with a video, if it is not playable, it causes the same issue of a hole in the answer. If the image is changed, it can create a problem if it was not the correct image, which is part of the challenge to using URLs instead of uploads or image capturing.
It would be nice if Mahalo Answers developers put some time into this and figured it out so that the images would not go away. They may be working on something like this.
If you have any suggestions, contact them at feedback@mahalo.com and this just might give Mahalo the insight to do something about the hot linking of images.
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March 10, 2009 09:26 PM
(For the record, I didn't rate the "no" on your post.)
Providing a sourced URL does not affect bandwidth theft. That provides credit and traffic. Bandwidth theft is the use of bandwidth for purposes not directly used or specified by the host site. So when an image that is hotlinked loads, it eats up valuable space on someone else's dime.
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Providing a sourced URL does not affect bandwidth theft. That provides credit and traffic. Bandwidth theft is the use of bandwidth for purposes not directly used or specified by the host site. So when an image that is hotlinked loads, it eats up valuable space on someone else's dime.
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I was also under the impression that use of any image without the express permission of the owner, whether hotlinked or uploaded, was technically considered copyright infringement unless the site states the image can be used.
Bandwidth consumption (I won't call it theft) is easily dealt with. There are plenty of easy and free ways to stop hotlinking. However, stopping hotlinking is short sighted because you're throwing away free traffic. You just need to know what to do with it is all.
Copyright law is fuzzy in this area. But at the end of the day, I think that taking one of my photos and uploading it to an image hosting service where I have no control over it is worse than hotlinking. I can remove, change, or modify a hotlinked image. I loose all control over it when it is uploaded to a photo hosting service.
Photo hosting services make their money because they know how to monitize the traffic that comes from hotlinking. If every web pro took a page from this version of freehosting and learned how to monitize the traffic, this would be a mute point.
On the issue of copyright, it could be argued that Mahalo users can post images under "fair use" laws, as they are used for factual work (http://www.bu.edu/library/instruction/findimages/copyright.html).
My question wasn't really about copyright, though that is a good point to discuss. I was specifically asking about bandwidth. If someone hotlinked an image from one of my sites, I would be furious because I have a limited budget with which to purchase bandwidth. And if the image does generate traffic, it would require double the bandwidth usage as the image loaded on the first site and then loaded again when opened on the host site. I would be much happier if they saved and independently uploaded it, providing a back link to my site.
If someone hotlinked an image from one of my sites, I would be furious because I have a limited budget with which to purchase bandwidth.
-- /quote --
You should look into one of the various free anti-hotlinking methods. Personally, I negotiate my bandwidth on the 95th percentile, so I'm quite happy when I receive a spike in traffic. Anyone who runs a website should be happy when this happens ... hotlinking is the foundation of the Internet.
--- Quote ---
You still haven't explained how providing only a credit link differs from traffic via hotlinking.
--- /quote ---
I'm sorry, I didn't realize that this was part of the answer to your question. I did briefly start to form a specific point about how a photo linked directly from the owners site could be changed, removed, etc. In contrast, the owner looses all control over the image or photograph when it is uploaded to a hosting service.
Beyond the owner loosing control, the traffic from a credit link and hotlinking isn't really all that different. The biggest difference is that a user has to take an extra step (or 2 depending on operating system and browser) to reach content on the parent site other than the image itself. I would consider the traffic received from a hotlink extremely qualified because they've gone to the trouble to find out more about the image or photo.
This "argument" may be better posed to a Forum of people. Mahalo does really well to answer specific questions (such as your origional) but it doesn't do very well with long threaded discussions that would be involved in this topic. I might suggest this forum: http://www.graphicdesignforum.com/ It is active and full of people involved in the graphic design industry. As a group, they'll have a better view of your arguments and be willing to participate in a deeper level.
I sincerely hope that I've answered your question Viridicus!
You're right that Mahalo does not lend itself to long discussion or "argument" (though I do not feel it was an argument). I posted it here because it directly related to Mahalo and I thought I might be missing a point. However, when it comes down to it, hotlinking is a common practice on this site and its usage a matter of opinion.
If my use of the word "theft" was construed as provocation, that was sincerely not my intent.
Yeah, sorry I didn't mean argument as in a fight or anything. Just referring to the back-and-forth that you're looking for.
I think that I've answered your original question and more. If you would like me to clarify any of my points or have another question about this, feel free to send me a personal question. You don't even have to tip and I'll give you the best answer that I can.