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#1
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A Warning to File Traders
I've posted about this on the forum, but there's still apparently some of this going on. We take this seriously, and there will be loss of account privileges for those caught doing any of this, so new users should take note.
1.) Please don't send unsolicited messages to members asking for lossless rips of their albums. It's apparent that some of you are "spamming" everyone who owns an album, begging them to share a lossless rip. This must stop now. VGMdb's collection feature is for everyone to use, and I don't want anybody to feel like they have to start hiding their collections to keep from being harassed. 2.) Please don't use the "Show Collections" page to advertise file-trading. This is an example of the Show Collections page. For each user who has the album in their collection, the user name and the title of the immediate containing folder is displayed. I have caught a couple of people clearly using this to solicit trades, with folder titles such as "Lossless (with cue) for Trade."
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#2
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I think those stats numbers altogether or at least the private ones shouldn't be publicly visible. Also it might be a good idea to hide folders from the public until they actually have some content.
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#3
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The collection code needs a revamp. Right now, you can have a public album or folder in a private folder. It still doesn't show up in the list, which is the correct behavior, but it messes up all the tallies.
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#4
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That reminds me, the "Statistics" part about largest collection gets skewed when people have pirated MP3s in it. Any chance of not counting private folders? Or would that just worsen the problem?
__________________
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#5
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In my opinion, a single PM asking for a rip of a CD that is normally incapable of being obtainined (out of print, too few copies) should be permitted; let's face it, not everyone here can afford $400 for every obscure album they can find, and history shows that piracy cannot be prevented anyway. I completely understand the harassment issue; but if it's troublesome or unethical for the owner of a VGM album to share the files in such a fashion, shouldn't a single reply saying "No, sorry" suffice? And if there are multiple replies asking "why" and trying to convince the owner to change their mind, wouldn't it be enough to simply ban the member? I can understand why users who harrass other users repeatedly should be punished, but shouldn't those who do agree to consent to a file sharing have some peace and privacy?
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#6
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We don't go around actively monitoring private messages, and we generally take action if there's a substantiated complaint, so at that stage it would be something beyond just a "simple PM".
This policy was borne out of the principle of mutual respect, since I have been informed that content creators from both east and west do visit this site from time to time (some even submit their own albums), and everyone should be mindful about what they post on the forums at all times. We can't prevent piracy, but we can at least refrain from outright disrespect. |
#7
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Irregardeless of respect to artists it's disrespectful to collectors. I should not have to make a folder called "DO NOT MESSAGE ME FOR LOSSLESS RIPS". There are a number of us who do not believe in lossless trading, I am one of them. If you cannot afford the price of a rare album, which many people cannot, then whatever format you can find the album in should suffice for your listening pleasure. No one needs lossless. I symphathize with the cost of this hobby because I've been the poor college student once, too.
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#8
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Quote:
1) Ignore them. 2) Kindly point the 'requesting user' to a website/online auction where the item can be purchased... and make a mental note of ignoring every subsequent message/request by him/her. They really get me pissed, sometimes... Here, for example: yesterday I've received a FLAC rip request from a user which is registered on here, too, for this - http://vgmdb.net/album/11230. A) You're doing a 'not-so-cool' thing by requesting a rip of it; B) CDJapan still sells it, if you want lossless purchase the damn thing! I'd be a bit more understanding if you requested a rip of an out-of-print album (and even in that case you'd have no right to choose the audio format. Take what others may be willing to give away and be grateful for their kind gesture). VGMdb isn't born for such purpose, as far as I know. Now, for a slightly unrelated matter... I read that content creators might browse this website and I've always wondered this: are they really fine with the fact that VGMdb hosts and allows to view/download albums' scans? Isn't such 'data' subject to copyright laws, too? I mean, what makes them different from the 'audio part' of the album? Probably I'm an idiot, but I've troubles understanding why this website might have troubles for sharing openly album rips, while it is already 'giving away' booklets / obis / stickers / disk covers... Last edited by ilef; Jul 27, 2011 at 03:40 AM. |
#9
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Quote:
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#10
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Quote:
That goes for everyone that uses this site. And I don't think the scans are as big a deal as the music; if the album's authority wishes for it to be removed, then give them an option to request that the images be removed. Otherwise, they're an amazing resource that's used for catalogging music good or bad. |
#11
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Quote:
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#12
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scans are mainly used for providing info
for example, a person who submits scans can not have the time to add info (cd staff, compo/arr details etc) and thus with scans provided, anyone can see and fill in the blanks for the whole community personally, I'm just fine with compo/vocal details but other people want arrangers etc on another note, piracy can have an advantage (not necessarily lossless, but simple mp3s) the one to know if you could like or hate the album, and if you like the album you buy it or you delete the "shit" some onlineshop sites propose to listen to tracks (ok, about 45sec) and it's not considered as piracy even if it's "free" and you can even listen to music in real shops |
#13
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One simple reason really; scans are the "be-all and end-all" verification of the accuracy of our information. Now, I certainly don't want VGMdb to be seen as booklet dump site, and I have no problem with further restricting access (it's already restricted for normal visitors) or image sizes if necessary. Hopefully it won't come to that, since it's a great resource for researchers -- there's so much information and history that can be gleaned from liner notes.
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#14
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I'm curious: Did someone (artists, publisher, copyright holder, etc.) already complain, either officially or "inofficially" about VGMdb storing their album scans?
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#15
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A composer provided me better scans for one of his albums =)
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#16
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Ok, thanks for the answers, everyone. So, if I've understood right VGMdb is still in a sort of "grey zone", or whatever it is called... The scans can be a "Way to Fall", to uselessy reference Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, but it simply hasn't happened... yet.
It's nice to read that there are composers who take time to provide better-quality material, but there might also be those who are not happy with it... Oh, well, let's hope the situation doesn't change. Thanks again for your answers. |
#17
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You know, most forum software gives you the option to ignore certain users. I use this feature a lot on some other sites I frequent...
Never needed it here though |
#18
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Although I understand that booklets and package artwork are protected under copyright law, I think that the majority of artists would not mind having that material provided for free (especially as it's not provided to non-members). It's my opinion that what is sold when one buys an album is the music contained therein, rather than the packaging. Individual VGM artists, although they may care about the packaging or have worked on it in some significant way, have put the majority of their time into composing/arranging the music itself. Publishers, on the other hand, may not share that view. I think the downfall of the scans section will come when publishers, especially big-name publishers, start seeing this site as a significant entity.
As for pirated music, the argument that "we cannot stop it from happening" gives no reason to condone the behavior. We want to make this into a legitimate site, and turning a blind eye to open illegal activity makes us look anything but legitimate. |
#19
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Actually, the scans on VGMdb are provided to non-users, too... When you view an album page as a visitor you don't get the complete list of scans, but you can still view+save low-resolutions samples of them. Anyway, you're right, the bigger problem might come from the publishers.
Now, this is my personal view on the matter, but even sharing/hosting scans like this website currently does might be rightly considered a form of "piracy".... Such stuff might be source of information, but it's always material as copyrighted as the music... I say: "Allow one? You might as well allow both, since there isn't really much difference between the two." [just kidding, eh, don't worry ] I think of VGMdb as a sort of very useful, lightly-warez website. Last edited by ilef; Jul 27, 2011 at 08:44 AM. |
#20
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Quote:
That's not to say I'm completely fine with providing scans in the way we do, and ultimately it would be nice to know how publishers feel about it. |
#21
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I'm sorry to reply this late to your post, but I've a small consideration to make about your point. While it holds an amount of truth to it, I don't think the incentive to purchase is really the matter... It's more about the single person's mentality. Those who want to own the original strive to get it, even if you throw at them a perfect rip with scans in .png format. On the other hand, those who do not purchase an album and settle for a pirated copy are unlikely to ever pay for it, even when it is as pricey as 3.99 USD.... They prefer to print the scans and come up with something which loosely resembles the original.
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#22
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So those could as well not exist at all.
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#23
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Talking about the people or the albums?
I'll not go as far as saying that, because ultimately we're free to do what we want. I guess I'm just tired of seeing the same, lame, meaningless excuses from the rip requesters: - The album's too expensive for me - Woah, dude! VGMusic is an hobby, in case you haven't understood this, yet. You don't need it for your health, you happen to just like/love it. Come to terms with the fact that you might not get everything you want. - The import taxes/shipping fees are too high - Obviously the point above still applies to an extent, but... Seriously? Do you mean to tell me that you'd prefer to spend more money to travel to Japan/X, search in local stores - without certainty to find the album, mind, especially when it's old -, than ordering online and have it delivered? Well, your choice. Look, I'm aware that these albums are pretty hard to see in our stores... But 'import' is there to save the day... And IMHO the fees aren't too high, in most cases... Obviously it largely depends on what kind of deliver you choose. When I've ordered this, the album costed 18.59€, add to it 15€ of UPS delivery... The album was shipped on the 5th day and the package arrived two days later; I could have spent 6-7€ and get it in 3-4 weeks through airmail... It's up the buyer. - It's out of print now - Oh, poor thing, couldn't get a hold of it when it was available... Sucks for you. - It's a limited/promotional edition - Hmm... So what? Let me add to that, the answer lies right there in the name: it's a limited/enclosed/promotional item! It's not "meant" to be owned by everyone. It's funny to see how such things never change over the years. Last edited by ilef; Sep 29, 2011 at 11:12 PM. |
#24
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Perfect example of what _not_ to do:
http://vgmdb.net/db/marketplace.php?...iew&userid=221 |
#25
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Alright, then, surely I give "hurt" the wrong meaning, but! My collector-penis would like to kindly remark that if manufacturers made just 1000 copies, then they're fine with just 1000 buyers owning it =D
In the end, it's up to us, there's no harm in asking (unless you're a lucky one and get the user that reports you instantly)... and there's no harm in giving "no" as answer. Now, who's got some ice, pwetty-pleash? You know, for my collector-thingy... That was a good hit, recovery is needed |
#26
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If male collectors have a collector-penis, do female collectors have a collector-vagina then? *puzzled*
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#27
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I'd guess so, the only thing I'm sure of is that I've considered the use of "blow", instead of "hit", but ultimately decided against it. Feared someone would get the wrong idea
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#28
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Nah! It's still a collector-penis. It's a figurative one but it still is one. Plus this may solve some penis envy problems for some people. I think it's a win-win really.
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#29
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Quote:
This whole stuff about rare goods, it just pisses me off. If you get a boner by keeping rare stuff rare on purpose even though it's long out of its sale period: Gratz. You know how these thoughts separate you from all those capitalist scum out there that value financial profit over anything else? Not at all. Giving other people the chance to experience something they normally wouldn't be able to, no matter what it is, can be infinitely more rewarding. I've bought a long OOP CD for well over 300$ and shared it with some people. Even if I reduced its value this way (according to you, ilef) and would get less money from a later sale: Dude, I could not care less; there's more than money out there. Am I proud because I own a few "rare" CDs that others don't have? No. It's nice to have them, yes. I like japanese CDs, I like Obis, I like the effort they sometimes put in their packaging and in general it's neat to have some of my favorite music in physical form. But the feeling of satisfaction because you own something that others don't: Boy, that's so wrong. For artists/publishers, sharing of OOP albums is non-destructive at worst. At best, it can make someone like stuff by a particular artist enough to pay for a future release. I'm sorry for my wording, I'm not sorry for my opinion. Sometimes, when enough feces accumulates, I just can't hold back. |
#30
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Quote:
Just to return slightly on-topic, with the file trading matters, I'll admit publicly that I privately shared stuff on here... And, just for everyone's amusement, do you want to know what kind of answers I've got?: Quote:
If some of you are THAT concerned with the above crap, I've something to tell you folks, with all the hatred I'm capable of: Go fuck yourselves & good luck with tracking down the original, mint, copies of the album(s). That way you'll be sure to get your effingly-fine lossless rips. I walked the sharing-is-caring way, but I've stopped and turned around since my efforts do not obviously please the audience. I'm NOT sorry for my words, as well as NOT sorry for what I'm - not - doing anymore. I tried to be nice, and all I've got was shit & ungratefulness. Fine. You've showed me that you don't deserve digital copies of what I own, fellow VGM fans, but don't be too sad: some of you at least deserve every last pixel of these characters. Last edited by ilef; Oct 1, 2011 at 01:39 AM. Reason: Typos and addendum... And another rather big typo |
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