The crusty old hag needs to get a life! 

Kathi

Yanno, I had some woman tell me in the last couple of weeks, "I'm a book keeper.  I do numbers, it's what I do." talking to me as if I'm some peon who can't possibly understand her "expertise," as she put it.  I think people like that bring out the worst in all of us.  Let's hope she was just having a bad day, and that she's not like that to everyone.  Dare I say, pray for her.

You'd think that getting free hits to her site by being directly linked to from your site would have been flattering for her.

Some people, eh?

I had a reader that used to save and steal every single graphic I posted on my site. Then she'd tell me how much BETTER she had made it by whatever she'd decided to do to it. Now, your husband's a photographer, how would he like it if someone took his work, and did a Photoshop hackjob on it, then told him that HIS work was substandard to the new version? Of course that's not what you did, but maybe she's had that happen to her.

Funny thing was, when I'd offer free things this person was first in line for MY version, and she also asked me all the time HOW to do things in PSP and PS. Then after I'd tell her, she'd tell me how stupid/wrong that my way was. THEN she informed me that IF she TOOK my image, and CHANGED it in any appreciable way, that SHE could copywrite it. And no amount of legal pages full of proof that she was wrong changed her mind, so I stopped posting the really great pics I had, because it wasn't worth the fight over it.

She seems to have unsubbed now, but in the many conversations I've had over this with her, I learned NEVER to post anything I really cared about on my site, because somebody would always take it to use. And also, sometimes people need lessons in ettiquette and laws...for sure SHE did. Sometimes they don't, they simply make a mistake, or fail to think it out, and once you've had the other type person and those problems your reactions may not be as kind as they might ordinarily be. But the other thing I learned was even IF they needed the lessons, they never actually 'get it' so it's not worth the trouble or time to browbeat them...and it's not really my place to do so anyway.

Could she not just say "Thanks for the link"?

And, as moniet says, there is so much people out there on the web need to learn about Copyright and who owns it!

Just because it's 'on the web' and public, doesn't make it copyright free!!!

A lot of museums and art galleries in the UK are free admission. Does this mean I can go in, take a fancy to one of the great master pieces hanging up, take it down and take it home to hang up -because it's 'in the public domain -therefore not copyright -not owned by anyone -so I can?!

As I said in the post, I agree that it is HER photo, she has the right to say how it is used.

However, I personally believe it is naive to think that people aren't using it to their own end--at least my "use" of it was to direct traffic to her--to give her a gift, if you will. I didn't edit it. I used it as a graphical link to her site, and that was all.

I didn't ask for anything in return. Certainly not an etiquette lesson based on poor etiquette.

Regardless of copyright considerations, people do not put up webpages to keep them hidden. That is what password protection and private forums, etc. are for. Not your public page. Your public page, it is assumed, is something you want the world to see. To send the world there is a much larger courtesy (in my opinion, as someone who makes $ from the people who visit my site) than sending an email that says "may I PLEASE PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS?"

That is just silly.

I agree with you 100%.  sheesh.

Ooohhhhh I hate getting lectured, it really buggggggsssss!

Oh good grief...this lady is a wacko!

Yep, I was shocked when I discovered that this person was using MY images, and had not ever asked me. Had she asked, it would not have been a big deal, until she 'improved' them and then claimed them as hers. But live and learn, now I know better! Hopefully this woman will learn something too...perhaps when the hits to her page slow down she'll figure it out.