The Best Tools for Finding Free and Legal Images

July 29th, 2011 Posted in Blogs

Every blogger knows they have to get permission to use any images in a post that they publish. In the early days that was a royal pain in the neck. However, times have changed and there are some fantastic tools available to help ease the pain and ultimately keep you legal and out of trouble, Here are just a few.

Creative Commons Search Engine
This is an awesome site to find many images that include permission to freely use in many forms. It searches the following sites for the following type of resources:

Google Web (Web)
Google Images (Image)
Flickr (Image)
Blip.tv (Video)
Jamendo (Music)
SpinXpress (Media)
Wikimedia Commons (Media)

Pay close attention to the type of search you’re doing by selecting the options to the right of the search box. They are for commercial purposes, modify, adapt or Build upon.

Another excellent search engine is the MorgueFile which has a vast archive of free images. As with all of these search engines, you should also read the fine print to ensure that you have sufficient rights to use the image.

U.S. Government Photos and Images
Believe it or not, you can find a boatload of free images to use on the U.S. Government’s website. However, you still need to verify that the image gives full permission for the type of usage you plan to use. Here is the full disclaimer.

Find photos and images by topic. Some of these photos and images are in the public domain and may be used and reproduced without permission or fee. However, some photos and images may be protected by license. We strongly recommend you thoroughly read the disclaimers on each site before use.

If your blog is running on a self-hosted WordPress platform then by far my favorite tool is the PhotoDropper plugin which makes it a breeze to find free images you can use. PhotoDropper searches not only the CreateCommons site but also Flickr’s creative commons catalog.

Not only that, it also inserts the photo into your blog post along with the image permissions along with links to the original source and photographer! You just pick from three different sizes (S, M, L) and then it does the rest of the dirty work for you.

Flickr’s Creative Commons
Yahoo’s popular Flickr photo service has an ever-growing library of CC images. Just make sure you use them the right way. They make it very easy to identify the types of rights available for each photo.

Stock.Xchng has been around a long time and just keeps getting better with time. It requires joining the service but it’s well worth it.

Once you do a search and find the image you like, look for the image permission link that comes with every image (bottom right of the image)

This is where you will find what you need to know. I’ve highlighted the three sections in Green (good to use), Yellow (good to use if the owner approves its usage) and Red (Do not use it in the manner stated)

Image License

The following is a legal agreement between You and the owners of SXC.hu ("Website"), HAAP Media Ltd. ("SXC", "We") which governs the use of non-watermarked images ("Images") downloaded from our Website. By downloading an Image You agree to be bound by the terms of this Agreement automatically, without any other conditions or declarations. If You do not agree with these terms, You are not allowed to download the Image.
All Images on the Website are copyrighted and they are the properties of SXC or its Image providers. All rights are reserved unless otherwise granted to You. Your rights to use the Image are subject to this agreement and the restrictions specified at each Image.
We hereby grant to You a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use the Image on the terms and conditions explained in this Agreement and on the Image preview page FREE OF CHARGE.

You may use the Image

In digital format on websites, multimedia presentations, broadcast film and video, cell phones.
In printed promotional materials, magazines, newspapers, books, brochures, flyers, CD/DVD covers, etc.
Along with your corporate identity on business cards, letterhead, etc.
To decorate your home, your office or any public place.

You may not use the Image

For pornographic, unlawful or other immoral purposes, for spreading hate or discrimination, or to defame or victimise other people, sociteties, cultures.
To endorse products and services if it depicts a person.
In a way that can give a bad name to SXC or the person(s) depicted on the Image.
As part of a trademark, service mark or logo.
SELLING AND REDISTRIBUTION OF THE IMAGE (INDIVIDUALLY OR ALONG WITH OTHER IMAGES) IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN! DO NOT SHARE THE IMAGE WITH OTHERS!

Always ask permission from the photographer if you want to use the Image

In website templates that You intend to sell or distribute.
For creating printed reproductions that You intend to sell.
On "print on demand" items such as t-shirts, postcards, mouse pads, mugs (e.g. on sites like Cafepress), or on any similar mass produced item that would contain the Image in a dominant way.

Information on rights
Since SXC does NOT require a written Model Release for each Image that has identifiable people on it, We cannot guarantee that you will be able to use the Image for any purpose You like. Also, if there is a model release for the Image, We do not represent or make warranties whatsoever as to the legality or validity of it.
Furthermore, certain Images may be subject to additional copyrights, property rights, trademarks etc. and may require the consent of a third party or the license of these rights. SXC does not represent or make any warranties that it owns or licenses any of the mentioned, nor does it grant them. It’s your sole responsibility to make sure that You have all the necessary rights, consents and licenses for the use of the Image.
You acknowledge that by your download the ownership of Image does not get transferred to You and You must not claim that it is yours. Your license is non-transferable, which means that You are not allowed to sell, rent, give, sublicense, or otherwise transfer the Image or the right to use the Image to anyone else. The work You create with the Image must be used either by yourself or by your client. You warrant that You do your best to prevent third parties from duplicating the Image.
You also agree to take the time to comment on and rate the Image you downloaded and do your best to show the work you created with the Image to the photographer. This is a simple thing and means a lot to many of our contributors who simply would like to know how their work is used.
IMPORTANT!
SXC cannot be held responsible for any copyright violations, and cannot guarantee the legality of the Images stored in its system. If you want to make sure, always contact the photographers. You use the site and the photos at your own risk!
Indemnification
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless SXC and its officers, employees, shareholders, directors and suppliers against all claims, liability, damages, costs and expenses, including reasonable legal fees and expenses, arising out of or related to a breach of this Agreement, the use of this site and the use or the inability of use of any Image, your failure to abide by any restriction regarding the use of an Image, or any claim by a third party related to the use of an Image.
Warranty and Liability
THE WEBSITE AND THE IMAGES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS". WE OFFER NO WARRANTY, EXPLICIT OR IMPLIED, REGARDING ANY IMAGES, THE WEBSITE, THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION, OR ANY RIGHTS OR LICENSES UNDER THIS AGREEMENT INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. SXC DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE WEBSITE OR THE IMAGES WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS OR THAT THEIR USE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE.
SXC SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU OR TO ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FOR ANY GENERAL, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, OR LOST PROFITS OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES, COSTS OR LOSSES ARISING OUT OF YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE OR THE IMAGES.

Summary

Ok, so now you should have no more excuses for breaking the law. You can find a ton of free AND LEGAL images, videos and music for whatever work you publish online and offline. Just remember to double-check the permissions.

Blogging, images, Photos

Stop Me if you’ve Herd this one before

July 16th, 2011 Posted in social networks

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Most people today never heard of Utterz which was an innovative and fun community that launched around the same time as Twitter. You could do all the things we do now on Twitter and Facebook but even more. For example, not only could you publish posts on their website with text, images and video, but also audio via your cell phone. This was just before the release of the iPhone so it was very unique in that respect. Once the iPhone came out, Utterz really picked up new users quickly.

I actually liked the goofy name and the funny mascot Bessie with all of the built-in puns about cows including the catch phrase “Be Herd!”. It was so easy to share a voice post by simply calling a dedicated phone number and best of all you could listen to your circle of friends by using the phone’s keypad to cycle thru them. You could even reply to any audio post with you phone. It was perfect with a hands free setup in the car during long commutes.

Utterz wasn’t just a destination for your posts with a vibrant community, but it also let you publish whatever you posted to any of your other services such as on Twitter, Facebook, Flicr, and any of your own blogs. It was very easy to setup your channels too. They even had groups so you could share your posts only with that particular group (much better than G+ circles because it was easy to curate and join).

Everyone is going crazy over Google+ these days but Utterz everything it does and much much more. There have been some other audio/mobile based platforms since Utterz closed shop such as Cinch.com, ShoutOMatic.com and AudioBoo, but none of them can match everything Utterz did.

Here’s Simeon Margolis who was not only one of the founders of Utterz but also the official face/voice of the Utterz brand and community. We all loved Sim who was very active with the community. When he left rather abruptly, it took the wind out of the sails (and sales) of Utterz. So many things changed and not for the better either. The name even changed to Utterli which made no sense and along with that change they took good ole Bessie the cow mascot and shot her. So the cute and odd vibe was gone and so was its leader. Slowly, Utterz…um…Utterli died. Never to be herd from again. Sorry, just had to use one last pun in Bessie’s honor.

Here’s a good demo of how Utterz looked and functioned.

Here’s how easy it was to connect your Utterz to your other platforms.

utterz

Google Like it or Not?

July 3rd, 2011 Posted in social networks

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Eventually, Google will need to make some decisions regarding the way they let people like things if they want to have any consistency across all of their products and services. For example, on its new Google Plus network you can click the plus one button to “Like” something. See image of G+

However, on google’s popular video platform, YouTube, you still see the traditional like button. Notice it also has the dislike (thumbs down) button which is not available on the new G+ network. You can’t give a minus one or negative one to anything, merely +1 or take it back.

Now let’s take a look at Google Buzz, it’s earlier attempt at social networking. You will also see the “Like” button which becomes an Un-like button once you like something so on this platform (like on G+) you can only like something or take it back. You cannot give a negative vote as on youtube.

Eventually, Google should provide the same methodology in its UI across all of their products. They should also make sure that the information all flows back to its flagship social network which will obviously be Google Plus.

Share and Share Alike

The same decisions regarding consistency should also apply to other functions on each service such as sharing and commenting. If you want to share something on Google Plus you don’t have many choices right now. You can only share it inside of Google Plus. You just have to decide to share it on the public stream for all to see or to one of your curated circles.

Note: There is a third party Chrome extension that allows you to share something to Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn but I’m addressing built-in features from Google itself.

On YouTube you have many more options to share something. You can email it to anyone you want or share it directly on Twitter or Facebook. You can also get the embed code (in some cases anyway) and embed the video on your website. I give Google a plus one for adding its Plus One button to YouTube. Nice job! Also noteworthy, if you +1 a video on YouTube it will show up in your Google Profile under the +1′s section! However, nothing you +1 inside G+ or in a google search shows up yet. Double boo there.

On Google Buzz you will notice a similarity to Google Plus where you can only share something on Buzz itself. However, they did include the email option which was good.

Adding Your Two Cents Worth

The way Google handles commenting will change for sure too. They must become a model of consistency if they want people to embrace their platform for commenting. Already there are many people who have stated they would be willing to make Google Plus comments their commenting system for their blog. This is a big deal as platforms such as Disqus have spent years integrating with thousands of websites. Facebook comments has slowly replaced Disqus and other commenting systems so it is possible for Google Plus to infiltrate this market if they provide a worthwhile platform.

Google Plus offers a simple and straight forward system for commenting on someone’s post. You enter your comment and post it. Nothing much to do.

An important thing to note here is the fact that Google Plus does not thread comments or conversations. It’s very twitter-like which is hard on the eyes and makes following the flow of conversations very difficult. You will see someone responding to a comment way down on the vertical list and have to do a lot of scrolling up and down if you care to make sense of it all. This must be fixed at some point. You can add the person’s name in your comment which helps a little but not really that much. Seeing the comment and then the reply/response just below it makes the most sense.

On YouTube, well, no one really reads the troll infested comments on there do they? In any event, let’s compare how it handles commenting. As you can see, simple entry form but they do offer the option to leave a video response which makes sense since it’s a video service. They also display the number of characters remaining for comments (500).

Also worth noting, there’s no threading either. Just a series of comments…no context.

Google Buzz offers a similar plain vanilla commenting system like Google Plus. Just post a comment, you can’t reply to a commentator directly either.

It also does not thread comments or conversations.

Note: Google should have a dedicated tab in Google+ that shows all of the comments we’ve made. Right now it only shows posts we’ve shared on G+, not any of the comments. They should follow the examples by Disqus and BackType which Twitter just acquired.

Summation

So there you have it. An examination of the three core functions that Google will need to address at some point across all of its products:

1. How do people like something? They must replace Like with the Plus One button everywhere.

2. How do people share things? They need to offer wider array of choices as they do on YouTube. Yes, even to Twitter and Facebook.

3. How do people comment? They should offer a rich text experience with easy bold/italics formatting and the ability to thread conversations by replying to comments.

Google

Google’s Circle of Strife

July 2nd, 2011 Posted in Social Media, social networks

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I’m really liking Google+, the new social network from the search giant. Everyone who’s gotten into the field test release for G+ seems to be liking this effort much more than Google Wave and Google Buzz which is a good sign. However, everyone has complaints and suggestions too. What else is new?

Here’s my two cents worth. It centers around what I consider the best feature of G+ which is the Circles feature. In short, you can create groups for your contacts so you can isolate and control where your posts go, in theory anyway. There are some flaws in this design of course. The worst flaw has been fixed already though which involved the embarrassing situation that allowed people in your private circle to share your post publically. The Google dev team has been ultra busy patching holes like this so much praise must go their way. However, there are some other leaks that should be attended to sometime soon.

For example, let’s look at this situation. You create a private circle called XYZ for your small company and add about 10 people who work with you. Whenever you post something to this XYZ circle, only those 10 people you added to your circle will see it. That’s perfect and as designed. However, is this process as streamlined as possible? Not quite. Because this process is one-sided, it only truly works for the person who created the circle. Also, in order to make this form of communication a two-way street, all 10 people from XYZ must create and curate their own private circle for XYZ and must add all of the same people if they are all planning to stay in sync and on the same page. Obviously, for other types of circles (groups) this doesn’t matter as much. For example circles for good friends, relatives, etc.

Here’s another problem. So let’s say you create a new circle called Film Buffs and add some folks that love discussing films. So you try to share posts that involve movies to this film buffs circle instead of the public stream…which is what you do on twitter. Everything is shared in the public stream on there except if someone has a private account which is rare to see.
On G+, even though you added people who are into movies to your film buffs circle it does not mean everything you see will be about films. Every public post made by the members of your film buffs circle will appear in this circle, doesn’t matter what it’s about. The same holds true for you if they create a movie circle and add you to it. That movie circle will display all of your public posts regardless of the topic.
How do you handle this? Should there be an option to block public posts and only display posts shared directly to the circle? This won’t work because there is no centralized management of circles. Everyone creates/maintains their own circles.So unless the members of the circle agree to create synchronized circles with similar memberships it will not work.

What’s the answer?
I think a public circle where someone controls its visibility and membership would be the answer. For example, once employees of XYZ join Google+ they can do a search for public circles and find their official XYZ circle (Friendfeed did this well). The members are already curated for them and members are added/removed automatically. You can decide to join or leave any time as well.

Without centralized circles everyone will have to create and curate their own which is fine for most situations but there are many cases where we can save a lot of time and effort by having official circles available. It would avoid duplication as well. Right now, people are having trouble labeling people…does this person go to social media circle or marketing or both? Friend or acquaintance?

The other problem with relying on individuals to create all of the circles is that people will post something to a circle they created about something and the people they added to the circle will see it, but if someone replies to the post only those that happen to have created the same exact type of circle with similar people added to it will even see the reply. Unless the reply is marked public then many of the members of the circle won’t see it…which defeats the purpose of creating the circle in the first place. We are supposed to post to the public stream for all the world to see or to a particular circle for only those select people to view and respond to. As it is today, Google’s circle design is flawed and should be fixed someday. Judging by the amazing response from the google development team so far I will bet it’s only a matter of time before they improve the process of communicating with circles on G+.

Note: G+ needs to improve Sparks too by integrating Google Reader and/or Buzz but that’s another story for another day.

Google

Doriano Carta

Renaissance 2.0

The Best Tools for Finding Free and Legal Images

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