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Post by mysunfinder on Jul 8, 2017 10:41:07 GMT 10
Hello Koala and Shesgothelook,
No, it's me that's needs to go back to school. I was trying to say that FB is not for everyone and how grateful I am for this forum, so grateful that I would be willing to pay for the advice, knowledge and pure entertainment it provides. Although I have posted few photos, I have lost loads of old family photos 4 generations worth) and am just as devastated at what has happened to all the photos as everyone else. I have enjoyed watching the progress of so many passionate members. Please accept apologies if my delivery did not read as I intended.
Regards
Chelley
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 8, 2017 18:31:45 GMT 10
I completely agree with you Ken, Facebook is definitely not the place for research, history, help etc. it's information is fleeting & to go back & find an individual post, even 1 day after it has been posted can be difficult, let alone years down the track! Photobucket must somehow be held accountable for what they have singlehandedly destroyed. Forums hosting their own images won't bring the last 10 years photos back, nor will everyone finding a different image server solve the problem. I am surprised there isn't more of a public outcry, I have seen one article accusing them of blackmail but that is all . 😒 Hi SGTL, There has been quite a public outcry on Twitter, I gather - I suspect that is the chief channel for protest movements these days. I don't use Twitter, but one of the websites I visited while looking for alternatives to Photobucket showed a very long list of tweets from people giving Photobucket a pretty strong piece of their minds, including talking about the impact on community forums and various blogs. When it all started, I wrote an email to Photobucket explaining in moderate terms how their decision had impacted on our forum, that overnight it had potentially destroyed years of research and contributions to a significant and culturally important social history resource, and asking them to reconsider their decision. I received the following response: Hello,
Thank you for feedback.
Photobucket continues to have the distinct pleasure of hosting 15 billion photos from 100 million unique users since inception fourteen years ago. In recent months, management has made some changes that will enable Photobucket to continue providing excellent services to our user base while maintaining an economically stable position.
In the past we’ve had solutions for everyone. From free users to paid subscriptions, there’s been an option for all types of people that care about their memories, blogs, or businesses. We continue to commit to offering free services as well as enterprise support, but we’ve needed to reinforce standards we’ve been historically lenient on.
It is our business to serve our users with valuable benefits that are otherwise very costly for us to support compared to our competitors, especially as it relates to third party image hosting. Starting several weeks ago, we began telling our users that the nature of how we work with them will be changing with the tide of the photo hosting environment via messaging in email, on site, etc. In staying true to our word, we’re asking that customers using our service as an image serving facility buy a subscription to continue with that level of service that has historically been overlooked for free users. This feature is a costly one, and we are asking our patrons to help support our infrastructure. We aren’t deleting photos or holding any photos at arm’s length for download; we are simply asking our non-paying users to join our subscription service to continue enjoying benefits of our site.
The subscriptions we are offering are price competitive for the greater photo hosting landscape, and we hope to bring additional functionality in the upcoming months to further delight our users that support their businesses with our service. We are continually evaluating our subscriptions, committing to the needs, feedback, and desires of our valued user base.
Sincerely,
Moss@Photobucket SupportI get that the cost of providing third party hosting/linking may be an expensive exercise, and that Photobucket may need to recoup the cost of that from its customers. But I think their biggest mistake was to try and force everyone on to their most expensive plan, irrespective of whether people had five photos or 5,000. If they'd said that in future they would only offer third party hosting/linking as part of a paid account not free accounts, and offered it as part of all their plans from small to large, I think they might have received more acceptance. Based on the Twitter response, I think they may lose a lot of customers. Maybe that will encourage them to re-think their policy? We can always hope! Don Ricardo |
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Post by Mustang on Jul 9, 2017 8:03:38 GMT 10
Thank you Don Ricardo for your efforts investigating PB.
I,m sure the board sat around their ivory table for a few meetings discussing the exodus by free users.
Large companies like PB remind me of the government, if they announce there will be a highway coming through your property, the decision has already been made & no amount of protest will change their mind.
They are probably going down the gurgler anyway. As you mentioned the young fry consider Twitter & the like is their preferred medium of correspondence & its more a desertion of advertisers that would normally pay for our free service.
We can always hope but, I would be planning the next step & consider PB the past rather than the future.
Brent
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Post by gregh on Jul 10, 2017 17:05:20 GMT 10
Might be time for a better option. I haven't had personal experience with Google Photo's, but it seems to have the basis photo sharing capacity we need. HERE's A GOOGLE PHOTO's REVIEWGOOGLE PHOTOS LINKcheers Greg EDIT Actually I just tried it and it's very easy.!  |
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Post by cardygeorge on Jul 10, 2017 19:30:17 GMT 10
Imgur is the other site that people are recommending, both here and on other forums. A few of us went through some of the options here |
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 10, 2017 22:07:25 GMT 10
Imgur is the other site that people are recommending, both here and on other forums. ... Hi Cardygeorge, Thanks for your comment, but Imgur seems not to be an option for us because it appears that they don't allow third party hosting. Their terms of service includes the following statement: ...Also, don't use Imgur to host image libraries you link to from elsewhere, content for your website, advertising, avatars, or anything else that turns us into your content delivery network. If you do – and we will be the judge – or if you do anything illegal, in addition to any other legal rights we may have, we will ban you along with the site you're hotlinking from, delete all your images, report you to the authorities if necessary, and prevent you from viewing any images hosted on Imgur.com. We mean it.I have written to Imgur to confirm whether this means third party hosting, but another website I've read says that that's what it does mean. I'll report back when I get a reply. If the above is correct, it's a pity because Imgur does seems quite easy to use. I've had a look at all of the possibilities mentioned in the link you provided and quite a few others, and am personally still up in the air about which one we should be recommending to new forum members. (Remembering of course, that all forum members are free to use whichever photo storage website they choose.) I think the basic requirements probably are that: 1. They permit third party hosting (obviously). 2. They provide a readily accessible BBCode to copy and paste into the forum post. 3. They provide an 'album' system that allows people to categorise their photos if they wish. 4. They are reliable and don't have frequent outages. 5. They are going to be around for the long term. Not all of the possible options seem to offer all of these. Don Ricardo |
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 10, 2017 22:32:26 GMT 10
Hi Gregh,
Good to hear you've been trying out Google Photos. I've been doing the same.
Have you been able to find a way of linking a photo from your Google Photos account to a forum post - a BBCode or similar? I haven't been able to do it. I can paste a link in a forum post which takes you back to Google Photos and allows you to look at the photo there, but it doesn't display the photo in the post like we're used to.
I will be interested to hear what you've discovered.
Don Ricardo
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Post by cardygeorge on Jul 10, 2017 22:36:19 GMT 10
Maybe an email to Flickr might be worth the effort. It has albums, has been around for quite awhile for what that's worth, the code is easy to get and can be pasted straight into the dialogue box. I've read that they require a direct link back to their site whenever a image is shared, but the link generated automatically. Willow5075 uses them for her pics.
I had a quick scan of their Terms of Service, but didn't see any mention of 3rd party restrictions
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 10, 2017 22:47:46 GMT 10
Thank you Don I found that have to do it twice, the step you described takes me to the image on photobucket, where i still get the notice, then i repeat the process it then opens the picture Thanks for clarifying Humpynvan. I've edited my original post to try and make it clearer. Have a look and let me know whether you think its easier to understand now. Don Ricardo |
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Post by humpynvan on Jul 11, 2017 7:37:29 GMT 10
Thank you Don I found that have to do it twice, the step you described takes me to the image on photobucket, where i still get the notice, then i repeat the process it then opens the picture Thanks for clarifying Humpynvan. I've edited my original post to try and make it clearer. Have a look and let me know whether you think its easier to understand now. Don Ricardo Thanks Don yes much clearer now, maybe i just read it wrong, as i was half asleeep when i tried to do it thanks for your efforts |
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Post by gregh on Jul 11, 2017 9:09:03 GMT 10
Hi Gregh, Good to hear you've been trying out Google Photos. I've been doing the same. Have you been able to find a way of linking a photo from your Google Photos account to a forum post - a BBCode or similar? I haven't been able to do it. I can paste a link in a forum post which takes you back to Google Photos and allows you to look at the photo there, but it doesn't display the photo in the post like we're used to. I will be interested to hear what you've discovered. Don Ricardo This image is also instructions to get Google Photo's image link Unfortunately I have not been able to get the image to show in this post. Apart from being able to share on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and few others, the sharing aspect only provides the ability to "link" to a photo. Greg |
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Post by gregh on Jul 11, 2017 15:57:07 GMT 10
To Admins.
I have an option that could be considered for dedicated image hosting.
I'm fairly well versed on all things involving web hosting, and as it happens, I do have access to suitable space on a web server where an account could be setup to host a dedicated image hosting service for the Vintage and Classic Caravan forums.
If you choose to go down this path, there will be some minimal fees for the website hosting only, and I'm talking just a few dollars a month for the entire hosted service.
I have found a suitable FREE web based image hosting software which I have setup a TEMPORARY INSTALLATION for your assessment. Anyone can create an account to assess the service and provide feedback to the admins.
Please note: for data storage reasons, I have configured this site to only accept images with a maximum size of 1mb and dimensions of 1500px X 1500px.
Once a decision has been made, this temporary install will be taken down, so don't put any important photo's up.
If an admin can PM me a list of valid forum admins which I could give admin rights to for assessment of the admin areas - once they have created an account.
NOTE: The sample image and link to demo software has now been removed.
Cheers Greg
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Post by Koala on Jul 11, 2017 17:47:33 GMT 10
Hi Greg
Great idea but I gave up loading photos as too much of a pain to resize images. The site would need to do this automatically.
Koala
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Post by gregh on Jul 11, 2017 21:23:23 GMT 10
Hi koala,
I guess I forgot that somethings are easy for me being a techo. Yes that is something I didn't even consider - image resize; but there are other offerings that I can assess.
Get back to you soon.
Greg
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Post by gregh on Jul 12, 2017 16:33:47 GMT 10
OK. Some of you might have noticed that this post has change a few times in the last few hours. I've been editing this post rather than create a string of posts while I test another image hosting software. This is Called Coppermine and seems to be quite good. It's been around for years and has a dedicated following of developers, so it wont fade into obscurity in a hurry. It has the following features - good user management and security
- easy to use
- admin controlled top level albums
- users can create their own albums under relevant top level albums
- easy copy of image bbcode compatible with all browsers
- auto image resizing
- fast navigation
- user self registration
Feel free to create an account a try it. Just remember that this test site will be removed when a decision is made about image hosting.
TEST SITE
the following image was created using this bbcode which appears under the image preview. Unfortunately the code I wrote for the bbcode was overwritten when I did a reset. I'll replace it tomorrow.
[img src="http://ozetrade.com/cpg/albums/userpics/10001/20160125_172425.jpg" style="max-width:70%;"]
I have deliberately created the code to include the max-width:70% so oversized images don't distort the the forum website.
Admins please PM me if you want to discuss further
Greg
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 12, 2017 23:28:11 GMT 10
Hi Gregh,
Thanks for your work investigating the possibilities for image hosting on the forum. Any ideas are welcome, and it is particularly welcome to have some people - such as yourself - with some technical know how on the case.
A couple of the admin team have had a discussion re the options, including the one of setting up a server that you have suggested, which seems well worth investigating. I or one of the other admin team will contact you by PM in a day or so when we have the chance, and have had some further discussions.
We appreciate what you are doing with the testing, etc.
Don Ricardo
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Post by gregh on Jul 14, 2017 15:26:27 GMT 10
I've just been playing around with flickr to see what it's like for image hosting. It took a bit of working out but it's actually quite good. once you get the hang of it. This would be a better option than a self managed image hosting service that has a $$ cost associated with it. Each free user account gets 1GB of storage. The website is much quicker and doesn't have all that advertising crap you have to deal with on Photo Bucket. The main policy requirements are no commercial sharing and they require you have a link back to Flickr so users can get more info about the image. Their BBCODE copy tool automatically creates the image share with a link back to Flickr, so all should be good. This image below is exactly what their BBCODE creates. I can make an easy to follow image based PDF instruction file to share if you choose Flickr.  free standing by Greg Hooper, on Flickr |
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Post by Geoff & Jude on Jul 16, 2017 9:52:15 GMT 10
howdy all
don't think that just because you are able to post photos using photobucket at the moment or that your account hasn't been effected yet that you won't be effected soon.
photobucket has over 100 million account holders and it will take time for the "bots" to get to your account.
i would suggest that even if photobucket is still working for you that nobody posts any more photos using photobucket because they will eventually catch up with you and your photos will be replaced by the photobucket notification.
if you can still post photos, it doesn't mean that you're special, it just means you're further down the list.
geoff 'n jude
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 18, 2017 18:19:13 GMT 10
i would suggest that even if photobucket is still working for you that nobody posts any more photos using photobucket because they will eventually catch up with you and your photos will be replaced by the photobucket notification. Hi all, Excellent advice there from Geoff & Jude! BUT if you have photos on the forum already stored in Photobucket please do NOT close your Photobucket account or delete the photos - particularly if you've posted in the Down History Lane (DHL) section. I am currently retrieving and restoring the 'lost' photos from DHL, and potentially other sections, and I can only do that if the Photobucket addresses for the photos are still there. Thanks. Don Ricardo |
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Post by Don Ricardo on Jul 18, 2017 19:09:58 GMT 10
Info re using Imgur to post photosHi all, Since the cost issue has arisen with posting photos on the forum using Photobucket, there have been several suggestions that we could consider using Imgur as an alternative. Imgur's website provides the 'BBCode' for each photo, which is what we used to cut and paste from Photobucket. However, Imgur's terms of service includes the following statement: "...Also, don't use Imgur to host image libraries you link to from elsewhere, content for your website, advertising, avatars, or anything else that turns us into your content delivery network. If you do – and we will be the judge – or if you do anything illegal, in addition to any other legal rights we may have, we will ban you along with the site you're hotlinking from, delete all your images, report you to the authorities if necessary, and prevent you from viewing any images hosted on Imgur.com. We mean it."I've written to Imgur to ask them whether this means that we can't use the BBCode to post photos on this forum, and received this reply: "If you'd like to add images to your website or blog, we recommend using Imgur's embed unit to easily make the post visible. More information on finding the embed link can be found here: help.imgur.com/hc/en-us/articles/211273743-Embed-Unit.
"You're welcome to use Imgur to host your images and use on forums, as long as they do not break our Terms of Service (http://imgur.com/tos). Imgur's Terms of Service prohibits using Imgur for a content delivery network, hotlinking adult or illegal images, torrents, image hosting for selling things and/or commercial purposes, or sites which copy Imgur's own functionality."So that's saying ' No, you can't post photos to your forum using the BBCode'. We are permitted to use the 'embed unit'...the only trouble being that I can't make that method work on this forum. If somebody else can make it work, then please let us know how to do it. But based on what we know now, Imgur isn't an option for posting photos. Don Ricardo
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Post by Geoff & Jude on Jul 19, 2017 10:14:08 GMT 10
howdy all below is a photo posted through postimages.org where you can get permanent links for facebook, twitter, message boards, forums and blogs etc. all you do is select "for message boards" and "no expiration" from a drop down menu, then upload your picture and copy the "hotlink for forums" code, paste it into your post and bob's your uncle. there is no need to register to use the site but if you want to create a personal album you can register with them.   it's very user friendly so give it a try if you like. see their term of use here. postimages.org/termsgeoff 'n jude as an aside, one of the faq's is: How long will images remain on the server?
You can upload unlimited images per post and you will never have to worry about your images being removed due to inactivity. |
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Post by Koala on Jul 19, 2017 17:41:59 GMT 10
 Works for me! Just a comment from me........yes we need a programme such as this however we are still at the mercy of the programme/site owner and could end up with the same problem if they choose to change their terms and conditions. I still believe that we need to save the photos on a location which is controlled by VV.com. By the way, what does this mean from the Postimage terms and conditions. If you need image storage for your app, please use Amazon S3 or Google Cloud Storage.`' Koala |
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Post by Geoff & Jude on Jul 19, 2017 21:53:41 GMT 10
By the way, what does this mean from the Postimage terms and conditions. If you need image storage for your app, please use Amazon S3 or Google Cloud Storage. Koala i wondered the same thing when i read it and then i realized that i don't have an app so i figured that there was no reason for me to wonder any more. geoff 'n jude |
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willow5075
Full Member
Willow & the MOTH
Posts: 355
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Post by willow5075 on Jul 20, 2017 13:51:49 GMT 10
I completely agree with you Ken, Facebook is definitely not the place for research, history, help etc. it's information is fleeting & to go back & find an individual post, even 1 day after it has been posted can be difficult, let alone years down the track! Photobucket must somehow be held accountable for what they have singlehandedly destroyed. Forums hosting their own images won't bring the last 10 years photos back, nor will everyone finding a different image server solve the problem. I am surprised there isn't more of a public outcry, I have seen one article accusing them of blackmail but that is all . 😒 there are hundreds of very angry complaints on their Facebook page |
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Post by gregh on Jul 20, 2017 14:35:56 GMT 10
I just tried to download my Photo Bucket Albums so I can migrate to Flickr. Wont let me do it with any web browser - oopps there was an error; sure there was!!  . I can only download one image at a time now. And low and behold; there's no Contact Us links on their website anymore. If you cant communicate with us then there's no problem being reported. And I'm positive they have 3x more popups and advertising for non paying subscriber now - that will help bring in the money. Wont help if they don't have subscribers. Greg |
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