FA+
Shop
To artists: Why I don't Weasyl
12 years ago
Watchers/commissioners are not allowed to post copies of the pieces they paid for. Instead, they can only link to the artist's post, and then only if given permission by the artist.
This becomes a problem if the artist ever removes the post or rescinds permission. It also denies the commissioner the ability to feel in control of their own gallery.
There are also restrictions on posting commissioned pictures made by artists who are not members of Weasyl.
And of course, even if an artist *is* a member, watchers can't post pictures made by that artist before they joined - unless the artist goes to the trouble of uploading old art and giving the required permission.
Overall it is a site that I would prefer to avoid. I have commissioned over 90 paid pieces for my character
bunnyofdust through FA. I doubt I will ever commission a piece through Weasyl.
This becomes a problem if the artist ever removes the post or rescinds permission. It also denies the commissioner the ability to feel in control of their own gallery.
There are also restrictions on posting commissioned pictures made by artists who are not members of Weasyl.
And of course, even if an artist *is* a member, watchers can't post pictures made by that artist before they joined - unless the artist goes to the trouble of uploading old art and giving the required permission.
Overall it is a site that I would prefer to avoid. I have commissioned over 90 paid pieces for my character
bunnyofdust through FA. I doubt I will ever commission a piece through Weasyl.
From the Weasyl Handy Guide to Collections:
What Are Collections?
"Collections" are a system which enables a user to have a second gallery of submissions that were made for them, rather than by them. The Collections system's main purpose is to cut down on duplicate uploads of the same piece, so as to prevent unnecessary consumption of site space, and so the original uploader is guaranteed full recognition for their work.
Although we have this system, users are still allowed to upload pieces made for them/that include them. However, we do encourage users to try the Collections feature."
I can't find anywhere in their rules that say you can't post art done from you by someone on another site either as long as you have their permission to post said art. Just use common courtesy and credit and link back to them. I see it being done and do it myself without any problem.
They also strongly encouraged (though did not require) that if a user wanted to post a piece made by a non-Weasyl artist, the user should first ask that artist to join Weasyl - then to post that piece and give permission.
On the whole, these requirements are unnecessary and onerous. They aren't even a good way of saving storage space, since there are much more elegant methods to do this without bothering users at all.
Again from Weasyl's upload rules:
"A. Right to Submit
Weasyl respects the rights of artists with regard to the distribution of their original works; as such, there are two types of artwork that you may upload: artwork that you have created, and artwork that has been created by others for you.
Original Content Submissions: If you are a creator of a particular work, whether you created it individually or in collaboration with others, you automatically hold the rights to its distribution. Content of this type belongs in your submissions gallery.
Original Content Collections: If a particular work has been uploaded to the site and was created for you, includes you, or features one of your characters, then the original uploader should offer it to you as a collection. If the original creator does not have an account on Weasyl, you may post the work to your submissions gallery.
Tracing and Plagiarism: You may incorporate the work of others into new works; however, the use of borrowed content must either abide by fair use or you must obtain permission from the copyright holder. The submission will be removed if it meets neither of these requirements. In either case, you must cite the content's source in the submission description."
See the last sentence under Original Content Collections.
It's the other one that bothers me - where you're expected to wait for the artist to offer it to you as a collection item, and then link it from their page. There are problems with this from both the commissioner's and the artist's point of view.
Also, it seems that commissioners will be forced to display their art in two galleries instead of just one, depending on whether the artist is on Weasyl or not.
As I said, there are far easier ways to save storage space, and the whole arrangement is clumsy, poorly thought out, needlessly laborious, and just generally annoying. I don't want to deal with this crap, and I hope my favourite artists won't decide to move there.
Another major Weasyl disadvantage is the filenames. Here on FA, you have filenames as db#.username_originalfilename. There... Just some a bunch of some random IDs so if you save the pic, you've no way to tell whose it is.