# PHOTOBUCKET (time to move on)



## BROCKWOOD (Jul 7, 2017)

*forumadmin@studebakerdriversclub.com <forumadmin@studebakerdriversclub.com> *
Jul 5 (2 days ago)













to me 


Hello BROCK,

If you've been using Photobucket as a host for photos posted on the SDC Forum, you've probably found (as many have over the past weeks) that your images are no longer loading due to Photobucket's new Third Party Hosting rules.
This is an unfortunate business decision, but one we at the SDC Forum have no control over.

Many of you have asked about replacements for this service. While Forum administration or the SDC itself cannot officially recommend any photo hosting service over another, several alternatives have been suggested by Forum users themselves. These include flickr.com, Imgur.com and Postimage.io . All of these offer some levels of no-charge third-party hosting, as well as upgraded, paid services.

Unfortunately, no matter which replacement service you choose, old links to Photobucket pictures you've posted on the Forum are broken and will likely not return. This means that images hosted on Photobucket and placed in your Forum posts will be broken as well. You can fix these, after uploading your pictures to the new photo host of your choice, by editing your old posts and inserting the new photo link URLs.

Thank you for being an SDC Forum Member, and happy Studebakering!

Clark Novak
SDC Forum Administrator


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## hman (Jul 8, 2017)

Ouch!


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## darkzero (Jul 8, 2017)

Yup, tons of threads on the net about it after phobucket sent out the email & the pics went "dead".

I used PB for over 14 yrs & never had a complaint, even put up with all the crazy ads theybadded in the past few yrs. No more PB for me as well, I've moved on to an alternative.

I posted about it here too in off topic. Moving to this to off topic as well.

http://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/wow-rip-photobucket.60213/


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## johnnyc14 (Jul 8, 2017)

I'm in the same boat. All the posts I've made on the 5 or 6 different forums I frequent are now sans pictures as I have used Photobucket since 2007. Heartbreaking.


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## wawoodman (Jul 8, 2017)

I wonder if Photbucket is surprised at the number of people who aren't forking over any money?

Did they really think we would go for the new paradigm?


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## dlane (Jul 8, 2017)

Glad I never messed with it.


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## Superburban (Jul 8, 2017)

johnnyc14 said:


> I'm in the same boat. All the posts I've made on the 5 or 6 different forums I frequent are now sans pictures as I have used Photobucket since 2007. Heartbreaking.


Why not upload the pics with the post?  I can see if the site does not have it as an option, but many allow it.


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## johnnyc14 (Jul 9, 2017)

10 years ago when I started using Photobucket, some of the forums I frequent would not allow direct uploading of images because they lacked the storage capacity. I was looking for a method for displaying pictures that would work in all the forums and I found it in Photobucket. I've been a paying member of PB for years now. I bought their upgrades for additional storage and ad free use and was happy to pay $40 a year for those upgrades. I refuse to pay $400 for the same service.


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## Hozzie (Jul 9, 2017)

I moved over to SmugMug about 2 years ago and am happy.  Yes, it costs about $40 for the year, but you don't have to worry about crap like this.  I also like its option to for sharing different sizes of the same pictures.  Plus I found it much faster than Picasa which I was using.  I have never been a fan of Photobucket.

Check it out.  If you are interested, use this link and you will get 20% off.  https://secure.smugmug.com/signup?Coupon=n7tRkJ


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## dieselshadow (Jul 9, 2017)

Uploading to the forums directly is the best way period. The forum will never lose a photo due to a 3rd party site holding your pics ransom. Here's the real rub. You spend all this time and effort to document your project/skill/instructions/problem/whatever for all to see and benefit from, and then have the most important part dissapear... It sucks. Please upload to any forum that allows it. It's just so much better. You preserve this valuable content and info when you do that.


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## Hozzie (Jul 9, 2017)

dieselshadow said:


> Uploading to the forums directly is the best way period. The forum will never lose a photo due to a 3rd party site holding your pics ransom. Here's the real rub. You spend all this time and effort to document your project/skill/instructions/problem/whatever for all to see and benefit from, and then have the most important part dissapear... It sucks. Please upload to any forum that allows it. It's just so much better. You preserve this valuable content and info when you do that.



The problem is that most forums will stop allowing it because they cannot afford to have enough drive space to save these files.  They will then start to charge for access to the site to post and participation will go down dramatically.   The real problem is everyone is used to having free space on things like Google, not realizing it is all done as a way to datamine.  

If each person would spend a little money to store their photos, we will keep free access to a lot of the sites run by people as a service to help us.  Most of these site owners are not making money from these sites.


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## dieselshadow (Jul 9, 2017)

I help run several forums. Space today on a server is cheap. That has never been an issue but on the earliest days of forum ownership. Check out the price of 1TB hard drive. It's nothing. Part of doing business.


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## Superburban (Jul 9, 2017)

Hozzie said:


> The problem is that most forums will stop allowing it because they cannot afford to have enough drive space to save these files.  They will then start to charge for access to the site to post and participation will go down dramatically.   The real problem is everyone is used to having free space on things like Google, not realizing it is all done as a way to datamine.
> 
> If each person would spend a little money to store their photos, we will keep free access to a lot of the sites run by people as a service to help us.  Most of these site owners are not making money from these sites.


I have not seen picture space issues discussed for 10 to 15 years now. As mentioned, server space, and band width costs have dropped dramatically. If they were an issue, the forum can implement several methods, like photo size limiting, automatic resolution, or size reduction, ect. The two forums that I help moderate, would rather see the pics be hosted on site, over having to go through, and remove great posts that are useless, because the photos are linked from elsewhere on the web. 

If you are going to spend the money, why not donate it to the forums, to help them? With off site storage, if something happens to you, and you stop paying the yearly fee, all the pics disappear from the web, and anything you have used them for, is gone forever, erasing your legacy from the web.

Please do not feel like I singled you out, or that you have to respond. After seeing hundreds, if not thousands of well documented threads become useless, due to hosting on remote servers, I was wondering. I have asked this question 3 times, and yours is the most logical answer. Had one guy on a vehicle forum, say that he wants the ability to remove his pictures if he decides. I take it as he wants to be able to take his toys, and go home if the other kids do not play the game his way. Whatever.

Thanks for your viewpoint.


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## westsailpat (Aug 1, 2017)

I opened a flicker acc. seems to work . I'm still trying to figure it out , I liked PB better .
<a data-flickr-embed="true"  href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/157116216@N07/36272556606/in/dateposted-public/" title="DSCF2431"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4315/36272556606_c258a542b3_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="DSCF2431"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


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## westsailpat (Aug 2, 2017)

Test
<a data-flickr-embed="true"  href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/157116216@N07/36165836522/in/dateposted-public/" title="DSCF2342"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4365/36165836522_d8a2cb0b73_o.jpg" width="2592" height="1944" alt="DSCF2342"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true"  href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/157116216@N07/35498767434/in/dateposted-public/" title="DSCF2344"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4407/35498767434_884e57b997_o.jpg" width="2592" height="1944" alt="DSCF2344"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


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## Latinrascalrg1 (Aug 18, 2017)

This was posted on another forum im on by one of the forum Mod's.  This mod said that he has used it and it works but he also stated that he didnt know if this will continue to work forever or not!  He also stated that adding "~original" after the .jpg will also allow the picture to be seen...the photobucket address link should look like this .jpg~original

I personally haven't tried either of these options but if it works it should help solve this problem  with the broken picture links.

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/...nk-fix/kegnjbncdcliihbemealioapbifiaedg?hl=en

Update : ive tried this, ~original,  and it works nicely. 
Ive yet to try the download patch but from what ive read by adding that patch to your browser you should then be able to see all the broken photobucket pics from that web browser.

Hope it works for you.  Good luck.


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## Superburban (Aug 27, 2017)

Here is a firefox add on that will work for a while.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/photobucket-embedded-fix/?src=api


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## wildo (Sep 26, 2017)

I just noticed that one of my threads with TONS of linked photobucket pics now has all the pics restored. I can tell you I certainly didn't pay their ransom... Pretty interesting to see all the images back. I can't find any indication via google that something has changed. Anyone else seeing similar things?


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## dlane (Sep 27, 2017)

Don't think it was me but : a couple weeks ago on a diferant fourm I was looking for pics/info for working on my truck that were there last time I looked, this time they were gone 
 I got pi**ed off and sent photo bucket customer service a explicit email of how dirty rotten lowdown pieces of s**t they all were for holding pics hostage, they should all be bankrupted 
And I'll bet I wasent the only one sending them colorful messages


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