Re: SUMMARY - protecting an image on a webpage

by =?iso-8859-1?Q?St=E9phane?= Bergeron <stephberg(at)videotron.ca>

 Date:  Wed, 21 Mar 2001 18:55:53 -0500
 To:  hwg-graphics(at)hwg.org
 Cc:  =?iso-8859-1?Q?Gr=E9goire?= Seither <gregoire(at)pobox.com>
 In-Reply-To:  pobox
  todo: View Thread, Original
At 09:58 AM 21/03/01 +0100, you wrote:
>Thank you to all who replied to my query about a way to prevent people from
>downloading images from a HTML slideshow.ee and simple solution:

<snip>

>--- begin code here ---


Hi Gr=E9goire,

Before you implement the script that was sent to you I strongly urge you to=
=20
read item # 10 on the following page:=20
http://www.vortex-webdesign.com/help/dontdoit.htm  If you don't get it the=
=20
first time, read it again. Disabling the right mouse button is possibly one=
=20
the most annoying and amateurish method of dealing with image theft one=20
could ever use.  Not only is it totally inefficient in stopping image theft=
=20
from the minority of users who will try to steal the images but it causes=20
great harm to the usability of the page for the majority of users who are=20
not thieves.  Is it worth taking the risk that your client loose customers=
=20
because they cannot use or navigate the site?  Take the point about left=20
handed users in the page I gave the link for above for example.  That alone=
=20
should convince you to avoid that clueless hack. There is quite a lot of=20
useful items besides Save Image As under the right click context menu that=
=20
will become unusable for everyone once you disable the right mouse=20
button.  It's really not worth it.  The only fail safe way to prevent image=
=20
theft on the Web is not to put them there at all.  The second best method=20
is watermarking images.  Everything else is a more or less damaging hack=20
that can be easily worked around if one is truly determined to get your=20
images.  For the sake of your client's users, please, leave their mouse=20
buttons alone...

HTH!

St=E9phane Bergeron

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