Jump to content

VGHF Digital Library doesn't credit scanners


kitsunebi

Recommended Posts

  Quote

The magazine library will be fully text searchable, organisable by chronology, and allow users to filter mags by region, platform, publisher, and more. In Cifaldi's example, he searches for "every videogame magazine in our collection in chronological order that says 'Metroidvania'.

Expand  

I know a lot of people are anticipating this.  It's way too much work to implement here, so if VGHF has the manpower to make it happen, good.  Of course, being fully text-searchable is not the same thing as being able to view the mags themselves, so we'll have to wait a few more days to see exactly what's what.

As for me, I'll just keep my head down and continue putting out the best quality scans I'm capable of. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • kitsunebi changed the title to VGHF Digital Library doesn't credit scanners

Well, I don't know why I expected any better.  The VGHF's digital library is partially online, and its magazine archive is basically a (very incomplete) mirror of Retromags, except with all credits removed.  Sure, there's a "this scan was provided by Retromags" tag, but all credits to the ACTUAL people who provided the scan is missing.

Here's an FYI for the VGHF: anything I scan and release isn't provided by Retromags, it's provided by ME.  Hundreds of my scans were created when I wasn't even a member here.  My scans are no more "provided by Retromags" than they are provided by OldGameMags or the Internet Archive (where I also host them) - Retromags just happens to be the one you pulled them from.  Retromags is one of several places I've chosen to host my mags, but they didn't create them, nor did they ask me if they could provide them to other sites stripped of my credit.  And since everywhere I choose to host my mags includes my credit (since I uploaded them there myself,) the VGHF is now the only place hosting my mags that doesn't include credits (granted, they're only using a couple of my scans so far, as most of their library has yet to come online.)

I get it that almost no one cares about credits except the people being credited.  No one reads all of the credits at the end of a film, either.  But removing them isn't right, nor is ignoring the actual creators of a scan and instead crediting the hosting site that the files were ripped from as if they did any of the work.  For the record, I don't mind if the VGHF uses my scans.  I just wish they showed a little more respect for the hours of work I put into each one of them.

  • Sad 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  On 2/6/2025 at 12:40 AM, Rando1975 said:

Too bad they wouldn't have something like "provided by Retromags via kitsunebi" or something similar.

Expand  

This is kind of missing the point.  Scans should be attributed to the people who created them, meaning they should have at least one credit, and possibly two or three.  But "Retromags" isn't really one of them.

Scanner and editor are the big ones.  Usually it's the same person, but not always.  And while it can be argued that it's a less egregious omission, if a mag was donated by someone else to be scanned, it's polite to credit the donator as well (btw, it's pointless - and ridiculous - for someone who scans their own mags to credit themselves as donator.)

So including "scanned by" "edited by" should be the base standard on any site hosting scans respectfully (unless that information is unknown.)

But again, "provided by Retromags" is currently the only credit given, and it suggests that Retromags had something to do with the creation of the scan.  Which is false.  Hundreds of my scans were created during a period of time when I had been banned from Retromags after I stopped contributing to the site.  After rejoining the site, I've uploaded many of those mags here, but at the time they were created, they were never intended to be available at Retromags at all.  Even now, Retromags is usually the last place I upload my scans to out of the multiple places I post them to.  Does it make sense for them to show up at the VGHF with the only credit given to them being Retromags?

Furthermore, there is a difference in language used for mags they got from the Internet Archive that further confuses things.  For some reason, mags are labeled as "provided by Retromags," but they are labeled as "obtained from the Internet Archive."  Again, this language makes it seem like Retromags played an active hand in creating the mags, when they're really just the hosting site, no different from the Internet Archive.  Anything I've scanned can be found at either place, but if they show up at the VGHF, the only language that is accurate is to say they were "obtained from ___," since I played no part in sharing them with the VGHF, nor was I asked if I wanted them hosted there (again, I don't actually object to them using the scans.)

I've realize I've been using myself as an example, but this is all applicable to other scanners as well.  Like I said before, only a couple of my scans are over there at the moment, and unless they plan to also host Japanese mags, most of my stuff won't ever show up there, regardless.  But this isn't about me - this is about acknowledging the people that contributed their own time, sweat, and money to make these scans available.  That's the difference between a respectful site like Retromags or OldGameMags and a bot-ripped page of mirrored scans at the Internet Archive.  If the VGHF wants to acknowledge the website they chose to obtain the files from (out of all the other possible websites they could have chosen instead), that's fine.  But on a scale of importance, that credit is the least so.

It's early days yet for their digital library, so hopefully they will implement a more complete credit byline at some point.  And so far as I can tell, they aren't making the mags in their library downloadable, so at the very least, anyone wanting to download the mags will be directed to do so at a place that actually lists the credits.

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  On 2/6/2025 at 9:12 AM, kitsunebi said:

But again, "provided by Retromags" is currently the only credit given, and it suggests that Retromags had something to do with the creation of the scan.  Which is false.  

Expand  

Great point.

"Provided by Retromags". Well, no it's not provided by Retromags. It's provided by "insert scanner name here" Sadly, I'm doubtful the scanners will get proper credit on there.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  On 2/6/2025 at 9:34 PM, Rando1975 said:

"Provided by Retromags". Well, no it's not provided by Retromags. It's provided by "insert scanner name here" Sadly, I'm doubtful the scanners will get proper credit on there.  

Expand  

It's funny how the Internet Archive catches all the blame for reuploading our scans without acknowledging where they came from, but that's actually not true a lot of the time.  Many people who upload our scans to IA upload the files "as is," meaning that the Retromags page at the end of the file is still present.  That's actually the entire reason that page is there in the first place - it isn't so people downloading a mag at Retromags know they downloaded a mag at Retromags 😄  It's so Retromags gets some free advertising every time someone uploads one of our mags elsewhere.

That's one reason I created a custom version of the Retromags end credit page that also identifies the scanner and editor of the mag - something I wish everyone else here would do as well, since without those credits, even if the RM end page is intact, no one downloading our mags anywhere but at Retromags will be able to know who actually created the scan.  (I also removed the "made with love by Retromags" line, since...well, we've been over this - RM had nothing to do with making it - though I've kept the rest of the RM advertisement in place.) 

Of course, even IF we can get everyone around here using a modified RM credit page that also credits the scanner/editor, the VGHF removes the Retromags credit page from the scans they use, something not even the Internet Archive's Official Retromags Scrape-Bot™, Doomguy2000 does. 😞

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I want to thank you all for all the work you've done for folkscanomy, even if you were theoretically mutually rewarding each other, you didn't have to share it all with people who never contributed. So thanks.

And yes, you should definitely be credited for your efforts.

I find it interesting that all the mags they've pledged give scans of to Retromags are indeed there, but Retromags themselves is not hosting many of the same scans (I'm eyeing Computer Game Review in particular)...

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Son1c earned a badge
      Member for 3 Months
    • goose earned a badge
      Member for 3 Months
    • goose earned a badge
      Member for 6 Months
    • DreamerBoii earned a badge
      Member for 7 Days
    • DiocletianFanBo earned a badge
      Member for 1 Month
×
×
  • Create New...
Affiliate Disclaimer: Retromags may earn a commission on purchases made through our affiliate links on Retromags.com and social media channels. As an Amazon & Ebay Associate, Retromags earns from qualifying purchases. Thank you for your continued support!