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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 26, 2012 10:12:35 GMT -5
Just had a look, yourfanfiction.com has grown quite a bit over the last two months, too. When the whole thing started, there were only a handful of HP stories, now it's over 300 already. It's growing slowly, but it is growing. Maybe over time it will become a real alternative. And they even have a category for the RtB stories.
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Post by blackroses77 on Jul 26, 2012 12:01:55 GMT -5
I hope it continues to grow, it would be great to be able to leave ffn behind.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 26, 2012 12:21:21 GMT -5
Definitely. If we just could talk all our favourite authors into switching to another site as well ...
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Post by teflonbilly on Jul 26, 2012 20:49:54 GMT -5
I'm about to take serious heat for the following, but oh well.
While I hate the way FFnet is being moderated right now, I just don't have any sympathy for the first post's linked in author.
Particularly when song lyrics really just don't add ANYTHING to fanfics, really, they don't. It's great that the songs inspired you, I love it when the authors through a youtube link to the song so I can discover new music, but the traditional songfic with lyrics that at best only tangentially relate to the fanfic's plot just don't add anything and it's straight up copyright infringement.
So are RtB fanfics, but I like em, I just am willing to admit that they probably don't have a place on FFnet owing to their high visibility (they are ripe target for being sued into oblivion by some Hollywood lawyer.)
It's not about feelings, personal need to express your inner snowflakeness by co-opting someone else original creative into your derivateness, it's about right and wrong and legal liability.
Copyright infringement is wrong, is it a mortal sin? No. But lets all be honest and accept that copying someone elses written works (in the case of fanfic) that is still protected by copyright (Mark Twain is completely available for RtB fanfic, btw) without the author's permission is not within our rights.
And we shouldn't get all butt-hurt when someone calls an author on it.
TB
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Post by physicssquid on Jul 26, 2012 20:56:49 GMT -5
I'm about to take serious heat for the following, but oh well. While I hate the way FFnet is being moderated right now, I just don't have any sympathy for the first post's linked in author. Particularly when song lyrics really just don't add ANYTHING to fanfics, really, they don't. It's great that the songs inspired you, I love it when the authors through a youtube link to the song so I can discover new music, but the traditional songfic with lyrics that at best only tangentially relate to the fanfic's plot just don't add anything and it's straight up copyright infringement. So are RtB fanfics, but I like em, I just am willing to admit that they probably don't have a place on FFnet owing to their high visibility (they are ripe target for being sued into oblivion by some Hollywood lawyer.) It's not about feelings, personal need to express your inner snowflakeness by co-opting someone else original creative into your derivateness, it's about right and wrong and legal liability. Copyright infringement is wrong, is it a mortal sin? No. But lets all be honest and accept that copying someone elses written works (in the case of fanfic) that is still protected by copyright (Mark Twain is completely available for RtB fanfic, btw) without the author's permission is not within our rights. And we shouldn't get all butt-hurt when someone calls an author on it. TB I agree, BUT, the reviewer who wrote that review to the first post's linked in author could have been a bit nicer about it, instead of saying something along the lines of 'tough luck'. I do sympathise with the author in that regard, it isn't nice when someone is rude and unpleasant when pointing something out, they could have been a bit nicer about it. |
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 27, 2012 0:20:48 GMT -5
But that's just the point, they don't want to be nice, they want to bully them into taking stories down. They get their kick out of intimidating the authors and seeing them being helpless against their attacks.
Teflonbilly, while I understand where you come from, consider that you could argue that not only the RtB stories, but *all* fanfictions are copyright infringement, save the books themselves are so old that there's no copyright any longer. The whole website would be illegal in that regard, so the RtB or songfics are just part of the whole problem. At best, they are a bit more infringement than the rest.
For me it would even be understandable to take them out, if not for the way *how* that went.
- FFN didn't do *anything* for years, giving the distinct impression they are allowed. (Back when I had a look at the TOS, there was just "no MST" - absolutely no help for me, as I didn't even know what on earth that was supposed to be, so I never had the impression they are forbidden in the first place.)
- when they finally acted, they did it
a) because someone decided to mass-report fics, not on their own
b) without any warning whatsoever, secretly and behind everyone's backs. No explanation, no excuse, no apologies to these who lost everything.
To me, that's an amazingly bad way to handle a problem and your customers (and you could say that the authors are their customers, considering the purpose of the website).
And that's why I am so annoyed, particularly as I have heard before that they always handle problems that way - get a complaint, kick story out without checking, without telling the author, don't answer any mails and questions, just ignore everything save the complaint. Frankly, if authors had to pay for publishing their stories there, FFN wouldn't exist any more with that policy.
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Post by 19811945 on Jul 27, 2012 13:18:55 GMT -5
From what I read somewhere (this was some years ago), that the songs that was released/wrote in the 1950s have their copyright up, and we are allowed to use their lyrics. I'm unsure if this is ongoing or not, or I can be wrong about it.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 27, 2012 13:45:06 GMT -5
No idea about songs, but I know for books the copyright ends 70 years after the death of the author.
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Post by teflonbilly on Jul 27, 2012 13:54:11 GMT -5
From what I read somewhere (this was some years ago), that the songs that was released/wrote in the 1950s have their copyright up, and we are allowed to use their lyrics. I'm unsure if this is ongoing or not, or I can be wrong about it. All "published" works from 1923 or earlier are in the public domain. The word "published" is key here. That would include song lyrics. Everything else is life of the artist/author + 70 years. There was a brief period during the 1940s thru 1950s that some works had their copyrights expire when it was 20 years + one 20 year renewal. But that's hit or miss. The publisher would to have had to let the original copyright to have lapsed without renewal for the window (between changes in the copyright statutes in the USA, and I'm only talking about the US) of general public domain works during that time. TB |
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Post by bkaddictjk on Jul 27, 2012 20:47:22 GMT -5
I want to review everything... but the internet connection!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (It shuts down so often..)
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 27, 2012 23:39:45 GMT -5
Oh dear, that is really annoying. I remember the time when my own was wonky because the cable socket for the internet cable on my laptop (that was before WLAN) was broken ... it drove me nuts. At least I could solve the problem with a new laptop and the end of dial-up, while for you there's nothing you can do  |
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Post by codygotkilld on Jul 28, 2012 2:51:50 GMT -5
I live out in the middle of nowhere and everytime there is a chance of rain I have to unplug my wireless internet. If not, then it is bye-bye internet for me. The sad thing is when my internet does go out it may take weeks for them to repair it due to only having 5 people that fix/install phones for two counties. I think the main reason my internet sucks is because it is windstream and they have some of thhe most crappiest customer service compared to others and sadly, they are the only ones that cover my area.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 28, 2012 7:51:36 GMT -5
Oh man. I know it's not wise to leave it plugged in when there's a thunderstorm, but just because it's raining is extreme. And having to wait for so long, too! You're probably not living in a big city, then? That sort of problem I know rather from tiny hamlets around here.
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Post by codygotkilld on Jul 28, 2012 14:43:48 GMT -5
Yeah, Stilwell is unofficially considered a part of Arkansas in the news around my area. Heck, Oklahoma only cares about my entire county if there is a flood or tornado in the area, otherwise it's like we don't exist sometimes. The reason why my internet is so finicky is mainly on how pathetic and lazy the phone people are. An example would be what happened 2 years ago when we had an ice storm that knocked out both the power and phone lines and the phone people were fixing their houses when they were not priority compared to the hospital.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 28, 2012 15:10:07 GMT -5
That's really bad |
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Post by bkaddictjk on Jul 28, 2012 20:28:48 GMT -5
Yeah, really sucky :/
... *rereading post* THEY FIXED THE HOUSES INSTEAD OF THE HOSPITAL? O.O
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Post by codygotkilld on Jul 28, 2012 22:03:15 GMT -5
Yeah, the douche-bags were fixing their houses when they were supposed to fix other places. It became so bad that owner of windstream came down and jumped their asses for doing it. He finally had to have people from Texas to help with the repair since he couldn't fire them due to the low market for telecommuications in our area. So yeah, my hometown kind of sucks when it comes to modern technology.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 29, 2012 1:00:57 GMT -5
That's really unbelievable! What if because of their actions someone had died, because they couldn't call for help in time? Didn't they think of the possible consequences??
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Post by codygotkilld on Jul 29, 2012 1:53:08 GMT -5
Nope. Trust me, I have met three of them and they all came off as being selfish egoist each time I have ran into them. Which is quite a few times since Stilwell is smallish compared to neighboring cities. The thing that pisses me off about them is that they think that they are above other's even though they have such an average career.
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 29, 2012 2:46:56 GMT -5
So, a bit like Vernon? At least they sound equally delusional. It has to be quite annoying to deal with people like that. And that they didn't get fired for their behaviour will only tell them that they are indispensable and can do as they please |
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Post by bkaddictjk on Jul 29, 2012 10:35:06 GMT -5
Ohh! Nice Harry Potter reference  but really, that sucks... so many selfish people in the world... wow, I feel like a hypocrite |
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Post by 19811945 on Jul 29, 2012 15:11:48 GMT -5
Have you considered petitioning (along with your neighbours and friends) to a bigger company in order to buy out these idiots and be able to get a better deal. There's no harm in trying.
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Post by codygotkilld on Jul 29, 2012 16:22:52 GMT -5
Eh, the thing is a bunch of people really don't care or don't have internet and see it as to much trouble. If you ever want to see a bigger town filled with gossip's, you should check Stilwell out or run far, far away. A good example of this would be the Stilwell, OK Topix forum where everyone is fair game as you talk behind their backs.
God, I can't wait until I finish up at my community college next May so that I can leave this hell that is my hometown.
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Post by 19811945 on Jul 29, 2012 16:43:38 GMT -5
In the UK there are competition between companies. I'm surprised that not all of the US have these competition between companies.
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Post by lucyolsen on Jul 29, 2012 16:59:11 GMT -5
There is no competition anywhere in terms of telecom and tv in America. If you're lucky, you get the option of a single cable internet provider vs a single phone company internet provider.
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Post by Ithiarel on Jul 30, 2012 3:21:43 GMT -5
Yes, well. The US cover a far bigger area than all the countries in Europe do. So they would (theoretically) need ten (or twenty) times as many companies than the European countries to have the same kind of competition, right? It does make sense - in a twisted sort of way - that in rural parts there wouldn't be so much competition.
At my place (in Northern Germany), the phone lines we use all belong to German Telekom. However, other internet companies rent those lines for their customers. (I'm a customer of EWETel, even if the hard wire used still belongs to the Telekom) It's all very murky, who is responsible for what. If we have a problem with the internet the companies involved tend to hold each other responsible, and then it can also take weeks until someone comes by to repair something.
(Although, unlike your support staff, ours is very nice. A supporter from Telekom once send me a new router privately, so that we at least had internet until the actual problem was solved!)
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 30, 2012 3:34:23 GMT -5
Oh wow, that one must have been the exception to the rule, I've heard some horror stories about our dear Telekom!
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Post by Ithiarel on Jul 30, 2012 4:07:54 GMT -5
I know! I was surprised too. But I guess, he just took pity on me.
... Helpless girl on the phone, suffering of internet withdrawal, and close to tears because no one wanted to help out... yeah. I'm sure, he just pitied me. ;D
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Post by Kitty279 on Jul 30, 2012 10:01:23 GMT -5
LOL - now that would be an explanation ;D Pity I can't make phone calls, or I just might try that method next time I have a problem instead of putting little brother on the task!
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Post by eskimoRock on Jul 31, 2012 6:53:08 GMT -5
I don't actually know who my Internet provider is, now I think about it. I used to have awful problems with my internet logging me out of Facebook or tumblr whenever I pressed a button, but now I have my iPad it's gone and I am very happy  |
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