Member Support Team – LIVE CHAT

The first few comments below address questions left on yesterday’s announcement post. We look forward to talking with you today!

Hi Tammie P!
Tammie asked if it is illegal to share something you got in an email…like a joke. Thanks for leaving your question. There isn’t a simple answer to this question, because it is not known if the contents is copyrighted or not. That’s why it is always best to only share content that is your own, or content that you have written permission to share. Any member who shares content on Gather that is not their own, risks being in violation of copyright law and could face fines and/or formal charges.
Members are responsible for the content they share, not Gather. If Gather is contacted by a copyright holder regarding content published on Gather without their permission, Gather removes the content, informs the copyright holder that it is the member, not Gather, who is responsible for the content and if legally necessary, puts the copyright holder in touch with the member.

Kevin asked a series of questions.
1. No. We will continue to look into this.
2. We have in fact solicited and received tons of information from members and group owners on group functionality. This input has been thoroughly reviewed and considered by the design team as the group release was designed. We’ll be launching the group release in mid-February and we’re very excited to bring some amazing new features to Gather.
3. To the best of my knowledge, posts have always been deleted permanently and completely whenever a Gather member deletes it on their own. However, until more recently when a member would remove a photo, it would indeed remain on Gather’s servers. Although such “deleted” photos would not be visible under a member’s profile on Gather, it was still possible for them to show up in comments or anywhere else on the web where they had been embedded using the file location. That effect has been corrected, as we now have automatic processes in place to scrub related image files from our servers when a member removes the photo. After a member removes a photo from their account, the related files should be scrubbed from our servers within a day or two.
Now, to address the experience you have of still being able to view member’s content when their account was deleted long ago… we believe that these cases are relatively isolated. This is not an effect that would still occur when we delete accounts today. The automatic process that takes place when we plug in usernames to be deleted has been altered several times over the past few years. When you see instances of this, Kevin, I assume the accounts were deleted long ago. I’m asking you and any other members who come across content (not groups) that is still visible on Gather after the account is deleted to forward links to us, so we can fix the problem. Please send any links privately – remember, this is content that is not meant to still be visible, so we want to minimize the publicity of such content pages.
4. Gather is still considering establishing a Member Advisory Panel to address content protection concerns in the community. We hope to revisit this suggestion when better Group functionality is available next month.
5. Yes. Soliciting for points or money is prohibited.
6. There was no final update shared on Gather regarding the Secret Santa program because it was secret! However, it was a wonderful program that truly captured the spirit of the season and resonated across the community. Gather’s Santa visited 13 deserving members, each receiving the same generous cash gift.

Phew... that was long !

Kevin - let's get some other members' questions addressed before you ask any others.

thanks for taking the time to answer questions and talk to us!

Hi Elizabeth –
Thanks for leaving your question. We don’t encourage members sharing personal addresses or email addresses. That’s not what Gather’s about. Craig’s List or Ebay would be better sites for this purpose.

Hi Bridget, thanks for joining us.

Hi everyone!

Hello MaryAnne & Chuck.

I just want to say THANKS for your kind words and support, you have always been there and I appreciate that! It's nice to know that Gather does listen! :)

Hi Chuck! What are you wearing?

This answer is for Katie Scarlett O's question about whether it is permitted to talk about another Gather member in your own post:

First, let me preface this by saying that this is a site for adults, and we expect our members to behave as such. In that spirit, we try to minimize cases where we actually do intervene. We’re not going to step in and censor every insulting remark that members throw at one another.

There are many instances when referencing another member – or their work – in your content is perfectly innocent. However, when another member is referenced in a negative way, and this is reported to Member Support, we need to make a judgment call. If we determine that the referencing of another member or another member’s work on Gather has or will have the likely effect of causing harassment unto that member, we reserve the right to remove that content. Many of the cases you see, Katie, are probably not reported to us. Since we don’t have the resources to actively police the site for violations, we rely on the eyes of our members to report such violations to us. But, to reiterate, we do reserve the right to remove content or comments that serve to promote the harassment of another member. Even if that member may deserve it!

As far as seeking permission to publish a hyperlink to another Gather member’s work, such permission is not necessary. Neither is the reprinting of small segments of another member’s text, according to copyright standards. Permission would definitely be needed to reprint, say, more than a few sentences of another member’s work. However, keep in mind that the same policy that I outlined above will apply here. Generally, linking to another member’s work is fine, but if it is done so in a context that will likely drive other members to harass someone, Gather staff can take action to remove the content.

Still wearing my Santa hat apparently.

I'll let your dirty mind fill in the rest of the details.

Only your Santa hat, Chuck?! LOL!

Thanks Chuck. Thanks MaryAnne, Chuck did answer it for me. I appreciate the clarification.

There were a couple private message spammers on the loose today.

If you ever receive spam messages in your Gather inbox please let us know by clicking the "report as spam" link on the message.

If you ever see that the message was sent from a member name that looks like 0000-username-0000 or SCAM-username-SCAM, that means we have already removed the account and you don't need to report it.Unfortunately, when an account is removed the messages the account sent cannot be automatically deleted and they still show up in your mailbox.

What about this next situation that I've seen more than once....a member receives an e-mail from another member, then publishes the e-mail on Gather (sometimes removing or changing the senders' name) for whatever their purpose happens to be....comparing notes, embarassing the original sender, whatever!
Realizing that we are all adults, and the fact that this type of behavior is quite childish, isn't it also out of line? I'm not talking about pings, as they are not really private, I mean private e-mails.

I don't think I have to tell you about the silly behavior that's been rampant here lately, You already know, lol.

It's unfortuantely causing people to leave the site, and others to not be as active.

Katie,

I have seen that too! I have also seen where Gather members send messages to other Gather members telling them why they dislike another Gather member and tell those people to disconnect with them or they won't be their friend anymore.

It makes no sense why we all can't be friends with who we choose no matter who else dislikes them! Afterall, we ARE adults!

Bridget, the connecting and disconnecting is not the issue that concerns me. People do that for all sorts of reasons.....it is the actual POSTING of these e-mails that causes me in all honesty, to not use Gather mail with some correspondence.

Katie,

These cases fall under the same guidelines Chuck outlined above. Gather tries not to get in the middle of member disputes. Publishing a private message publicly may be in poor taste, but in and of itself, it is not a violation to site policies. If it is part of ongoing harassment of a member, Gather will determine if it will be removed.

Thanks MaryAnne.

"I have seen that too! I have also seen where Gather members send messages to other Gather members telling them why they dislike another Gather member and tell those people to disconnect with them or they won't be their friend anymore."

My daughter, and a couple of personal friends, received one of these about me. Reminder to those who send them - you might not know who your connections are related to.

Thanks for joining us Sandy.

Wow Sandy! I guess they got "caught" red handed!

MaryAnne, I'm sure you've run this by your legal counsel, but thought I'd throw in the fact that mine (real paid even) said a letter sent to me belongs to me, and I could circulate or publish it. (This was not Gather related.)

Heather W. asked some questions on the post announcing this chat that I was hoping to see addressed here. Her concerns are about Gather's policy concerning members who 'share' posts that are cut and paste from news articles, recipe sites, emails, etc. and about members who are posting photos on Gather that they have lifted from other websites (often from professional photographers).

Lol, that's interesting Sandy. There are some people who should be very glad that I'm not the type to forward or 'publish' some of the e-mails I've received.

Sandy, that sounds like sound advice. If the letter is yours, you can legally do with it what you'd like.

However, Gather's TOS would be enforced if a letter shared on Gather otherwise violated the terms. Make sense?

I seriously cannot imagine being Gather staff & having to listen to all the whining & moaning & complaining that goes on all over the place... every single day. It would really, really wear on me. I have no idea how you guys do this.

Makes perfect sense, MaryAnne, especially if the letter contained personal information, like a name, address, phone number, etc. Thanks.

Just stopping by to say hi MaryAnne & Chuck.

I agree Faith! I'll admit I've reported a few issues to Gather. But then I got to thinking to myself, they probably have to listen to so much crap that I don't need to waste their time. I'm just trying to deal with things on my own and go about MY business!

Hi Faith. I love your new icon! The good out weighs the bad!

Marianne - thanks for stopping in. It's nice to see you.

Faith, I agree. That's why I'm directly asking Gather Support my questions as there is a lot of moaning and crying and playing victim on here, and if you look carefully, many of the so called 'writers' have brought it on themselves. When there's a full moon, it can be grating on one's nerves to find much else to view. Thank goodness for images and vids.

Oh, and I can't forget the games and contests. I just LOVE those!

At times we do get reports of childish problems and we need to remind members that this is a site for adults.

At other times we get to see wonderful interactions on Gather, talented writers and photographers, and we get to laugh at some great humor. The positive far out weighs the negative.

I still have the same issue I had months ago with not seeing thumbnails when I post photos. Chuck said to send him a screen image but that didn't work.

And I still haven't gotten my paypal payment. I cashed out on 1/6. I have never had to wait this long.

I'm happy that the good out weighs the bad!

When I see articles on Gather I don't like, I just don't look! That's the obvious choice, just move on!

Shannon,

I cashed out for PayPal on December 30th and got my payment on January 6th! I'm assuming they are a little behind due to the holidays.

Sassy Babe (and Heather),

Thanks for the reminder about this! I think we we've addressed this very question clearly in the past, and I suspect that much of the continued conversation about it is due to the fact that that some members make not agree with the policy. But, agree with it or not, here it is:

Gather will take action to remove copyrighted content only if/when the lawful copyright owner or an agent thereof contacts us and instructs us to do so. We will not take action if a 3rd party reports a copyright violation.

I should say that there is a big difference between our own staff guidelines for removing content, and what Team Gather would like to see happen on the site. Certainly, we encourage members to share their own creations, we do our best to only feature works that are original creations (let us know if you see otherwise). But as far as copyright is concerned, each member is ultimately responsible for what they publish. After several conversations with Gather's lawyers, it was determined that the best practice from our standpoint is to take action only when contacted by the actual copyright holder.

Thanks for stopping by Marianne! Hi back!

These are Heather W's questions that I would appreciate commentary on from MaryAnne and/or Chuck. Thank you!

"Why is gather so lenient with members who habitually post work that they themselves did not create (Such as but not limited to: Net photos, email forwards, professional photos they have stolen off photographer's websites, news articles, music videos, mp3 clips and so forth). Other sites where members share creative content (DeviantART for example) has a zero toleration for art / media theft. Gather practically rewards them (giving them points for things which they did not create).

But, given the fact I've asked this question no less than a frillion times, and recieved a cop out answer. I don't expect too much.

But I would really like to know why it is that Gather doesn't seem to mind or care about rewarding theft, and only doing something about it if the original owner contacts gather. Shouldn't it be enough if someone can prove 100% that the content in question is not that person's? (By sending support links to the material elsewhere online)?"

Katie -

YES, thank goodness for images & videos. I completely agree that finding positive things to view here is difficult at times. There will always be someone, somewhere that actually enjoys drama and even though I will never understand that kind of mentality... I just have to grin & bear it.

Thank you for asking Gather your questions directly rather than doing what many other people do.

Sorry, Chuck, I brought that quote in here before I saw that you had posted an answer.

Hi Shannon - we'll work with you individually after this chat to try to help you posting photos.

We have a stated turn around time of 3 weeks for all redemption orders, both Paypal and credit cards. But we often process the orders much quicker. I'll check on your order for you after the chat.

"At times we do get reports of childish problems and we need to remind members that this is a site for adults."

Since that is on the table . . . Do you guys really consider "Name words that start with the letter A" adult content? Are we always going to see things like it mixed with what most people consider adult content, or is there a plan to separate content?

It's difficult to find new members with common interests now that we've been relegated to our personal cubbies.

Heck, Faith, sometimes I find myself resorting to only reading my own old posts, lol. Especially when I have to check recipe ingredients, lol.

Sassy Babe Cat -- great questions!!!

"But I would really like to know why it is that Gather doesn't seem to mind or care about rewarding theft, and only doing something about it if the original owner contacts gather. Shouldn't it be enough if someone can prove 100% that the content in question is not that person's? (By sending support links to the material elsewhere online)?"

Katie - I hear ya, I really do!!!

Sandy,

I agree there are SO many games each day! For the most part, I don't mind them and even comment every now and then.

But it does irritate me when that's the only thing a Gather member posts is games or word of the day articles! I disconnect from those people because there is too much other stuff way more interesting to read on Gather!

I don't like my feed getting clogged with game after game!

I know you do Faith! I KNOW!

Thanks for all of your answers.

"the only thing a Gather member posts is games or word of the day articles!"

Bridget, some people post five and ten a day, to writing groups.

Yes, I see it's almost 4, and I want to thank you both, MaryAnne and Chuck, for answering these questions. This was very informative.

That's another thing that annoys me to Sandy! When people post articles to groups that have nothing to do with it! I hear you there!

Consider TV and cable choices and compare that to Gather. There are many channels and shows you probably have no interest in. And some that are your favorite. You only spend time watching the content you are interested in. That's the same as Gather. Members can choose what they are interested in.

If you are seeing "fluff" content in your feed you can either disconnect from the friend or put them in a friend set that does not show in your feed.

Exactly MaryAnne!

When I see articles on Gather I don't like, I just don't look! That's the obvious choice, just move on!

Thank you for joining us Katie! Come talk to us any time on our Daily Help post at help.gather.com

Sandy, that is one reason I have no interest in owning any groups of any kind. In all fairness to you, you have the right to ask (or force) them to leave if they are not following group guidlines. The adult thing, right?

Will do Chuck. Thanks.

Just a couple things from me.

First I get tired of getting emails from a known crack pot on here telling me that I should lose my arms and legs then I publish those emails without her name and I get flagged and the flags are still there after many months and NOTHING happens to this woman...thats pretty adult I would say.

Second there needs to be a homepage. I know the homepage was taken away because you wanted to look more like a Myspace...have you thought that many people come here because its NOT myspace?

Third I thought publishing 300 threads a day for the sole purpose of gaining points was against the TOS.

Thats all

Thanks everyone. I hope you found the information here helpful! Visit us at the Help Desk if you need help.

I know, as a group owner, that you can remove and block members from your group! That feature has been used numerous times in my 3 moderated for content groups!

Thanks Chuck and MaryAnne! Enjoy the rest of your day!

Cool! Live Chat!?

I wish the Icons were tad bigger, on the home page ~

MaryAnne, when I turn my television on, I know that I'll see political programs on C-Span and children's programs on Disney. I know I will never have to watch Hanna Montana if I click to C-Span.

On Gather, I don't get to choose what I want to see. I can choose my connections, based on what I know they like to see. And I can choose my groups, based on what they advertise. I don't have a reliable TV, since people post to the wrong groups and insult owners and members who complain, and since many groups falsely advertise what will be in their groups.

A "report" for inappropriate groups would be nice. Even nicer would be dividing Gather into writing, games, and chats, and making it a TOS violation to continuously post to the wrong area.

Sorry Paul, the chat just ended about 6 minutes ago!

Hi Lori,
We're just closing up, but I wanted to remind you to block mail from any member you don't want to receive it from. Any action we address with another member is between Gather and that individual member. Take a look at some of the earlier responses from Chuck and I for some additional info.

We encourage you to use the Explore page to see new content across the site. We highlight a nice variety of content there.

Laughing!! I am still a Winner, though. Thank YOU.

Katie, I monitor my groups and don't allow members or posts that don't fit. From the other side, however, if I join groups because I am interested in the topic, and owners allow others to post inappropriately - those show up on my feed. If the group is mostly inappropriate, I drop out. The problem arises when most members post appropriately and I want to see their work, but one or two post multiple inappropriate posts daily to those groups.

Hi MaryAnne and Chuck! Just dropping by to say hello... ;-)

Ok, I understand that Sandy. I also understand that a lot of group owners do have this problem.

Hello!

* BRIDGET AKA Gather Snow Angel * said: "I know, as a group owner, that you can remove and block members from your group! That feature has been used numerous times in my 3 moderated for content groups!"

The wrinkle here is when a member of your group posts photos to a photo album that has your group attached to it. Removing the member from your group does not stop subsequent photos posted to that album (attached to your group) from showing up in your group for acceptance or rejection, even after you have removed said person from your group.

Not an enormous deal, but a hassle if the person publishes a lot of photos and you try to keep your group on topic. Yes, you can reject them all, but that's time consuming to do over and over again. I had success in messaging the person and asking them to remove my group from their album, but other members may not be so reasonable or might take offense.

Janna,

THANKS for letting me know that! I had no idea but that DOES explain an issue I have been having with one particular member who I removed from my group months ago!

Sooo I guess and I am just shooting in the dark here.....we are NOT getting the home page back...right?

Thank you. However, I am disappointed in some of the responses provided (and those answers not provided).

I'll have to address my concerns with the above later this evening.

I must admit that I am disappointed that more people did not show up for this chat.

connie this was offered at the wrong time of day. to many people are out and about at that time.

I'm wondering if the next upgrade or patch will fix the problem of embedded photos disappearing from my posts.

This problem began with the last patch. The only way I can avoid it is to keep that ugly "filmstrip" of images at the bottom of my article. Someone needs to round up these unruly images!

Missed it, dang!

I'm not suprised to see the 'answer' I received.

5. Yes. Soliciting for points or money is prohibited.

Would this include the groups designed to help people solicit for points, and the hundreds of generic/spamming comments they generate.

Examples:

This comment is to let you know that this content has reached at least ten comments, and as such has been removed from Comment Speedway! Congratulations!

This comment is to let you know that I stopped by. Sorry for the generic comment, but I am trying to help as many people as possible to reach their Gather goals. Have a great day!

Sandy correct me if I am wrong but about a year or so ago wasnt there some big tadoo about leaving generic comments.

There were several articles by gather staff members regarding this and we were told NOT to do it.

This rule seems to have changed and now not only is it allowed but it seems that it is now encouraged.