Comments on Becky's T-Blog: Pornographr

I have been having problems accessing Flickr from ...

2006-04-14T14:10:00.000+01:00

I have been having problems accessing Flickr from pretty standard cyber cafes of late... is this progress? or a reflection on the overwhelming about of boring unoriginal stuff being posted on flickr

Tidyteatowel - that's mad! I work in the public se...

2006-04-11T18:58:00.000+01:00

Tidyteatowel - that's mad! I work in the public sector and it hasn't blocked Flickr my department hasn't blocked its own website yet some would say this is a shame

We have Websense where I work too - it has blocked...

2006-04-11T18:31:00.000+01:00

We have Websense where I work too - it has blocked Flickr for ages as "personal storage". Then again it was also blocking our own website for a bit as "Government Agency" (I work in the public sector).

The trouble with these policing systems is that th...

2006-04-11T14:00:00.000+01:00

The trouble with these policing systems is that they are so inconsistent. At my college they have WebSense which blocks sites like Flicr and Ebay. On some PC's Ebay lists as 'internet auctions' and others is blocked as 'porn'.

The national lottery site is blocked as 'internet gambling' so you can't check your lottery numbers. But if you go on the unrestricted BBC news site you can check lottery numbers there. Some Yahoo games pages are blocked as gambling.

But the most crazy one concerns the word 'zip'. Zip files are not allowed to be downloaded. But if you go to a site to buy a jacket with a zip fastener, it's blocked due to the word 'zip'.

Moojik, no problem, quote away!K, thanks for the l...

2006-04-11T09:34:00.000+01:00

Moojik, no problem, quote away!

K, thanks for the link, I went looking for something like that a few days ago and couldn't find it on the Flickr site, obviously wasn't looking hard enough! :-)

I still wonder if that even with the best efforts of the community, Flickr will still be inexorably swamped with pron, but we shall see.

Hi, I borrowed your information to have a small wr...

2006-04-11T09:19:00.000+01:00

Hi,

I borrowed your information to have a small write up a bit on this issue with surfcontrol with a few quote from yours, if you don't mind.

Interesting article I should say and nice blog, Becky.

Cheers.

Jabe said: Flickr have a set of guidelines they sh...

2006-04-11T07:54:00.000+01:00

Jabe said: Flickr have a set of guidelines they should start implimenting them which include no graphic nudity on show in public.

It's true. flickr has some very explicit terms of use as well as an easy to understand condensed version in the form of their recently published community guidelines.

These are absolutely enforceable in the cases that you mention (copyrighted images, porn appearing in public streams), BUT it would be absoutely impossible for the staff of flickr to moderate every single image in every single stream.

The amount of moderation staff they'd have to employ to achieve this would make it instantly a prohibitively expensive service to use (as well as a culturally stifling and police-state like place)

Therefore it's vital that the community actively help them moderate the site. If you see a photostream of user that violates the guidelines, don't just complain about it to your friends, use the Abuse Reporter to notify the admins.

In my experience, action is taken, and taken rapidly.

This kind of positive action by the community is the only way for sites like flickr to remain safe, friendly environments.

Ah, Nethider. Those were the days. I mean really, ...

2006-04-11T04:14:00.000+01:00

Ah, Nethider. Those were the days. I mean really, we did all kinds of stuff on the web we weren't "supposed to".

In response to the person right above me, I'd cons...

2006-04-10T22:24:00.000+01:00

In response to the person right above me, I'd consider Nethider. We used it all the time in high school to get around the blocked things.

Not the same as it was before Yahoo came along. I ...

2006-04-10T22:06:00.000+01:00

Not the same as it was before Yahoo came along. I think Jane posted about that.

We use surfcontrol at work as well will be interesting to see if I am ok or not ALSO as I have a flickr preview window on my blog I wonder if that gets "red handed"

There are ways round it though. Try searching free proxy browsing and selecting one to browse from work :-0

especially as Yahoo consider groups such as the An...

2006-04-10T17:55:00.000+01:00

especially as Yahoo consider groups such as the Angels as being "adult"

Ahh, that's actually my fault. I designated the Angels an adult gp when I set it up, and it won't let me change it.

That some of the trouser fumbling brigade might get aroused by looking at them is somewhere actually I don't want to go

Me neither.... (shudder)

Flickr have a set of guidelines they should start ...

2006-04-10T17:44:00.000+01:00

Flickr have a set of guidelines they should start implimenting them which include no graphic nudity on show in public.

There are photos of nudes on flickr which are most definately not porn.

As for your photos being "specialist" they are not porn. That some of the trouser fumbling brigade might get arrosed by looking at them is somewhere actually I don't want to go, but your tranny pictures are not pornographic. That pornographers seem to think that anyone in a tranny group or just random strangers what to see their pictures is deeply offensive.

It is a worry though that Flickr may get very victorian in response especially as Yahoo consider groups such as the Angels as being "adult"

You're right Jo, when you start talking about what...

2006-04-10T17:39:00.000+01:00

You're right Jo, when you start talking about what kind of images count at "adult" and what don't, we're on shaky ground. We shouldn't be, but we are. Which is why I deliberately avoided talking about what I think should be done.

It's a tricky nut to crack, I just think that Flickr (or Yahoo) could be handling it better than they are.

Interesting that its been banned, but not a supris...

2006-04-10T17:04:00.000+01:00

Interesting that its been banned, but not a suprise. Unfortunately its gone from a great place to share your own photos, to a place to share any porn you have on your hard-drive.

Or for people to post pretty graphic images. There are some posted to one of the TG groups which are really awful from someone I had already blocked and reported.

There is a fine line between erotic and porn. I am as much of a fan of standard shots of models in their undies or swimwear as the next man.

Flickr have been far too slow in enforcing their rules on copyrighted images and pron. Add to that the flood of Yahoo members who have a willy fixation and its only a matter of time before things went downhill.

The problem comes when someone within flickr has to decide whether to become "family friendly" and if they do will they regard images of blokes dressed as girls as being something they want to allow?