things that make you go hmmm
The other night i was checking the server logs that this blog is hosted on and found a referring URL to a website which copied all my work related posts and my photo’s etc. Not only copying the content, but bandwidth theft. Linking the pics from that website to mine, they couldn’t even be bothered hosting my photo’s on their own server space. I am at a loss as to why anyone would want to do that to me. I am hoping it’s not anyone from work, because that would be pretty harsh and pretty mean. It would also mean it’s someone I work with, who knows me, and that disappoints me.
I shouldn’t need to justify myself to anyone, including those who read this site. I don’t like the idea of having to censor what I write about. I do limit what I write about work, because I am acutely aware of the hazards of doocing. On the otherhand I do actually enjoy working in the call centre, and the frustration and anger I express are like photo’s taken. It’s how I feel on the day, and I get over it and it’s a memory on how I have grown up and developed personally, and in some way, professionally.
I also got an email from an aussie cartoonist who wants me to look at his site, I thought it was a spam mail. It turns out he’s quite good and some of his cartoons are quite funny. You can find the link to his site, Cartoon Australia. He wants to break into the newspaper market and thinks blog power will give his campaign a little more oomph. He might be right! In anycase, advertising someone’s goods for their profit isn’t my thing, but he was pretty up front about it all and honest about it.
November 28th, 2005 at 10:16 am
wow how do you find out all this stuff, like who’s reading your blog? I’m super paranoid because i had to actually sign a contract saying i would not discuss our product on “online message board/forums or web blogs”??? Beat that!
November 28th, 2005 at 7:24 pm
well i moved from blogspot to another hosting company for one thing, and also i have something called sitemeter. Go look for http://www.sitemeter.com n stuff.
November 29th, 2005 at 1:36 am
Hey Lori,
Long time no comment - I hope you’re doing O.K. (I like the new look btw)
If the person who ripped your content is serving it up from the USA, you can send a DMCA takedown notice to their host - Just google for it. Even if they’re not in the USA, the search engines _are_ so you can file notice of infringement with them to get the site delisted. - no SE listing means no traffic, and that’s probably what they’re after. There are a lot of bottom-feeders who pull real content by script and then post it automatically with their own advertisments.
Take care
November 29th, 2005 at 9:02 am
Hugh! hi! I’ll look into it
You’ll need to remember that email address you put in so you can comment otherwise you’ll need me to approve all your comments each time you say hello!
Hope you are doing ok - I was wondering where you had disappeared to and thanks for the compliment
hope you are doing well and I am doing just fine 
November 30th, 2005 at 8:43 am
Lori, I know you didn’t intend it, but most people hate to have their names and the word “spam” in the same sentence.
Basically what I wanted your esteemed readers to do was evaluate my work for themselves and IF they liked it, to approach their local editor and say “hey, how come I have to put up with XXXX in my local paper when there’s another strip I’d much rather see?
That’s a message many successful US cartoonists have on their site, for instance.
Of course there’s always the possibility that people look at one’s work and say “man, you have some neck! Your stuff sucks!” but that’s a risk we cartoonists take.
Rather than panhandling, I see my actions as busking. I’m performing for passing trade. Maybe down the line it’ll come to something, and maybe not, but for cartoonists who are not known, there’s no way to GET known, if you follow me?
I took a long time choosing which bloggers I would approach. There are an awful lot of blog sites out there who attract a great number of hits, but those sites (many containing foul language, mysoginistic attitudes and racial slurs) are not where I want to be.
Thanks for posting the link, but it was to my blog page, which didn’t have any work on it.
In retrospect, this was probably a happy accident
I’m uncomfortable with anyone feeling that there’s any aspect of spam involved in my approach, especially when they themselves are “advertising someone’s goods for their profit”.
I took a risk, it’s not in my nature to do so, and I won’t try this avenue again.
Thanks for your considered and kind approach, however, and best wishes.
November 30th, 2005 at 8:48 am
I should correct one sentence there.
The second-last paragraph should read:
“I’m uncomfortable with anyone feeling that there’s any aspect of spam involved in my approach, especially when they themselves are *uncomfortable* “advertising someone’s goods for their profitâ€.
Sorry for that.
November 30th, 2005 at 8:16 pm
[...] I wrote about a gentleman who has a cartoon blog and I should comment that he didn’t SPAM me. So I would like to apologise to him for implying he was a bad man. He’s not. He’s very creative and his name is Malcom. [...]
November 30th, 2005 at 8:19 pm
Malcom.. I apologise for implying you were spamming, I did enjoy your site, and I have passed it on to a few people.
December 1st, 2005 at 7:54 am
…and I apologise for getting my skirt hitched into my knickers over it.
I think it was because you mentioned the bandwidth thief and other creepy stuff in the preceding paragraph.
I WAS yelling “it wasn’t ME!!”