Difference between revisions of "Imgur"
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| − | '''Imgur''' is a free [[Emerging Media|emerging media]] photo-sharing website used to share pictures with friends and also for posting images on message boards and blogs. It was founded by Alan Schaaf | + | '''Imgur''' is a free [[Emerging Media|emerging media]] photo-sharing website used to share pictures with friends and also for posting images on message boards and blogs. It was founded and launched by Alan Schaaf on February 23, 2009. It provides an anonymous uploading feature similar to website's [[Reddit]] and Digg. The only information that is stored is the user's IP address for legal matters. There is a request for image removal for copyrighted material, harassment, spam, gore, [[pornography]], or anything that resembles pornography. <ref>Imgur Site: Removal Request www.imgur.com/removalrequest </ref> The unofficial mascot for Imgur is the imguraffe, which combines the words Imgur and giraffe.<ref>Imguraffe http://imgur.com/blog/2012/03/31/introducing-the-imguraffe/ </ref> |
[[File:imgur.JPG|200px|thumb|right|Imgur, a simple image sharer.]] | [[File:imgur.JPG|200px|thumb|right|Imgur, a simple image sharer.]] | ||
Revision as of 02:06, 7 December 2012
Imgur is a free emerging media photo-sharing website used to share pictures with friends and also for posting images on message boards and blogs. It was founded and launched by Alan Schaaf on February 23, 2009. It provides an anonymous uploading feature similar to website's Reddit and Digg. The only information that is stored is the user's IP address for legal matters. There is a request for image removal for copyrighted material, harassment, spam, gore, pornography, or anything that resembles pornography. [1] The unofficial mascot for Imgur is the imguraffe, which combines the words Imgur and giraffe.[2]
History
Imgur was launched in February 2009 by Alan Schaaf, an undergraduate student from Ohio University. After being unimpressed by the common Reddit social media site, Alan created Imgur as a simple interface with unique image uploading and editing characteristics. He wanted to address the current interface designs that he described as, "bloated, confusing and annoying." [3]
Imgur is used to pass along jokes, awareness, interesting ideas, and share images. Many websites, such as Reddit, use Imgur as their primary image hosting website, although it is not a written rule, it is widely known amongst its users as the standard and most accepted image sharing website. Imgur has overtaken other hosting sites, such as Tinypic, on a variety of social networking sites [4]
Usage and Statistics
After being launched February 2009, Imgur currently has an average of 15,000 views per hour. There are an average of over 360,000 images uploaded to the website every day, which accumulates over 320,000,000 views a day. [5]
| # | Per day | Per week | Per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Images uploaded | 773,244 | 4,965,114 | 23,343,059 |
| Image views | 978,466,914 | 6,469,541,225 | 36,221,749,871 |
| Average image size | 208.18 KB | 199.15 KB | 204.99 KB |
| Bandwidth used | 119.63 TB | 879.25 TB | 4.39 PB |
News
It has been reported that Irish arms of telcom has begun to censor Imgur along with other social networking sites like Reddit because of a lack of accountability and transparency. Three strikes policy has been implemented, with just accusations, no solid proof is necessary. [7]
Many websites and message boards prohibit the use of Imgur links due to their allegiance to other image hosting/sharing websites. This prohibition is usually not due to the content that is displayed on Imgur, as they monitor and remove most offensive images.
Ethical Implications
Popular and widely used websites such as Imgur generally have many ethical implications. Because of the ability to contribute images anonymously, users feel a heightened sense of freedom and comfort. As a result, this could lead to an increase in inappropriate images, such as pornography, being added to the site. The strike policy on Imgur also contains ethical implications. Whether or not a user posted an inappropriate image, users can simply make an accusation towards another user who is then issued a strike. It is thought that sometimes one strikes to accuse another user simply for the sake of griefing other users. This brings down others users and begins to censor them, due to the anonymity of users.
Another ethical concern within Imgur is the issue of copyrighted material being uploaded by unauthorized parties. Although the website has implemented policies and technology to help remove copyrighted material, with over 360,000 images being uploaded daily, there is no doubt that many copyrighted images wrongfully uploaded to the site will go unnoticed. This largely has to do with the fact that many of imgur's images are published elsewhere and open to being copied without proper credit and citation given. Imgur requests that users do not upload pictures they know that are already copyrighted, however in reality this policy is widely abused as people often share images and pictures on the internet that are not their own. Imgur does explicitly state what violations of Intellectual Property are and guidelines on claimed copyright infringement. [8]
Anonymity
Another ethical concern regarding the use of Imgur is that images can be uploaded anonymously leaving room for explicit, pornography, and offensive images to be posted anonymously by people to Imgur. It is states on Imgur's website under their Terms of Service that "you can upload images anonymously and share them online with only the people you choose to share them with. If you make them publicly available, they may be featured in the gallery. This means that if you upload an image to share with your friend, only your friend will be able to access it online. However, if you share an image with Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Reddit, etc, then it may end up in the gallery." [9]
References
- ↑ Imgur Site: Removal Request www.imgur.com/removalrequest
- ↑ Imguraffe http://imgur.com/blog/2012/03/31/introducing-the-imguraffe/
- ↑ reddit.com: My Gift to Reddit: I created an image hosting service that doesn't suck. What do you think?
- ↑ Interview with Alan Schaaf by DomainShane.com
- ↑ www.imgur.com/stats
- ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imgur Imgur Wiki Page
- ↑ MCVUK: O2 Ireland begins web censoring
- ↑ http://imgur.com/tos
- ↑ Imgur Terms of Service| http://imgur.com/tos
