Photobucket blocking 3rd party hosting of images

[Raj_UK]

I've never tried this before Marlon but it can be done - a bit long-winded though; Microsoft OneDrive is much easier.

For Google drive you need to turn link sharing on for the photo and you need the file ID. I'm not sure if there is an easy way to get the file ID using the pc but I did the following from my phone.

1) Share link which gives you a URL. The file ID is the long string between /file/d/ and /view?usp=drivesdk

2) Replace the FILE_ID in the string below with the ID you obtained from step 1.

https://drive.google.com/uc?export=view&id=FILE_ID

3) Then wrap the above in the usual img tags

However there is a risk that Google change their API which will screw up images shared on the forum this way.

Just to demonstrate pic below shared from Google drive

 

[idej_z4]

Apologies but In order to make sure images posted on the forum stay safe I have blocked the discussed site. There is simply too much risk of it disappearing on us. I will still allow images from the big providers for the time being.

I will make an announcement when I have sorted the approved image hosts list.

That said, the reccomended method is to upload your image directly to the forum, that will always be free

One of the reasons I use image hosting is because when you upload via the site the image quality drops massively! Not really helpful for the photo competition for example.

Also, I think the limit is either 3-4 images per post. This isn't always enough when doing a how 2 guide for example.

You say you're allowing images from the big providers...other than PB, which are these please?

 

[sp3ctre]

One of the reasons I use image hosting is because when you upload via the site the image quality drops massively! Not really helpful for the photo competition for example.

Also, I think the limit is either 3-4 images per post. This isn't always enough when doing a how 2 guide for example.

You say you're allowing images from the big providers...other than PB, which are these please?

Ok, we can possibly address the number of images in a post issue, I can see how that can be a problem for how-to's...

In terms of big providers at present all of the big providers are supported, Photobucket, Flickr, Google, etc... The point is I don't want a load of images getting uploaded here only for the site to disappear overnight and the images be gone... Yes, that seems to be happening with Photobucket, so I will have to assess what we are going to do there, but it is a lot less likely with the big providers than some site someone is operating on a personal level. I'm not trying to be awkward at all, just trying to protect the interest of the forum and its members.

I am also looking into the rotation issue with WLH... the problem is the way some phones deal with images and EXIF data... if there is a way around it then I am sure we can do something with that.

In terms of image quality it's really down to funding... it costs a lot to store images, and it costs even more to store large images and full quality images... we have limited funding on this forum so there has to be a balance. Most images people post are not gallery entries, so it doesn't matter about the quality so much, and there is even a benefit to compressing the images as the site loads quicker for people rather than waiting for large images to download on people's connections.

As always, these issues can all be considered as we go

 

[idej_z4]

One of the reasons I use image hosting is because when you upload via the site the image quality drops massively! Not really helpful for the photo competition for example.

Also, I think the limit is either 3-4 images per post. This isn't always enough when doing a how 2 guide for example.

You say you're allowing images from the big providers...other than PB, which are these please?

Ok, we can possibly address the number of images in a post issue, I can see how that can be a problem for how-to's...

In terms of big providers at present all of the big providers are supported, Photobucket, Flickr, Google, etc... The point is I don't want a load of images getting uploaded here only for the site to disappear overnight and the images be gone... Yes, that seems to be happening with Photobucket, so I will have to assess what we are going to do there, but it is a lot less likely with the big providers than some site someone is operating on a personal level. I'm not trying to be awkward at all, just trying to protect the interest of the forum and its members.

I am also looking into the rotation issue with WLH... the problem is the way some phones deal with images and EXIF data... if there is a way around it then I am sure we can do something with that.

In terms of image quality it's really down to funding... it costs a lot to store images, and it costs even more to store large images and full quality images... we have limited funding on this forum so there has to be a balance. Most images people post are not gallery entries, so it doesn't matter about the quality so much, and there is even a benefit to compressing the images as the site loads quicker for people rather than waiting for large images to download on people's connections.

As always, these issues can all be considered as we go

I appreciate the info. I agree with everything you've said regarding costs and storage etc.

The most important thing is that the forum keeps going!

 

[Marlon]

I've never tried this before Marlon but it can be done - a bit long-winded though; Microsoft OneDrive is much easier.

For Google drive you need to turn link sharing on for the photo and you need the file ID. I'm not sure if there is an easy way to get the file ID using the pc but I did the following from my phone.

1) Share link which gives you a URL. The file ID is the long string between /file/d/ and /view?usp=drivesdk

2) Replace the FILE_ID in the string below with the ID you obtained from step 1.

https://drive.google.com/uc?export=view&id=FILE_ID

3) Then wrap the above in the usual img tags

However there is a risk that Google change their API which will screw up images shared on the forum this way.

Just to demonstrate pic below shared from Google drive

Great - thanks, I will experiment later today

 

[Marlon]

Very odd but I can't see my signature and I'm not seeing images on some posts (the images in this screen shot are not hosted by Photobucket) :

 

[sp3ctre]

I can see your signature fine...

 

[Raj_UK]

I can see your signature fine...

Same here!

 

[idej_z4]

Very odd but I can't see my signature and I'm not seeing images on some posts (the images in this screen shot are not hosted by Photobucket) :

Screen Shot 2017-07-01 at 08.43.01.png

I've got the same thing...are you looking at in on mobile Marlon?

 

[Marlon]

Very odd but I can't see my signature and I'm not seeing images on some posts (the images in this screen shot are not hosted by Photobucket) :

Screen Shot 2017-07-01 at 08.43.01.png

I've got the same thing...are you looking at in on mobile Marlon?

No - on a Mac Book Pro

 

[Ewazix]

Photobucket have caused havoc with dead image links all over the web! I'm guessing the priority for the forum is to get our technically useful images uploaded to the forum first. I've posted a few in the past but some people will have loads. What a PITA!

I'm surprised that there's been so little kick back against PB on the web so far :?

 

[firebobby]

I have just checked some of my old posts and some of the photos are still there ??

 

[bmwaddict]

I can't see to get Vstanced to work...uploaded images but putting a link in my sig it just shows up as text.

 

[sp3ctre]

I can't see to get Blocked to work...uploaded images but putting a link in my sig it just shows up as text.

Yes, that site doesn't work anymore (on this forum)

 

[Scooba_Steve]

I think OneDrive has the option to host your photos, so if you have Hotmail etc. then it might be a useful free option.

 

[Buckz]

It doesn't cost a lot to host large images, I don't know where you're getting your info from but my site that you just blocked hosts over 180k images taking over 300gb off space and using 10+ tb of bandwidth a month. Been going for over two years. Why not let your users choose what to do rather than force using crappy hard to manage forum software to upload images ? I'm mainly peed off about my thread going to crap and now me having to host images to some random host on this forum because of your choice. Meaning I have to re-upload to a different host here only.

 

[PerryGunn]

It appears that PhotoBucket links are still working for some accounts and not others but as it may only be a matter of time before they stop working for everyone, I wonder if it would be possible to write a script that would

- scan all forum posts in the 'How-to' subsections looking for PhotoBucket links
- download the image to the forum store
- replace the links in the post with those pointing to the forum store

 

[Marlon]

Cancelled my recurring payment for Photobucket due on 4th July. I was paying $29.99 per year for ad free and extra storage.
Because PB was running slow and kept going down I have been using Postimage.org more recently so should only affect older images.
We will see what happens tomorrow.

 

[sp3ctre]

There are a bunch of changes we are making behind the scenes that should make image hosting on here better for you guys.... Hopefully the "photo appearing sideways" issue has been resolved as well. You can also post up to 10 photos per post (up from 4).

 

[Gazhyde]

I have been using Postimage.org more recently so should only affect older images.

Just remember to use it to store copies - never originals, like most services T&C's they have their "we don't give a f*** about your data" clauses...

Your use of our service is entirely at your own risk. We do not guarantee the availability of our service at any given time, or the reliability of our service when it is running. We do not guarantee the integrity of, or the continued availability of, files on our servers. Whether we make backups, and if so, whether restoration of those backups will be available to you, is at our discretion.