someone wrote:
> >I hope no one is thinking about stealing these images?
Actually, I take offense at the assumption inherent in this response.
However, I did write to the designer of the pages at Kokomo glass with your
apparent concern and received a most thoughtful and realistic response. It
follows:
==================
Subject:
Re: Question for ya.... and comments
Date:
Fri, 22 May 1998 09:06:37 -0500
From:
Dan Waber <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To:
Dick Rhindress <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Dear Dick,
Thank you for your kind words. It's always a good thing to get some
feedback, and when it's positive, it's that much better. On to you
questions:
>A couple of people responded with "you can't use those designs -- that's
>stealing".
Like none of them has ever lifted a piece of code from another page by
viewing the source, or pulled an animated .gif from somewhere. :-)
Internet copyright is a sticky wicket, to say the least. Unofficially, I
think most people realize that anything you put up can be taken away,
regardless of warnings and notices, so no one in their right mind ever puts
up anything they can't stand to have taken. Stealing, to me, means you
lose something. You can't steal a smile, because no matter how many you
take, the person you stole them from still has more (in theory). All we
stand to lose in having these images up and freely available to both the
scrupulous and the unscrupulous is *control* over how the images (and text)
are used. To answer your comments in order, I'll have to ask you to hold
this thought in the background for a moment.....
>I responded with "why do you think the page designer put a
>link on every one pointing to it?" ... and they're not really designs,
>just scans of (representative) chunks of glass.
I converted all the images to tiles (no small task for 290 images) so that
people using stained glass design software could plug the images into their
programs and use them seamlessly to "paint" the designs. (If you haven't
see software like this, I highly recommend "Designer" by American Bevel:
http://www.americanbevel.com). They aren't designs, in most senses, but,
from a Graphic Artist standpoint, they certainly represent a potentially
protectable creation of my own....so you may both be right in this
instance.
>The usual discussion
>ensued about giving credit, etc. and I pointed out how you provide
>guidance on that by including the product number link down in the
>address block.
Our part number for the glass is also the file name. After the fact (as
always), I realized I should have made the file names include KOG, and may
still do that some weekend when it's raining and I can't think of any of my
own teeth that need pulling without anesthesia.
>I looked on the site for a message about use of these scans and didn't
>find it. My point is you would not have made your tileable images so
>readily available if you didn't want them used (with appropriate credit,
>of course).
With appropriate credit being the operative phrase. You are right on all
counts here. By placing them on the Internet at all, I am giving a certain
permission to use them. There is no message on the site regarding use.
>I certainly feel they would be neat to use,
One lady is using them for accents in her print newsletter. :-)
>O.K., so I'm looking for (1) your opinion or policy,
Use them, please. All I ask is that you leave the file names alone so
people can relate the images back to our color numbers, and that you
somewhere politely cite where they came from (with a link to the site
would, of course, be the best way to get in my good graces).
and (2) your
>permission.
See (1)
>Plus (3) I'd suggest you put a message somewhere about
>appropriate use and credit -- since they are so obvious others will be
>tempted as they find them.
I considered that, and decided if I did, I'd never get to hear from people
who want to use them. :-) The people who are going to use them without
permission are going to use them whether I have a disclaimer up or not.
The good, honest people are going to ask, as you have. This way I get the
closest thing to maintaining control over how they are used. Not a perfect
solution, but, then, we don't live in a perfect world (how boring that
would be).
>One further thought, on text not images. I like what you have done with
>the ALT tags and with the text surrounding the factory tour.
Thanks, not everyone can see those, you know. :-) Nice to know someone
caught my smiles.
If you need to know anything else, please don't hesitate to ask. I've
taken the liberty of adding your email address to my "Tell me when the page
is updated" list...let me know if you would prefer to be removed. I did
some updating yesterday, btw, two new colors added, and some new stuff in
the History section.
Thanks again for taking the time to write.
Dan Waber
Sales and Marketing
Kokomo Opalescent Glass
Nature's Only Real Competitor Since 1888
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.kog.com <---Updated 5-20-98
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