Copyright again... READ THIS

Jeff's avatar
How ironic that within a few days of bringing this up, an actual member of this site, joshls@hotmail.com, opens an "EZBoard" and rips off one of my gallery images for a background. Not only does he rip it off, put the image is served from this server.

I sent e-mail to EZBoard and they removed it within a few minutes.

Let me say it again, you infringe on copyright, you're gonna get sued. The Webmasters of various coaster sites all talk, and they look out for each other. I don't know what my tally is now, but in the two seasons I've been doing this site, I've seen at least a dozen "free" sites go down for copyright infringement. One was a complete domain... the host nuked it and sent an apologetic letter within a few hours. They don't want to get sued either.

Please, I don't think it's people in these forums usually, but if you intend to put up a site ask yourself: What am I really adding of value to the Net coasting community, and can I do it without stealing the work of others. It's possible to make a site that takes that community by storm, it just takes time and (unfortunately) money.

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Jeff
Webmaster/Guide to The Point
I was just over looking around at the forums of the site that infringed on your copyright and have come to REALLY appreciate CP Place more. Over there they talk a lot about things that have nothing to do with coaster or parks. And the ironic thing is that the webmaster just doesn't care. Keep up the good work Jeff!

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At the dawn of the new millennium they all bowed down to CP realizing they lost the war.
Sorry- first time I've had a chance to do ANYTHING lately related to the web- there has been a LOT of stuff going on that has prevented me from posting (and to Jeff- I am VERY sorry for not doing more Web TV testing- but just so you know- it works fine!)

Anyhow- regarding what Jeff said about putting out a web site..... I have a few comments to make. When Web TV started offering a Page Builder option, I decided to give it a try. I was unable to keep things updated and had a hard time trying to get text and reviews written for 4 different parks. As time went by, I said that no sane person can work a day job then come home at night and do a web site. Well, Jeff (along with Eric over at URC) does just that. I am AMAZED at what they have done. And with the complete overhaul of this site, you know countless hours and a lot of ca$h was spent by Jeff to get this site the way it is today and for it to be an enjoyable site to visit. My little site had pictures and text and that was too much for me. This site has pictures, text, message boards, and a twisted sense of humor (I think that's what it is ;-)) and can be very informative. To hear that someone has to resort to ripping off GTTP to get themselves over shows absolutely no creativity whatsoever. At least I had all my own pix and reviews.

So Jeff- you have found one person who appreciates what you do. I know there are many others that feel this way too. And if anyone is wondering what I ended up doing with my website...... I scrapped it altogether. Maybe one day when I actually have some spare time I'll try again.

ray p.
Jeff's avatar
Thank you for the kind words. With the insane traffic the site generates, I'm sure there are others who appreciate the site as well.

There are a handful of outstanding sites out there, including Ultimate Roller Coaster, World of Coasters and Screamscape (among others over in the links section). People obviously take a lot of pride in what they do, and spend huge amounts of their free time to build a site that can be enjoyed by others. Anyone can do it, they just have to want it bad enough, and have some kind of motivation.

Why do I do it? Well, for one, Cedar Point is my little slice of heaven. I love the rides, the people and the atmosphere. I can't think of anywhere else I'd like to be right now (though bed comes to mind). I do it because, as with my prior radio and television jobs, I get off knowing other people get to experience what I do. I do it because, like the dork that I am, I get off learning to program and making it happen. I do it because I like photography, video and graphics.

Do I do it for the money? Yes and no. Yes, because frankly who doesn't need a little extra money? No, because most of the income I pour back into things that serve the site and my personal interest (i.e., the DV camera and editing hardware that produced the new MF video).

As far as the time investment goes, you're looking at about four weeks of non-stop coding for this site. There are thousands of lines of code. This message board in particular was time consuming to develop, because there are so many things that can cause a chain reaction to make things go wrong.

In the end, I'm not looking for praise or anything, as the traffic numbers are satisfying enough for me. However, I hope that people will keep in mind that this is indeed a free resource I've produced in my spare time. I don't need people to give me a hard time when I try to maintain the site's level of quality by moderating these boards in particular.

Again, thanks for ?? ???? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?? ??? ?????
Jeffrey Spartan's avatar
Jeff..You deserve a hand....

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