Change in PhotoBucket Policy

sheepherder · 07-02-2017, 09:47 AM

Which may (or may not) affect this forum in a positive way...

I got this in an email/newsletter from m1911.org...

One more issue we like to draw your attention to. Photobucket, the image hosting company, has suddenly decided to block images uploaded in their site, from showing in forums, blogs etc. As a result, your images stored in their site will no longer show in our threads. This issue affects also our E-zine site, our images in the various articles no longer show. Photobuckets stopped sharing images on June 30th and wants his members to get a $400 plan, if they want their pictures to show. This is rather crazy, especially considering that Photobucket's original "raison d' Ãªtre" was exactly that, to allow you to share your images stored in their servers in other sites.

We are trying to figure out what to do with this issue, but in the mean time, please do not be alarmed if pictures do not show in the discussion threads or our E-zine.

We've already seen some of the effects of this here, in the For sale sub-forum (pic attached). It does not seem to have been publicized much by PhotoBucket, oddly.

kurusu · 07-02-2017, 10:49 AM

S$$$w photoBucket.

flydive · 07-02-2017, 12:53 PM

Very bad choice by PB, I believe it will backfire hard.

Major Tom · 07-03-2017, 08:23 AM

Never used PB, so I don't worry about it.

DonVoigt · 07-03-2017, 09:52 AM

We've been telling folks for years NOT to use PB or other "outside" host.
Even before this dumb policy, the pictures would disappear.

sheepherder · 07-10-2017, 10:07 PM

I just now received the following email from PhotoBucket...

Your account has been restricted for excessive usage and 3rd party hosting. In order to restore 3rd Party Hosting, please upgrade to the Plus500 Membership Plan. WE NOTICED THAT YOU HAVE BEEN USING PHOTOBUCKET FOR 3RD PARTY HOSTING*

PLEASE UPGRADE TO A PLUS 500 PLAN.

Our Terms of Service does not allow 3rd party hosting with your current account level.
UPGRADE NOW *What is 3rd Party Hosting?

Photobucket defines 3rd party hosting as the action of embedding an image or photo onto another website. For example, using the <img> tag to embed or display a JPEG image from your Photobucket account on another website such as a forum, Etsy, eBay auction listings, a blog, etc. is definitively 3rd party hosting.
Why Photobucket?

Photobucket is the global destination for linking and 3rd party hosting. In Photobucket’s 14-year history, the Company amassed over 100 million registered users, over 15 billion images stored, 2 million daily uploads and 10 billion photos accessed monthly.
Easy to Use – Upload a photo from any device and copy the embed code with one click to host a photo with no development or technical knowledge required
Competitive, fixed pricing Offers the only unlimited 3rd party hosting plan (Commercial and Personal Use)
Are my pictures still safe?

Yes! All your photos are still available by logging into your Photobucket Account. Photobucket has only restricted the ability to view your photos on 3rd party sites.
Can I download my Photos?

Absolutely, at any time. It is an easy four step process:
Step 1. Login to your Photobucket Account
Step 2. Navigate to your library page
Step 3. View a photo and click the download button
Step 4. The picture will be saved to your computer

My pictures are being used on websites??? Not by me!

DonVoigt · 07-10-2017, 11:24 PM

Rich,
sounds like they just want to "frighten" as many folks as possible into paying more for their picture hosting- but then I'm always suspicious and even a little cynical.

Edward Tinker · 07-11-2017, 12:12 AM

Some sites, like the CMP forum do not self-host pictures so a 3rd party is needed. Not sure why that wouldn't be 2nd party actually.... anyway, I quit using photo bucket and use imgur when needed.

Chickenthief · 07-11-2017, 05:05 AM

1'st party: You looking at your pics on Photobuckets www
2'nd party: Someone else looking at your pics on Photobuckets www.
3'rd party: Someone else looking at your pics by link on another www than Photobucket.

1 and 2 are still good bur $400/year for number 3 is to steep and they will bleed loads of customers.
I dont get it because thay have lots of adds on their side so it cant be a money problem. Well it can but thats caled greed.

If they keep up the chananigan i will delete my pics there and ask them to delete ny account.

www.ingur.com is a bit different to use but works great and fast (and no adds!)

CJS57 · 07-11-2017, 06:27 AM

I paid them about $15 (per year) to go ad free about 6 months ago before the new rules. So far the new rules have not affected my 3rd party hosting ability. Time will tell. $15 per year is reasonable.

Edward Tinker · 07-11-2017, 10:17 AM

This should make it obvious how expensive it can be for someone (John Dunkle) to host this complete site and AD free too...

flydive · 07-11-2017, 10:27 AM

Not really.

sheepherder · 08-06-2017, 11:51 AM

I received a follow-up email from M1911.org this morning, concerning PhotoBucket -

July has come and gone, and we are now in August. Still, the mess created by Photobucket is not over.

The latest news is that:

- Photobucket still insists that you pay $400 per year, if you want to be able to link to your pictures from other sites.

- They also have escalated the issues of users trying to download their pictures from Photobucket servers. So far, I have been unable to use the "Download album" function. Photobucket's support acknowledges the issue, but has not yet done anything to fix it. I know this issue worked fine, the first days after their "3rd party hosting" announcement, so I am pretty sure they've turned it of, so that people can't get their pictures back from Photobucket servers. The only way to download your pictures is to do it, one by one!

- It is now also impossible to download your videos, or even see them. I tried to see some of the videos I've uploaded to Photobucket, by visiting their site, and I get the message that "The owner has either deleted or renamed this". Needless to say, I have done neither, and again Photobucket's support acknowledges the issue, but has not yet solved it.

In other words, you can kiss your pictures and videos good-bye, if you do not have backups of what you have uploaded in Photobucket's site.

The funny thing is that someone in Photobucket has created all this mess, while it was entirely possible for them to avoid it and still to make money out of it. How? Simple! Photobucket says they have 100,000,000 users. If instead of asking for $400 per user per year, they have asked for $10 per user per year, most of their members would be only to happy to pay this small fee, to have their pictures shown in other sites, just like they always did. By asking for $400 per user per year, I am sure they won't have enough members paying for that (at least that's what is looks it's happening, as we are talking). Now, if Photobucket were to charge $10 a year for that option, they would have collected one BILLION US DOLLARS a year. By charging $400 a year, they need to find 2,500,000 members to pay that extorsion fee!! Somehow I do not see that happening. So somebody definitely didn't to his match correctly.

I haven't tried to download my pictures on PB, most are 15+ years old and no longer relevant or interesting, even to me.

But the point is well taken: $400 a year is ridiculous.

SteveM · 08-06-2017, 04:06 PM

I had a hard time downloading mine early on, ended up getting them one morning around 3. I suspected heavy traffic during the day, not so much when everybody is sleeping.

Olle · 08-06-2017, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flydive

Very bad choice by PB, I believe it will backfire hard.

I'd say that's right. I suspect that most of their users won't have $400/year to spend on something like that, so all they have accomplished is to lose users and create an opportunity for other sites. Some people will probably pay up the first time just to get their pictures back, but after that there won't be many paying users. Stupid move.

sheepherder · 08-07-2017, 05:04 PM

Here's an excellent example of PhotoBuckets' idiot policy and member's neglecting to post pics on LugerForum...

I did a Search for 'Naval Artillery' and this came up...

flydive · 10-01-2017, 12:33 PM

Google for "Photobucket Embedded Image Fix"

There are plugins for Chrome and Firefox.

alvin · 10-01-2017, 01:10 PM

In another forum, we always used www.tinypic.com. No registration required. Have not used it for years, but just tried it, it still works. After uploading, they assign a http link, just for example

http://oi65.tinypic.com/11qqqtv.jpg
http://oi64.tinypic.com/a0fm07.jpg

Video also works. No registration required.

gunbugs · 10-01-2017, 06:11 PM

I don't understand the advantage of using an outside sever to host your personal photos. I just keep mine on the computer and periodically back them up on a thumb drive. If someone needs to see one of my photos, I just download it from the computer. Seems simpler to me. But what do I know.

flydive · 10-02-2017, 02:26 AM

Like I and probably a lot/most people do. I used Photobucket only few times.

The use of Photobucket is/WAS to load pictures to link in posts on forums(fora).
Not all forums have a gallery available and sometimes you might want to link the same picture to more than one forum, and having only one repository made it easy.
For that Photobucket was good.

The plugin allows you to see pictures on old threads that were ruined by Photobucket new policy.

Unfortunately it will probably not last long, but till then...

07-02-2017, 09:47 AM	#1
sheepherder Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal... Posts: 8,182 Thanks: 1,400 Thanked 4,442 Times in 2,330 Posts	Change in PhotoBucket Policy Which may (or may not) affect this forum in a positive way... I got this in an email/newsletter from m1911.org... One more issue we like to draw your attention to. Photobucket, the image hosting company, has suddenly decided to block images uploaded in their site, from showing in forums, blogs etc. As a result, your images stored in their site will no longer show in our threads. This issue affects also our E-zine site, our images in the various articles no longer show. Photobuckets stopped sharing images on June 30th and wants his members to get a $400 plan, if they want their pictures to show. This is rather crazy, especially considering that Photobucket's original "raison d' Ãªtre" was exactly that, to allow you to share your images stored in their servers in other sites. We are trying to figure out what to do with this issue, but in the mean time, please do not be alarmed if pictures do not show in the discussion threads or our E-zine. We've already seen some of the effects of this here, in the For sale sub-forum (pic attached). It does not seem to have been publicized much by PhotoBucket, oddly. Attached Images __________________ I like my coffee the way I like my women... ...Cold and bitter...

07-03-2017, 08:23 AM	#4
Major Tom User Join Date: Jan 2017 Location: S.E. Iowa Posts: 484 Thanks: 533 Thanked 227 Times in 124 Posts	Never used PB, so I don't worry about it. __________________ I Build Custom Pistol Boxes

07-03-2017, 09:52 AM	#5
DonVoigt User Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: near Charlotte NC Posts: 4,681 Thanks: 1,441 Thanked 4,350 Times in 2,040 Posts	We've been telling folks for years NOT to use PB or other "outside" host. Even before this dumb policy, the pictures would disappear. __________________ 03man(Don Voigt); Luger student and collector. Looking for DWM side plate: 69 ; Dreyse 1907 pistol K.S. Gendarmerie

07-10-2017, 10:07 PM	#6
sheepherder Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal... Posts: 8,182 Thanks: 1,400 Thanked 4,442 Times in 2,330 Posts	I just now received the following email from PhotoBucket... Your account has been restricted for excessive usage and 3rd party hosting. In order to restore 3rd Party Hosting, please upgrade to the Plus500 Membership Plan. WE NOTICED THAT YOU HAVE BEEN USING PHOTOBUCKET FOR 3RD PARTY HOSTING* *PLEASE UPGRADE TO A PLUS 500 PLAN.* Our Terms of Service does not allow 3rd party hosting with your current account level. UPGRADE NOW What is 3rd Party Hosting? Photobucket defines 3rd party hosting as the action of embedding an image or photo onto another website. For example, using the <img> tag to embed or display a JPEG image from your Photobucket account on another website such as a forum, Etsy, eBay auction listings, a blog, etc. is definitively 3rd party hosting. Why Photobucket?* Photobucket is the global destination for linking and 3rd party hosting. In Photobucket’s 14-year history, the Company amassed over 100 million registered users, over 15 billion images stored, 2 million daily uploads and 10 billion photos accessed monthly. Easy to Use – Upload a photo from any device and copy the embed code with one click to host a photo with no development or technical knowledge required Competitive, fixed pricing Offers the only unlimited 3rd party hosting plan (Commercial and Personal Use) *Are my pictures still safe?* Yes! All your photos are still available by logging into your Photobucket Account. Photobucket has only restricted the ability to view your photos on 3rd party sites. *Can I download my Photos?* Absolutely, at any time. It is an easy four step process: Step 1. Login to your Photobucket Account Step 2. Navigate to your library page Step 3. View a photo and click the download button Step 4. The picture will be saved to your computer My pictures are being used on websites??? Not by me! __________________ I like my coffee the way I like my women... ...Cold and bitter...

07-10-2017, 11:24 PM	#7
DonVoigt User Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: near Charlotte NC Posts: 4,681 Thanks: 1,441 Thanked 4,350 Times in 2,040 Posts	Rich, sounds like they just want to "frighten" as many folks as possible into paying more for their picture hosting- but then I'm always suspicious and even a little cynical. __________________ 03man(Don Voigt); Luger student and collector. Looking for DWM side plate: 69 ; Dreyse 1907 pistol K.S. Gendarmerie

07-02-2017, 10:49 AM	#2
kurusu User Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 1,225 Thanks: 2,679 Thanked 930 Times in 509 Posts	S$$$w photoBucket.

07-02-2017, 12:53 PM	#3
flydive User Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Switzerland Posts: 63 Thanks: 1 Thanked 45 Times in 23 Posts	Very bad choice by PB, I believe it will backfire hard.

07-11-2017, 12:12 AM	#8
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,928 Thanks: 2,028 Thanked 4,525 Times in 2,090 Posts	Some sites, like the CMP forum do not self-host pictures so a 3rd party is needed. Not sure why that wouldn't be 2nd party actually.... anyway, I quit using photo bucket and use imgur when needed.

07-11-2017, 05:05 AM	#9
Chickenthief User Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Denmark Posts: 135 Thanks: 0 Thanked 131 Times in 48 Posts	1'st party: You looking at your pics on Photobuckets www 2'nd party: Someone else looking at your pics on Photobuckets www. 3'rd party: Someone else looking at your pics by link on another www than Photobucket. 1 and 2 are still good bur $400/year for number 3 is to steep and they will bleed loads of customers. I dont get it because thay have lots of adds on their side so it cant be a money problem. Well it can but thats caled greed. If they keep up the chananigan i will delete my pics there and ask them to delete ny account. www.ingur.com is a bit different to use but works great and fast (and no adds!)

07-11-2017, 06:27 AM	#10
CJS57 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 224 Thanks: 0 Thanked 81 Times in 41 Posts	I paid them about $15 (per year) to go ad free about 6 months ago before the new rules. So far the new rules have not affected my 3rd party hosting ability. Time will tell. $15 per year is reasonable.

07-11-2017, 10:17 AM	#11
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,928 Thanks: 2,028 Thanked 4,525 Times in 2,090 Posts	This should make it obvious how expensive it can be for someone (John Dunkle) to host this complete site and AD free too...

07-11-2017, 10:27 AM	#12
flydive User Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Switzerland Posts: 63 Thanks: 1 Thanked 45 Times in 23 Posts	Not really.

08-06-2017, 11:51 AM	#13
sheepherder Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal... Posts: 8,182 Thanks: 1,400 Thanked 4,442 Times in 2,330 Posts	I received a follow-up email from M1911.org this morning, concerning PhotoBucket - July has come and gone, and we are now in August. Still, the mess created by Photobucket is not over. The latest news is that: - Photobucket still insists that you pay $400 per year, if you want to be able to link to your pictures from other sites. - They also have escalated the issues of users trying to download their pictures from Photobucket servers. So far, I have been unable to use the "Download album" function. Photobucket's support acknowledges the issue, but has not yet done anything to fix it. I know this issue worked fine, the first days after their "3rd party hosting" announcement, so I am pretty sure they've turned it of, so that people can't get their pictures back from Photobucket servers. The only way to download your pictures is to do it, one by one! - It is now also impossible to download your videos, or even see them. I tried to see some of the videos I've uploaded to Photobucket, by visiting their site, and I get the message that "The owner has either deleted or renamed this". Needless to say, I have done neither, and again Photobucket's support acknowledges the issue, but has not yet solved it. In other words, you can kiss your pictures and videos good-bye, if you do not have backups of what you have uploaded in Photobucket's site. The funny thing is that someone in Photobucket has created all this mess, while it was entirely possible for them to avoid it and still to make money out of it. How? Simple! Photobucket says they have 100,000,000 users. If instead of asking for $400 per user per year, they have asked for $10 per user per year, most of their members would be only to happy to pay this small fee, to have their pictures shown in other sites, just like they always did. By asking for $400 per user per year, I am sure they won't have enough members paying for that (at least that's what is looks it's happening, as we are talking). Now, if Photobucket were to charge $10 a year for that option, they would have collected one BILLION US DOLLARS a year. By charging $400 a year, they need to find 2,500,000 members to pay that extorsion fee!! Somehow I do not see that happening. So somebody definitely didn't to his match correctly. I haven't tried to download my pictures on PB, most are 15+ years old and no longer relevant or interesting, even to me. But the point is well taken: $400 a year is ridiculous. __________________ I like my coffee the way I like my women... ...Cold and bitter...

08-06-2017, 04:06 PM	#14
SteveM User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Texas Posts: 1,016 Thanks: 94 Thanked 275 Times in 137 Posts	I had a hard time downloading mine early on, ended up getting them one morning around 3. I suspected heavy traffic during the day, not so much when everybody is sleeping.

08-07-2017, 05:04 PM	#16
sheepherder Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal... Posts: 8,182 Thanks: 1,400 Thanked 4,442 Times in 2,330 Posts	Here's an excellent example of PhotoBuckets' idiot policy and member's neglecting to post pics on LugerForum... I did a Search for 'Naval Artillery' and this came up... Attached Thumbnails __________________ I like my coffee the way I like my women... ...Cold and bitter...

10-01-2017, 12:33 PM	#17
flydive User Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Switzerland Posts: 63 Thanks: 1 Thanked 45 Times in 23 Posts	Google for "Photobucket Embedded Image Fix" There are plugins for Chrome and Firefox.

10-01-2017, 01:10 PM	#18
alvin User Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: US Posts: 3,843 Thanks: 132 Thanked 729 Times in 438 Posts	In another forum, we always used www.tinypic.com. No registration required. Have not used it for years, but just tried it, it still works. After uploading, they assign a http link, just for example http://oi65.tinypic.com/11qqqtv.jpg http://oi64.tinypic.com/a0fm07.jpg Video also works. No registration required.

10-01-2017, 06:11 PM	#19
gunbugs Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Fairbanks, Alaska. Home of the best moose. Posts: 656 Thanks: 361 Thanked 1,175 Times in 393 Posts	I don't understand the advantage of using an outside sever to host your personal photos. I just keep mine on the computer and periodically back them up on a thumb drive. If someone needs to see one of my photos, I just download it from the computer. Seems simpler to me. But what do I know.

10-02-2017, 02:26 AM	#20
flydive User Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Switzerland Posts: 63 Thanks: 1 Thanked 45 Times in 23 Posts	Like I and probably a lot/most people do. I used Photobucket only few times. The use of Photobucket is/WAS to load pictures to link in posts on forums(fora). Not all forums have a gallery available and sometimes you might want to link the same picture to more than one forum, and having only one repository made it easy. For that Photobucket was good. The plugin allows you to see pictures on old threads that were ruined by Photobucket new policy. Unfortunately it will probably not last long, but till then...