Well, THAT's more USER FRIENDLY! I do think it makes a difference if it's a photo-hosting site, though. If you look at the wording for other forums, (which I did for hours the other night) you'll see very similar to what iVillage has put up...with just a few additional words. They seem to be covering themselves for every possible liklihood of suit that may come up against them. ~Rosemarie

Mary, I really like that because it is sturdier than the platform feeders that use screening, which often gets nasty and holes from much use. You could clean that in the dishwasher after a good hand wash. I have some small animal cage lids around. What did you use and how did you hook the chain to the lid? Regarding copyright - put a copyright note with your name and date on every photo. That should cause some pause. If I read their policy correctly they are not claiming the right to own your photos, but the right to use your copyrighted materials. From an owner's standpoint that most likely makes no difference, since many of us might want a company to seek permission before use. They won't have to, but at least if you put a copyright mark on your photo you will get credit as it being your photo if they do decide to use it. I am seriously contemplating leaving GW completely because I don't want my emails to get on mailing lists and I don't like the fact that when I log on with my name and password it redirects my information to an unsecure site. iV is also associated with way too many affiliate sites for my liking. Sometimes there comes a point where I am not comfortable using a site that could prove to be a huge annoyance later, when I weigh it against how much I use the site now, which is very little. Also, on the bird forum I found an opt-out link for the site where you can supposedly instruct iV to not sell or give away your email addresses, but we all know how that goes. Sometimes just the act of opting out of something puts your email on the expensive (more valuable) list, as it is a comfirmation that there really is a person behind the email. Most internet security instructions say to igmore opt-outs, but since this opt-out is directly affilated and put out by iV maybe it is safer, but then again maybe not. They ARE mass marketers and information about our usage on the site is their main business. They will track us: what we read, how many times we visit, what we post, and what we buy. Data mining. I get rid of data miner files every week, do I want more on purpose? It all might mean nothing as well. To each his own. Take care, CT

She apparently thinks Google Images is a free-for-all site when she could get into serious trouble. If you click on an image in Google Images, Google warns you with: "Images may be subject to copyright". So you should be able to get her in trouble with eBay for stealing your image. It even says on the eBay policy page that eBay members are not allowed to use images or texts that they did not create unless they have permission by the original owner. You probably already clicked the "Report item" link on her auction, but if you didn't, you should report it. Maybe it'll make her think twice before being so aloof by taking another image again.

There is a problem with copyrights and that is that there are no copyright police. You may own the rights to your images or text but keeping track of who's using it and bringing them to justice is all up to you. You can't call the cops and point to the crime and expect them to pursue it. Even if you have a lawyer involved, the thief gets to keep using your copyrighted material and making money off of it until they get the cease and desist letter from your lawyer. You get to take them to court AFTER they continue to use it from that point. If they aren't making a ton of money off your images your lawyer will tell you give it up and hope they clean up their act after recieving a legal sounding letter. You might even be in a situation where you do take them to court and you could win a judgement against them, but if they simply don't pay it you have to take them to court again to force them to pay up. It is all a big mess that really only works out well for people that find their work being used illegaly by businesses that make lots of money. So basically all you get to do is huff and puff and the other party may choose to ignore your threats - I've seen it happen before. Some creative solutions is to only use low resolution images on the web (so that when they steal it they are restricted as to its size, thereby limiting its use); and you can place a clear box over all your images so that when they try to cut and paste they only capture a clear box and not the image underneath it.