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ProgrammingAce
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 580
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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 7:41 am Post subject: Why not watermark? |
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I generally agree with the consensus around here that watermarks are bad, but i saw something in my server logs that makes me want to reconsider.
http://ruliweb2.empas.com/ruliboard/read.htm?num=28236&table=game_xbox02&main=xbox
446 different websites (not web pages, but entirely different sites) are hot linking the same set of images off my server. One of which hot linked from a page that has received over 30,000 hits.
Most of the sites that hot linked received 20 hits or less, in which case i don't really care. You want to hot link feel free, just don't hammer my server with 30,000 hits.
Now the part that really starts to bug me, I just happened to throw those pics on my programmingace.com server, which has the ability to track these things. My GamerHistory domain can't give me server stats. I've posted thousands of screenshots and pictures there, how many hundreds of thousands of hot links do i have going there?
I used to feel bad about crap like this: http://www.unseen64.net/xboxps2/ninjagaiden.htm
Then i realized the idiot webmaster there never bothered to ask for unwatermarked pics. I'd have been more then happy to provide them if asked. I've done it for lots of people...
Am i going to start watermarking my images? No. Am i going to go switch that jpeg with goatse? Yes. From now on, anyone who hot links gets goatse. It's better then a watermark. |
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Smeg Staff
Joined: 26 Aug 2003 Posts: 1600 Location: beneath enemy scrotum
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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 12:22 pm Post subject: Re: Why not watermark? |
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ProgrammingAce wrote: | Am i going to start watermarking my images? No. Am i going to go switch that jpeg with goatse? Yes. From now on, anyone who hot links gets goatse. It's better then a watermark. |
I was going to suggest something along these lines without reading your post, till I noticed the last line. I will say that goatse is a bit passe though, be creative! "goatse. It's better then a watermark" would be a great slogan though. |
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kap Minister of Paranoia
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 2103 Location: I hate you.
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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 6:29 pm Post subject: |
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You should be using mod_rewrite or some other method of redirecting referers, excluding the ones you specify, elsewhere. This isn't a failsafe, but it works in most cases. Even if they just download and re-use your images on their server, it's saving you the bandwidth.
Mod_rewrite > watermarks, unless you've really truly creating something of your own and want to protect it.
(Note that while there are many to defeat things like mod_rewrite, the majority of users don't know or don't know how, and even if they do, so what? It's a small number of people relative to the whole. This of course excludes people that have javascript redirects to pick up images and extract referers (!@#$%^!@#$%), but you can't really do much about them besides swapping out images. Which is fun anyway.)
Also, as far as replacing images goes, goatse.cx is played out and old hat to people now. Go Moser or swing.gif or something. IMO, the most creative thing you could probably do (outside of TheRedEye's awesome awesome fake SkyFox screenshots) is use other photos from the goatse.cx photo set, since most people haven't seen anything but the one. |
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ProgrammingAce
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 580
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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 7:44 pm Post subject: |
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I set the mod_rewrite on the gamerhistory domain, but my programmingace server doesn't support .htaccess so i'm pretty limited. I ended up replacing hot linked images with a really huge jpeg of my site's logo.
Watermarks won't really solve my problem, i want people to take these images and use them somewhere else. Hell, they can even take credit for them for all i care. Just don't run up my hosting bill. |
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Xkeeper
Joined: 04 Nov 2005 Posts: 327 Location: Henderson, NV
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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 4:48 pm Post subject: |
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A few compromises I've seen usually revolve around
- Using a script to apply a watermark to an image, and redirecting hits to the (new) image
- Replacing the image entirely with a picture, which most people seem to feel need to be 900x900 to create impact
A good tradeoff might be using a mix of the two; create small (max-size 127) thumbnails with a small watermark and site URL and using those as hotlinked images.
That way, you manage to both save bandwidth and inform of the original origin of the image, while still allowing people to get the full version off your site.
Your milage may vary, of course, but from my standpoint it seems like a decent idea. |
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shawnphase
Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 216 Location: baltimore, md
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Posted: Sun Apr 20, 2008 9:03 am Post subject: |
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lolz, capcom forgot to remove the IGN WATERMARK from their cover of okami from the wii, how lame is that? i couldnt see it at first until someone posted a closer pic of it!
and the closer shot:
why the hell are they using watermarked images for their own product?
certainly this is a new high in low. |
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BMF54123 Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 743 Location: Henderson, NV
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Posted: Sun Apr 20, 2008 10:28 pm Post subject: |
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You've got to be kidding. That's on the actual, printed cover art?
Maybe it's just subliminal advertising...which would still be pretty low. :P |
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shawnphase
Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 216 Location: baltimore, md
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 3:08 am Post subject: |
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totally on the cover art. i donno, maybe its subliminal advertising. |
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Sardius Staff
Joined: 21 Sep 2003 Posts: 508 Location: Austin, TX
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 4:40 am Post subject: |
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This makes me angry at IGN more than anything else. Looks like I'm not the only one who has trouble finding unaltered publisher-distributed screenshots and art assets for games that are more than a few months old. But at least they're protecting those screenshots they didn't take of games they didn't make!
Oops I mean LAUGHING OUT LOUD WHAT A STUPID MISTAKE SOMEBODY SHOULD BE FIRED FOR THAT ONE LAUGHING OUT LOUD |
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BMF54123 Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 743 Location: Henderson, NV
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:13 am Post subject: |
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Even the text is there...
This is actually pretty funny, to be honest.
(Haha, oops, this is actually Xkeeper borrowing BMF's account. Wow, I'm stupid.) |
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ArnoldRimmer83 Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 540
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 7:19 am Post subject: |
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On the bright side, it looks like the wolf is about to eat the IGN logo. |
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ProgrammingAce
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 580
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 8:14 am Post subject: |
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Sardius wrote: | This makes me angry at IGN more than anything else. Looks like I'm not the only one who has trouble finding unaltered publisher-distributed screenshots and art assets for games that are more than a few months old. |
http://www.gamespress.com/
*whistles* |
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TheRedEye The Internet's Frank Cifaldi
Joined: 26 Aug 2003 Posts: 4192 Location: Oakland, CA
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Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2008 1:50 pm Post subject: |
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ProgrammingAce wrote: | Sardius wrote: | This makes me angry at IGN more than anything else. Looks like I'm not the only one who has trouble finding unaltered publisher-distributed screenshots and art assets for games that are more than a few months old. |
http://www.gamespress.com/
*whistles* |
yeah, you try getting an editor to pay for that when you're freelancing. |
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ProgrammingAce
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 580
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 12:00 am Post subject: |
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Honestly, it's less then 10 cents per picture and i lied to them about my credentials. Besides, a lot of the stuff is free anyway because the publisher pays them to host it.
I have 40+ gig of press kits sitting on my server (10 gig is solely devoted to Bungie). Most of it is from 2002 on, so if you need anything, let me know. It's not that hard to convince most PR firms to put you on the distribution list, whether you should be there or not. I'm sure as hell not going to tell them who i really work for... |
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KingMike
Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 898
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Posted: Tue Apr 22, 2008 5:28 pm Post subject: |
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Could've sworn my copy of Okami had a "IGN 9.5 out of 10" bubble imprinted into the artwork.
I stand corrected. The IGN logo IS on there. But it's "9.5 out of 10 -Play" that is printed on the cover art. |
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neomerge
Joined: 12 Feb 2006 Posts: 351 Location: Woodstock GA!
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Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 12:18 am Post subject: |
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Wow I can't believe this is on the retail product. What happened did Capcom lose their original copy and decide to print out IGN's cover? |
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ProgrammingAce
Joined: 26 May 2006 Posts: 580
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Posted: Wed Apr 23, 2008 4:42 am Post subject: |
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ProTip: 75% of the time, images hot linked from my site are replaced with my logo. The other 25% it's replaced with a picture of Goatse with mario jumping out of his ass...
I hope that makes it into the next capcom release! Just imagine "Mario, Sonic, and Goatse at the olympics". |
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shawnphase
Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 216 Location: baltimore, md
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kap Minister of Paranoia
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 2103 Location: I hate you.
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Posted: Fri Apr 25, 2008 1:48 am Post subject: |
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I find that incredibly classy of them. |
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neomerge
Joined: 12 Feb 2006 Posts: 351 Location: Woodstock GA!
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Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2008 4:34 am Post subject: |
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What the heck did you guys read this recent kotaku article?
The Official Brady Games Strategy Guide has an IGN watermark on it too and its in a different place.
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