I've seen a few unsavory photos and a few NSFW photos pop up lately. And I've seen more people say they were leaving the 365 Project because of these photos. I think it's a shame that a few bad people can cause so many to leave a good project. Let's be honest: it only takes a single keyword search on Google to find thousands of unsavory photos. With that being said, I have a suggestion for protecting as much as we can the 365 Project.
Add a selection box to the photo upload process that allows the person to select an Age Restriction for that particular photo. The age restrictions could be 13+, 18+, and 21+. This way, if someone wants to upload an artistic nude they can select the proper age restriction. 13+ would mean no nudity or unsavory photos at all, 18+ would mean some nudity but nothing extreme, and 21+ means the photo is safe for all audiences.
Then, to work in conjunction with this, add an option to everyone's account that allows them to select what age restrictions they wish to view.
This can protect all the users with children who either have their own accounts, use their parent's account, or view their parent's account. If those people select "21+" as their option, they will see all the photos on the site. However, if they select 13+ they will never have the option of seeing a photo that a child should not see.
Of course, the opportunity could arise where people upload a photo and lie about the Age Restriction. In that case, the administrators and moderators of the site should have the option to force a certain restriction on photos. That means a photo very likely will still get through for a short while, but at least there would be a means in place to protect users.
I think this is simply the only way you can prevent these types of photos. It's not possible to screen every photo uploaded and would really take away from the freedom of the site, but this also provides a way for parents and users to block these types of photos from ever showing on their computers. This is a great project for newbies, students, amateurs, moms with cameras, and professionals to connect, share, and learn. People getting scared away from a few bad photos is like Shaq quitting basketball cause he's afraid of a few basketballs.
@keithdavid I agree, but a guy with a hairy ass and "don't drop the soap" written as the caption may be art to some, and porn (read: gross) to others...and with the small thumbnails on the browsing pages, it might not be so obvious what it is....
I have kids, and they help me with some of my photos, and also love to come into the office when they know i'm on 365...i'd rather not have to explain the difference between art and porn/disgusting to them because of someone else's bad taste on 365.
Of course, I don't know how the rating system would work on the browse pages...ross may be asking us for more than $20 for a year to make it happen :)
@sdpace ~ I guess to some there may be a fine line between the two, but that sounds like offensive material and should be removed. What will guarantee the idiot with the hairy a$$ will properly mark his image as 21+? still then showing up on our homepage...
@sdpace Someone posted the other day that they'd seen the hairy ass photo on more than one page, which makes me think that one incident was hacking at its lowest point. However, there have been other images I've seen that even I don't want to deal with, and I don't have tiny humans running around.
This rating system would fall under the same umbrella as policing rude comments on photos and discussion posts: that means it involves us. When we see an inappropriate photo, someone flags it. It takes cooperation from all of us if we want to keep the 365 Project clean and practical for as many as possible.
@jasonbarnette as far as hairy ass pic goes....some people looked at the EXIF and it matched the camera from all other pics on that user's 365. maybe she/he thought it was funny. i was personally eating dinner....so did not think it was funny. or sexy. or appropriate.
i agree with you though - Ross can't do it all....we're all over the world, and we need to make sure that people aren't being the lowest form of humanity in our public forum. :)
@keithdavid very true..especially if it was a hacker. i don't see people complaining about the tastful nudes....that's just what some people photograph. if they made an anatomically correct nude lego guy, i might be in trouble on here.
@jasonbarnette Very well thought out idea Jason. I would be very interested in some kind of rating system. I don't think it is sensoring, as we wouldn't be saying that tasteful nudes or such can't be posted, we would just have the choice to view them or not. I do feel as there are just down right lewd photos that shouldn't be allow here (hairy butt guy). My kiddos love seeing the photos on 365, and it would be nice to know that I'm not inadvertantly exposing them to something they shouldn't see. I'm not talking about tastefully done nudes, I'm talking about crap like the guy with the hairy butt posted. In a perfect world it would be nice to enjoy 365 without "policing", but this is not a perfect world- I'm glad there are others who are not afraid to speak up when things are happening here that shouldn't be.
I'm fairly conservative and avoid NSFW material. While some image posters have caused me to restrict my youngest's access to this site, I'm so glad to see this site in use by so many HS students and the vast majority of people treat everyone with respect regardless of viewpoint. There are plenty of forums for NSFW material. More than plenty. Please help keep this project young family friendly, which is getting hard to find.
I have to say I disagree with this idea. I do agree with @keithdavid though, art should not be censored. This site is a place for people to express themselves through photography, not be told that their ideas are vulgar or crude. If you don't want to see certain types of photos, don't follow those people.
In the case of that disgusting photo, us 365ers can handle it. I never even saw the said photo; it was taken care of that fast. As long as we continue to watch out for spammers and people unhealthy for the community, we don't need such a high level of censorship.
I was the one who thought I saw it in someone else's album as well. I was incorrect, after going back and looking at their album again, since the EXIF info matched up. Even so, I'd rather feel safe viewing this at work than not.
@kelseyyx23 Censorship is the suppression of communication, in this case photos. I'm not saying we remove the photos, but rather apply a rating system. Television programs use rating, feature films use ratings, even Xbox and PlayStation games use a rating system.
Anyone is free to post any image they want. While 365ers can handle it, we can't handle it at work and the children shouldn't have to handle it. Just looking out for them.
I have to agree that it's not really censoring as much as filtering. I like the idea. Not sure about the feasibility though. The amount of work involved will be large and the likelihood of many arguments is high (mainly about which ratings should go with which pictures since a lot of that is very subjective). But it's nice to see how much thought you've put into it!
This is a tough one... as everyone has different ideas in regards to what is appropriate art... what I see as harmless might offend somebody else, so I'm not quite sure how it would work.
As for the incident with the soap...not sure if it was a joke or what but my eyes have been seriously damaged from that sight...but I'll get over it :)
The only reason there is so much controversy about that picture is because it was pointed out on here for everyone to see. If it wasn't reported in a thread then almost nobody would know of its existence. So maybe in the future if somebody comes across a picture that is seriously offensive then privately report it... the creepy guy is probably getting off on how much attention this picture has received :-/
@becky I agree with you. As adults we can get over silly things such as this, but young children should definitely be monitored while using the internet... most protect their children from creeps out in public but some seem to forget that the internet can bring the creeps into your home. And unfortunately no site is safe from idiots wasting time and trying to cause trouble.
For anyone thinking about leaving, please don't, don't let these idiots win! xx
I agree with Kelsey on this. There should not be any form of censorship. And if you find a picture offensive, then all you have to do is click your mouse. It's not that hard to do.
And as for kids, I couldn't say it better than Becky. Parenting is the job of parents. So step up to the plate.
>Here's another suggestion: Parents should monitor how their kids use the internet.
QFT.
And let's think about this suggestion for a second - the event that's prompted it was a user knowingly uploading something controversial and deciding for themselves that it was suitable to upload - having an age restriction won't stop them uploading it and sticking the wrong age on it, should they wish to still be controversial, will it? No.
As an attempt to prevent malicious use this suggestion achieves nothing and makes everyone else go out of their way (albeit in a very minor way, but that's not the point) to achieve this nothing - a nice microcosm of many real world censorship/anti-terror laws, amusingly.
The only way to absolutely prevent any kid from seeing stuff is to assume that everyone using the site is a kid (from a standpoint of principles I don't fancy having my experience dumbed down for the sake of a few people who can't be bothered monitoring what their kids do/see) which in terms of execution means human moderation of everything uploaded, which would be a right old nause to implement.
A kid could see something unsavoury just as easily on youtube, with an innocent google search which had a dual meaning they were unaware of, on the bbc news website, anywhere. The internet isn't a childrens playground.
The solution is a lot simpler. If you want to show your kid someone's photos, you have a scan through first and check for unsavoury things. This inconveniences nobody but yourself, which as you're the one wanting your kid to see the photos, is the way it should be.
I think it's a well thought out idea, but a lot of effort and unnecessary. If someone wants to really shock, they won't apply the tag.
I have a 3 year old who frequently comes and looks at the laptop and I can't think of anything I want filtered. The hairy ass photo for e.g, I don't see the problem, it's just a bum to her. Full nudity, fine, we're all human, hardcore porn? well it's not like the site is full of it, and if I came across it I'd just flick past it's not like I'd be on an enlarged picture or it is going to traumatise her for life. Some people are far too uptight for their kids good on nudity.
Even if everyone is for the idea, I can't see the difference between 16 and 21 either. I think it's a bit much to sensor a 16 year old.
@eyebrows agree. @meshinka That is an OK idea... but what would be classified as adult content? It's really hard to draw a line...I can understand sexual/borderline pornography pictures would offend people, but what about breastfeeding photos? Would they be considered as adult content unacceptable for children because some are offended by breasts and nipples?
I think if this is turning into an issue about children seeing photo's on here then it is definitely up to the parents, I have 3 young children and I am very cautious about what they see in the world, especially things from the internet.
AhAhA, I never saw anything nasty! And I think, if you don't like, don't follow!
It's easy, as easy is don't let kids have access to internet freely.
Better administrate your comfort zone than try interfere in the rights and taste from others.
Hugs to all.
While I see your point, I have to say I'm not on board.
Who is to say what's indescent or not? I had a problem with my albums after certain people said my "nude" photos were inappropriate. Inappropriate to whom, though? Art is about perception. Either you love it or you hate it. Either you see something beautiful or you don't.
When it comes down to it, you shouldn't allow others to choose what is appropriate for your child to see. By asking them to "age group" the pictures, that's exactly what you're doing. The only person, in my opinion, who should restrict what their child should see is the parent. Therefore, it's the paren'ts job to be cautious, and not all the other thousands of 365ers who should not hold responsibility for someone else's concerns. Just my two cents, though. :)
I would like to see an age recommendation on some photos, just like with TV-shows. Not saying that it should not be possible for members to see these photo, but if you can select in your profile which ratings you find appropriate for yourselves (or for any parents with kids doing a 365, they can set that for them), you have some control on what you deem appropriate to watch.
For example, I might set the restriction in place while I'm browsing 365 while at work. My boss doesn't take too kindly on any form of nudity, however artful it is, when I'm in the workplace.
What if it were just a way to block certain tags from showing up on your dashboard or when you hit browse recent. Let's say I don't want to see the tag "nude" or "Green Bay Packers". That way I could customize it. It's not censorship, because it's not being taken away or hidden; I'm just deciding I don't want to see it. Although then everyone would have to tag their photos properly.
Honestly, I say just don't follow the people you notice posting risque stuff.
And when you are browsing on your dash or even on the "Latest" page nothing is all that big to scar someone for life.
When people say that they are leaving because of certain risque pictures I think that is ridiculous, it makes it seems as this entire site is a bunch of pervs. And we aren't, you shouldn't let 3 or 4 bad people ruin your entire life.
We have the follow option for a reason, to follow them or not. Some people like seeing that kind of art, and making that art so let them continue doing what they love.
@jasonbarnette Good idea in theory...but, having said that, the ones of us on here that are responsible, and would actually use the proper rating for a photo are NOT the ones who would cause the problems in the first place. There is ALWAYS a way for people to get around the rating system and do things just to get a rise out of people. I agree with so many others...monitor your children. If we see something inappropriate report it. And in your very last sentence of the original post you said...
"People getting scared away from a few bad photos is like Shaq quitting basketball cause he's afraid of a few basketballs. " Don't leave a site you love because a few immature hackers post things occasionally.
It's not up to us to say what is/isn't appropriate to you, it's up to you to decide if you should be looking at something in front of your kids or at work.
I think making age restriction options might promote the "unsavory" images, or at least make them more acceptable.
For me, 365 has a family-friendly feel and while I agree that art should never be censored, perhaps there is a more appropriate medium for 18+ images.
I'm a Mom, of two girls, age 9 and 6. While they do occasionally look at the photos here as I'm clicking around I generally don't show them cart blanche anything that I'd find unsavory for them to look at. I'd ask them to look away if we happened upon something inappropriate for us, which hasn't happened yet, or I'd close my laptop lid. On the whole I find this site kid/family friendly and haven't seen any inappropriate things, but I missed the hairy bum picture, thankfully.
I think if users felt the need to rate/tag something as nc17 or adulteyesonly, as a courtesy to family folks, something like that is left up to the discretion of the user, without requiring a site redesign with drop downs or something done on photo upload. If something was tagged with adult content it could be kept off of the latest, popular etc pages making it harder to come across without censoring or hindering what people upload.
Beauty, or lack thereof, is in the eye of the beholder. The human body can be a beautiful thing if depicted in a certain way, or gross if posted in others. I'm not really for censoring what people put up, because everyone has different comfort levels. If something is done in good taste artistically I have no problems, but I think porn is unacceptable. My experience so far is that this site is well run, and if something bothers you, don't look at it.
Thanks @rossco088 and blimey, I'd never heard of that Serrano guy. That's just straight crazy. Amused at the reaction from the, let's say, less logically receptive segments of society at the Piss Christ thing though.
I'm with @eyebrows "Parents should monitor how their kids use the internet' and @skypie "Some people are far too uptight for their kids good on nudity" but certainly not interested in looking at pix that are 'low brow' to my tastes on this platform - hence I choose which discussion link to go to and which pages to look at.
sorry i typed 'nude' into the search on here to see what the problem was and found nothing really there to worry about - all was very tasteful and covered.
in fact the only awful one i saw was someone who put a photo on of their naked child dancing with daddy. - which lets be fair is a pretty silly picture to put onto a photo site - shame on parent!
I actively and routinely monitor sites to which my minor children have access. 'If you don't care for it go away' doesn't seem right for 365project, there are solutions which can work. 365project, so far, has primarily proved family and work safe and as such been 'assigned' as school projects. I feel it would be a loss if this site joined the vast majority of others with NSFW or NSFminors postings and required blocking. Seems like there are plenty of places to post whatever you want, for example Photo.net is great for a huge variety of photograhic styles and tastes. This site, if departing from work/minor safe standard we've seen so far, would likely get a full block by the vast majority of content type filters (8e6 or subscription) as well as middle and high schools, at least in the U.S. An easy solution, used in a lot of bulletin board type posting sites, is having subsections, moderated and adult age verified (some protection to site owner) using a different sub-IP or URL The change in IP or URL allows for blocking of that sub-section with most routers and firewalls if desired.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
I have kids, and they help me with some of my photos, and also love to come into the office when they know i'm on 365...i'd rather not have to explain the difference between art and porn/disgusting to them because of someone else's bad taste on 365.
Of course, I don't know how the rating system would work on the browse pages...ross may be asking us for more than $20 for a year to make it happen :)
This rating system would fall under the same umbrella as policing rude comments on photos and discussion posts: that means it involves us. When we see an inappropriate photo, someone flags it. It takes cooperation from all of us if we want to keep the 365 Project clean and practical for as many as possible.
i agree with you though - Ross can't do it all....we're all over the world, and we need to make sure that people aren't being the lowest form of humanity in our public forum. :)
@keithdavid very true..especially if it was a hacker. i don't see people complaining about the tastful nudes....that's just what some people photograph. if they made an anatomically correct nude lego guy, i might be in trouble on here.
just kidding.
kind of.
In the case of that disgusting photo, us 365ers can handle it. I never even saw the said photo; it was taken care of that fast. As long as we continue to watch out for spammers and people unhealthy for the community, we don't need such a high level of censorship.
Anyone is free to post any image they want. While 365ers can handle it, we can't handle it at work and the children shouldn't have to handle it. Just looking out for them.
As for the incident with the soap...not sure if it was a joke or what but my eyes have been seriously damaged from that sight...but I'll get over it :)
The only reason there is so much controversy about that picture is because it was pointed out on here for everyone to see. If it wasn't reported in a thread then almost nobody would know of its existence. So maybe in the future if somebody comes across a picture that is seriously offensive then privately report it... the creepy guy is probably getting off on how much attention this picture has received :-/
@becky I agree with you. As adults we can get over silly things such as this, but young children should definitely be monitored while using the internet... most protect their children from creeps out in public but some seem to forget that the internet can bring the creeps into your home. And unfortunately no site is safe from idiots wasting time and trying to cause trouble.
For anyone thinking about leaving, please don't, don't let these idiots win! xx
And as for kids, I couldn't say it better than Becky. Parenting is the job of parents. So step up to the plate.
QFT.
And let's think about this suggestion for a second - the event that's prompted it was a user knowingly uploading something controversial and deciding for themselves that it was suitable to upload - having an age restriction won't stop them uploading it and sticking the wrong age on it, should they wish to still be controversial, will it? No.
As an attempt to prevent malicious use this suggestion achieves nothing and makes everyone else go out of their way (albeit in a very minor way, but that's not the point) to achieve this nothing - a nice microcosm of many real world censorship/anti-terror laws, amusingly.
The only way to absolutely prevent any kid from seeing stuff is to assume that everyone using the site is a kid (from a standpoint of principles I don't fancy having my experience dumbed down for the sake of a few people who can't be bothered monitoring what their kids do/see) which in terms of execution means human moderation of everything uploaded, which would be a right old nause to implement.
A kid could see something unsavoury just as easily on youtube, with an innocent google search which had a dual meaning they were unaware of, on the bbc news website, anywhere. The internet isn't a childrens playground.
The solution is a lot simpler. If you want to show your kid someone's photos, you have a scan through first and check for unsavoury things. This inconveniences nobody but yourself, which as you're the one wanting your kid to see the photos, is the way it should be.
I have a 3 year old who frequently comes and looks at the laptop and I can't think of anything I want filtered. The hairy ass photo for e.g, I don't see the problem, it's just a bum to her. Full nudity, fine, we're all human, hardcore porn? well it's not like the site is full of it, and if I came across it I'd just flick past it's not like I'd be on an enlarged picture or it is going to traumatise her for life. Some people are far too uptight for their kids good on nudity.
Even if everyone is for the idea, I can't see the difference between 16 and 21 either. I think it's a bit much to sensor a 16 year old.
@meshinka That is an OK idea... but what would be classified as adult content? It's really hard to draw a line...I can understand sexual/borderline pornography pictures would offend people, but what about breastfeeding photos? Would they be considered as adult content unacceptable for children because some are offended by breasts and nipples?
I think if this is turning into an issue about children seeing photo's on here then it is definitely up to the parents, I have 3 young children and I am very cautious about what they see in the world, especially things from the internet.
It's easy, as easy is don't let kids have access to internet freely.
Better administrate your comfort zone than try interfere in the rights and taste from others.
Hugs to all.
I disagree with you, too,Annie !!
Who is to say what's indescent or not? I had a problem with my albums after certain people said my "nude" photos were inappropriate. Inappropriate to whom, though? Art is about perception. Either you love it or you hate it. Either you see something beautiful or you don't.
When it comes down to it, you shouldn't allow others to choose what is appropriate for your child to see. By asking them to "age group" the pictures, that's exactly what you're doing. The only person, in my opinion, who should restrict what their child should see is the parent. Therefore, it's the paren'ts job to be cautious, and not all the other thousands of 365ers who should not hold responsibility for someone else's concerns. Just my two cents, though. :)
For example, I might set the restriction in place while I'm browsing 365 while at work. My boss doesn't take too kindly on any form of nudity, however artful it is, when I'm in the workplace.
And when you are browsing on your dash or even on the "Latest" page nothing is all that big to scar someone for life.
When people say that they are leaving because of certain risque pictures I think that is ridiculous, it makes it seems as this entire site is a bunch of pervs. And we aren't, you shouldn't let 3 or 4 bad people ruin your entire life.
We have the follow option for a reason, to follow them or not. Some people like seeing that kind of art, and making that art so let them continue doing what they love.
"People getting scared away from a few bad photos is like Shaq quitting basketball cause he's afraid of a few basketballs. " Don't leave a site you love because a few immature hackers post things occasionally.
It's not up to us to say what is/isn't appropriate to you, it's up to you to decide if you should be looking at something in front of your kids or at work.
For me, 365 has a family-friendly feel and while I agree that art should never be censored, perhaps there is a more appropriate medium for 18+ images.
I think if users felt the need to rate/tag something as nc17 or adulteyesonly, as a courtesy to family folks, something like that is left up to the discretion of the user, without requiring a site redesign with drop downs or something done on photo upload. If something was tagged with adult content it could be kept off of the latest, popular etc pages making it harder to come across without censoring or hindering what people upload.
Beauty, or lack thereof, is in the eye of the beholder. The human body can be a beautiful thing if depicted in a certain way, or gross if posted in others. I'm not really for censoring what people put up, because everyone has different comfort levels. If something is done in good taste artistically I have no problems, but I think porn is unacceptable. My experience so far is that this site is well run, and if something bothers you, don't look at it.
Just to play the devils advocate on the art issue-
How is the photo of the guys hairy a$$ so offensive, but the art of other "boundry pushers", Andres Serrano for example, as readily accepted as it is?
FYI Andres Serrano is a photographer, and recognized artist, who is famous for his "Blood and Semen" and "Piss Christ" work. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andres_Serrano)
Really isn't art in the eye of the beholder?
in fact the only awful one i saw was someone who put a photo on of their naked child dancing with daddy. - which lets be fair is a pretty silly picture to put onto a photo site - shame on parent!