Whilst the software the server runs on is 100% new code, we still need images to present you with something, well, presentable. Indeed, it's rather the point that any graphical world relies on at least some graphics to show you something pretty. The only images built-in to the WorldsAway client are, mostly, a selection of gray blocks and geometric shapes. You might catch a glimpse of some of these when loading a new region that has something new in it.
Our museum world, Kymer, uses original images saved out by the client back in the 1990s when the data captures were made. We think this is an entirely permissible use of the saved data and is entirely consistent with reuse of old media in a preservation context.
Our demonstration world, AltAway1), by necessity also needs images, so to speed development, we reused many of the same image files in order to have something that users visiting would feel happy and comfortable with. As time has progressed, this small scale demo has grown in size to the point where it's about ready to be a community in its own right, and it's used more and more images, sourced from various places. Users familiar with another service still using the original WorldsAway technology have expressed desires for particular images, usually used for heads, bodies, accessories, etc. This page is here to provide some guidance and detail our policies on this.
Images are, by and large, subject to copyright. This is normally assumed by the creator or artist, and is an automatic granting of rights to them as a reward for their creative endeavors. (And because of this, you can't copyright the output of a computer program, however pretty, as algorithms are presumed not to be creative.) Where an artist produces works in the course of their employment, the copyright is usually granted to the employer, although a credit may be given to the artist. It is also possible to sell and transfer one's rights, or to licence all or some rights to another entity whilst still retaining the copyright. Obviously this can quickly become a legal minefield…
Because of the many changes of operator of the original Dreamscape, the ownership of any given image can be unclear. We have therefore made the following decisions:
We use the following indicators to identify permissable images; these are mostly based on the filename when we are reasonably sure this has not been manipulated:
Allowed:
Disallowed:
Disallowed by caution:
Certain artists have given us permission to use their previous work. You may therefore spot images that do not adhere to the above rules. A code in the filename will usually indicate the artist -
If you have art that you would like us to use, we currently use this third party artists agreement. We need a perpetual non-exclusive licence to use your art, but we will not require transfer of ownership or rights: your work is yours to keep and use anywhere else you want. As part of this process, you undertake that the art is your own work, you are entitled to licence it to us, and you indemnify us against any charges of plagiarism, copyright violation, or other offences should this not turn out to be the case. At present, we are not in a position to provide any monetary reward. We will, of course, give you in-world copies of any items using the art, if it's not made generally available.
We occasionally source art from “royalty free” clipart websites, and the like. This is fraught with problems, though, as they often require attribution which, not being a website or publication, is difficult to do. Where this is required, it will be provided via a “Credit” link when you “Tell Me About” an object. This is not editable. We try not to do this too often, as such art is seldom in-keeping with the WorldsAway art style anyway.
If you believe you own the rights to any images found in any AltAway hosted world, and do not wish to see it used, or wish to have an attribution credit attached to it, you may contact Amanda to discuss this. Please note that you will need to provide proof of ownership of rights. e.g. copies of contracts, licence agreements, bills of sale, etc., tracing back to the original creator, or provide proof that you are the original artist. We cannot accept simple statements that you own the rights, nor can we accept statements from third parties, as this would not be provable. Once we have enough information to ascertain you have the required rights to control the use of the image, we will remove or add attribution as you request.