A Necessary Change
After a lot of thought and deliberation, I've made a tough decision that will change the way a lot of you read this blog. As of the next post, those of you who read the blog in a feed reader, such as Bloglines or Google Reader, or who subscribe to the email version of the blog, will see only the first few lines of each post and will have to click on the title of the post in order to read the whole thing on the blog itself. It's called using a "short feed" and it's something I've avoided doing since I began this blog. But finding that my blog posts are being copied in their entirety without my permission and presented as someone else's work, on a blog that has the look and feel of a reputable site, was just the last straw.It's called a "scraper site," and it was created solely to make money off of other people's work. A scraper sets up a blog, but rather than write original content for it, he snatches the RSS feeds of legitimate blogs and displays them on his blog as though they were his own words and photos, in hopes of making money off of ads on his blog. I've had this happen to me several times, a few posts stolen here and there, but the last straw came for me last week, when I found a blog filled with my complete posts--photos, recipes, and stories about my daily life. Can you imagine how it feels to find your daughter's photo or your discussion of your birthday present on some random page of the internet, presented as though they belonged to someone else? Content theft can happen to anyone--this particular scraper has 1238 other domains, according to domaintools.com--but one sure way to make it more difficult is to change to a short feed. After sending email to the scraper and his website host and getting no response, I've decided to change, at least for the time being, to a short RSS feed.
I apologize to all of you who are inconvenienced by the change. I hope that you will click through to the blog and find that there are features here that you'd been missing, such as the search box that allows you to search this blog or over 470 other vegetarian blogs, the links in the sidebar to the most visited recipes, or the helpful comments left by other readers. I hope you'll find that reading the posts at the site inspires you to join the discussion and offer your own comments and suggestions.
Mostly, I hope that you won't want to miss a recipe, including the one in my next post for something I rarely ever make...cookies! Please stop in and read it at its rightful home, FatFree Vegan Kitchen.
posted by SusanV at 10:45 AM
93 Comments:
I had no idea such a thing as scraper sites existed. Thanks for the info.
Since I have started using Google Reader, I find that I am less compelled to click through on blog entries that only have the first couple of lines.
If the title is compelling and the opening paragraph that is shared is well written, I click through - otherwise, I skip it. I have unsubscribed from a lot of blogs that don't have complete feeds.
Oh, that's awful! I'm so sorry it happened to you. Lots of the blogs I read on Google Reader use the more tag, and it's never stopped me from clicking on a post that looks interesting!
I understand your concern about these scumbags stealing your content but I fail to see how doing the short feed is going to help anything out. While it might slow the problem for a bit, these people are advanced enough to have their bots follow the "continue reading..." link and copy right from there.
This is just one of the unfortunate side effects of having a popular website. Don't get too discouraged though; you are doing a great job with your blog.
Wow, sorry to hear that....that is SUPER shady!
I had no idea that Scraper Sites existed. That's terrible. Whoever was taking pictures (especially those of you daughter for God's sake) should be ashamed of themself.
I'll still be reading. Short feed or not!
How frustrating for you! Well, this is one of my favorite blogs, and I'll continue to subscribe to it...and I guess I'll just have to go through one more click to get to your great recipes! Keep up the wonderful work.
Wow, I'm really sorry to hear that. May I ask how you found out? How does a blogger track their stolen content?
Thanks so much for at least explaining why you were doing it.
For me, I used to use Google Reader because my internet was so heavily blocked at work that I couldn't access ANY blog websites. So the only thing I had was the RSS feeds - I couldn't click through even if I wanted to. But, happily, that spam blocker is now gone, and I don't need to worry about your short feeds! :)
I wish you the best in your anti-theft endeavors.
- Cesia.
http://ceceatitagain.blogspot.com
That's really horrible! I received a pingback on one of my blog posts on blog.beccajanestclair.com, and the site had my entire post re-posted, but it also linked back to my blog, so I didn't really consider it plagiarism...hmm. That's something to think about.
Oh, and another solution you might want to consider - add a .htaccess file to your site and ban hotlinking to photos - this would keep your personal family photographs safe from being hotlinked on a scraper site.
Depending on who your host is, they can help you set it up, or you can just google either .htaccess or google "no hotlinking images" and it should be able to walk you through it.
I'm so sorry! I was disappointed to see the change, but of course you have to protect yourself, and this is just ridiculous. I'll still click through!
That's terrible, I feel so bad for you. I didn't know anything like that could happen. I always read your posts directly from your blog but use Google reader to notify me when new posts are up. I hope whoever is doing this will stop immediately. Good luck and thanks for writing such a great blog.
no need to apologize, Susan! wow, i'm so sorry that happened to you! that has to be unbelievably frustrating! argh! i totally understand - and you better believe i'll still be reading your blog! :)
Aw, nuts. This is my first comment ever, even though I read from my newsreader almost every day.
Would it be possible to remove pings/trackbacks? I know that helped a lot with scrapers on my blog. It's not an ideal answer, but might be worth a try.
Thanks for telling us why you're doing this. I normally don't click through, but since you've explained the reasoning, I definitely will!
Sorry to hear that you need to do this. I've enjoyed your blog but given how many blogs I keep up with using my blog reader, sadly I'll need to drop your blog from my reading list.
I have to admit, I don't use a reader. I just go to your website 2 or 3 times a week (or more...whenever I'm feeling hungry and looking for something yummy to make that night) and see if there's an update.
I'm really sorry that something that you have put so much into has been taken and used for someone else's profit. Parts of this world are a terrible place, but thankfully, there are parts that are beautiful as well. You certainly make your part better through your work.
Thank you!!
i'm sorry that happened.
As an RSS subscriber I will be clicking the link to every one of your posts!
that's how we do it. it's a really good idea.
Sorry to hear! I've only recently been hearing about these blog snatchers and I've just added it to the list of stuff that drives me crazy.
I use google reader but to post comments I need to click on the post anyway and of course that lets me look at your lovely site too. Google reader just lets me know when a new post is up. Thanks for the update and hopefully this won't happen again :)
It's sad what some people will do for a quick buck. With new technology comes new scams. I'm not widely read, so I don't have this issue, but thanks for the information for all of those that do have high traffic and want to protect their work.
That is such a bummer, because no matter how much I love a blog, I just don't have the time/energy/motivation to click through. I read what comes across on my feed reader... period. But I hear you on the reasons you're doing it. I sure hope it works for you, though. I, too, have fallen victim in the past and it's angering and violating and so illegal.
Susan, I am so very sorry that this has happened to you. but you have no reason to apologize. I'm just happy when you post and I can click over and view your latest work...be it a new recipe, your garden or your musings. Thanks for sharing your work!
What a drag, I am dealing with the same problems of my feeds being scraped in their entirety as well. Those thieves are nearly impossible to fight.
To be honest I really don't like it when blogs only offer short feeds, and I usually never click through. On the other hand, it's one of the only ways to fight these jerks, and I've considering having to do the same thing myself. I guess I need to learn to be more sympathetic to bloggers who do only short feeds from now on (especially since I might be one of them soon!), though admittedly, it's a hassle for me as I prefer to read everything directly in my reader.
Someone above in the comments mentioned that she doesn't really consider it plagiarism when they link back to her posts, but she's missing a big part of why this so evil. First of all, it's undoubtedly plagiarism and stealing whether they link back or not. When someone uses your work without your permission and republishes it (they'll often do this by removing your name as the author and putting in a fake one), that's plagiarism and theft.
More importantly, it's creating duplicate content of stuff that's already on your blog, for which Google can penalize you. This can have all kinds of negative impact on your own traffic and rankings. If that bogus site gets a higher rank in Google for your own search terms and key phrases (which they've stolen from you!), then your site suffers.
Not to mention that those people are making money off your content as well while you don't see a dime, so it's important for people to realize that this is in every way stealing, and that even if they provide a link back, it's not in any way helping you.
I hope that the internet and blogging masterminds out there will eventually come up with a more direct and effective way to fight this plague.
....one more thing. I have a love/hate relationship with your post about the microwave potato chips. They are the new obsession in our house! If our poor, tired microwave could speak, it would beg us to stop already with the potatoes! They are so good we all (all 8 of us!) want the chips ALL the time!
Also, I've found the most direct way to get those a-holes to remove my content is to leave threatening comments on the posts themselves. I've tried all the other routes of direct contact and trying to track down the webhosts, but the info is usually always bogus and leads to email accounts that don't exist. I've noticed though that when I leave nasty comments on the actual posts (when there's a comment form available), they'll most often remove the stolen content. By threatening I don't mean threatening to kill their firstborn or anything like that! I mean that I'll usually say something like:
"This content has been stolen from (insert url). Anyone reading this should be made aware that they are viewing stolen content and that the real author of this post has not given permission for it to be used on this bogus website. REMOVE IT AT ONCE TO AVOID FURTHER LEGAL ACTION."
It's a bit over dramatic but it's worked for me twice this week where other methods have not. Of course it's a huge hassle to go around chasing down all of these jerks, but it's a worth a try.
I can't believe this happened to you yet again! Well, actually I can believe it, unfortunately. I'm happy to click-through for you! I already try to click through as often as I remember, since I know that helps to support you blog anyway, so this will just remind me!
So sorry about this violation, Susan, and I'll click as many times as it takes to get to your blog -- it's definitely one of my favourites!
~Jain
Wow...that's so scary. And creepy. I'm definitely going to protect my blog.
Thank you :)
Clicking through is easy for me; I like the ease of reading a complete post, but mostly I like the feed because it helps me keep up on updates, and it doesn't matter if that's via a whole post or a short post. I'm so sorry you're dealing with this, but I'm grateful that you let us know - and you'll still be posting!
Sorry you had to resort to that, but you are far from alone.
I ran an almost invisible blog for a year or so and even that was scraped. Cooking and recipe blogs seem to be frequent targets, though. I can see the scrapers when I Google for a recipe and find it on the author's site as well as on several sites that have just plain stolen it.
It's unfortunate. I really like Google Reader and I hope this does not happen to everybody because this will change the whole meaning of using Reader. I feel bad for you and new this was happening but don't know how to find out if someone is copying my content. Can you let me know?
Helene, I was just lucky--a reader wrote to tell me about it. I think the thing to do is to Google some of the posts you have written--title and key words--and see if you can spot another blog using those posts.
There is so much of this going on that almost every blogger will have it happen at some point. I wish there were some "higher authority" that we could bring it to, but for now appeals to the scraper's advertisers and site host are about all we've got, if appeals to the scraper don't work.
That kind of theft is horrifying and I don't blame you one bit. You bet I'll be clicking through to your blog to read your posts!
> I wish there were some "higher authority" that we could bring it to,
There is to a certain point; if they are actually taking your content and posting it directly on their site, you can file a DMCA complaint against them with their webhost. As long as you do this properly, and submit the report to the right place, you should see some action as long as they are hosted in the US.
But like other posters, I don't see how switching to a short feed is a "sure way" of fixing this "problem" - as others have said, it's trivial to scrape your post directly rather than using the RSS feed. The feed and the site itself are just two different ways of accessing the same information. There's pretty much no way you can directly prevent people from doing this, though if they're doing it in a way that violates your copyright, you can certainly file complaints, and if you force them to hit you directly, you do gain the advantage of being able to view the logs, and take steps to block access from certain IPs or user-agents.
I personally use an RSS aggregator, and hope you will change your mind about this - I find it much more convenient to read the posts in my reader of choice than by having to click the link first.
super lame! if we visit your page (I don't use a feed reader; don't know how, embarrassing!) can we still see the whole thing?
How violating! I am so sorry. I hope that you can get it taken care of and don't have to worry about it again!
I'm so sorry! I didn't even know such a thing existed. It would freak me out to see my kids picture on some other internet page.
On a happier note, I made your Quinoa Veggie Paella last night for dinner and OMG the family loved it!! Folks had 3rds! I had extended family over and it was such hit I had to tell you about it. Will definitely be a staple in our house.
Holy potatoes! I've never left a comment before, but I would like to add my sympathy for what you've been going through. It must feel like such a violation! Things like this are so disappointing to hear about. Honestly, some people must have no shame at all.
While your decision might not be the perfect solution, I hope it does the trick. And you don't have to worry about losing this reader! :) There's been many a time when one of your recipes rescued me from a night of boring leftovers!
I am sorry that you have had to deal with this but in my many years of publishing on the web (long before blogging) I have had to deal with copyright and trademark infringements like you would not believe! So this does not surprise me in any way. However what does surprise me is that so many people use these "readers" - I don't - I come to your site from my own where I list you in my blog-roll updates. This is something I really enjoying doing - like visiting a friend. I think if you have to use a reader because you are so busy that reading people's blogs is problematic then perhaps you need a little dandelion break. Do whatever you need to do to protect your content - I love your blog!
I have wondered why some bloggers use short feeds. I find them to be very annoying. But I know understand. It's sad you have to do this (I fault the unscrupulous folks out there, not you). We appreciate your efforts.
I wish there weren't so many reasons to think people should be ashamed of themselves. I'll be happy to click through. I love reading your blog and viewing your beautiful pictures.
Dear Susan,
I am sorry this happened to you, but this is the proce one must pay in order to maintain a digital existence.
Unfortunately, your decision to reduce the content of your blog would not reduce the theft. Heres why: These theft programs are automated programs that gather data from all over and aggregate them at one place. It is very easy to add another step in such programs that would "click" on a new blog entry, go to the web site and retrieve the contents. PS: I am a software engineer and happen to know what I am taking about.
About your daughter's pics: They too were "gathered" by an automated program.
More unfortunately, it is very hard to stop a determined person from copying data from your website. There are other more advanced technical solutions available, but what I gather from your posts, you should consider hiring an expert if you really want to slow this doen.
If the offending website is registered in the US of A, you could threaten/take legal action. Copyright laws are strict in this country.
Look at it this way: if google can get to your pages, anyone can. Many people / programs, use google as their starting point.
I write this response because I feel for you. I enjoy (and someday plan to cook some of) your recepies.
BUT...
My day to day convienence comes before this website. I have to agree with "jennconspiracy": I use google reader, but do not usually click through to the source. I too, am more than happy to unsubscribe from sites that do not provide complete articles. I have many more that do to occupy my time.
Please do seriously reconsider keeping the feeds as they are.
Thanks
Ajay
ajay610 at gmail dot come
Ugh, that's terrible!!! No worries, Susan, you KNOW that I fully support your decision!!
How sad! How mad this makes me! I love your blog and will continue to go to the true blog and enjoy your fammily, recipes, and wit.
I will miss receiving your blog directly in my inbox, but it is totally understandable your need to short feed.
It is so sad, that people out there do things like this.
I love your blog and your photos. Short feeds won't stop me, they'll just slow me down.
Keep up the awesome work.
Well,Susan, I'm so lo tech and low traffic that I don't even know what a blog reader is, and I always click to go to your web site when I get an e-mail. I just use it as a prompt to check (although there are plenty of times I don't need to because I go to look through recipes or cook from one or get to the discussion board.) So I don't mind at all. I'm very sorry this has happened and hope your new set up keeps your content secure. Thanks for your beautiful work! (That little tiny frog has just been the picture of miracles for me the last few days!)
I don't know how short you plan to make the short feed, but it really makes a difference for those of us using feedreaders. I think 101 Cookbooks may be at one extreme, where I feel like I really get most of the post, and only have to click through for recipes and comments. I really like the way she does that, but I would understand if you would like to present less in the RSS feed than that.
The other extreme that I see is in the new york times blogs, where they give maybe 1 or 2 sentences, usually broken mid-sentence. Typically they don't say enough to quite grab my attention or give me an idea of whether I care to click through, so I don't.
I hope you give us perhaps a paragraph and a picture (understandably not of your daughter), and then I'm sure I will be drawn in enough to click through.
Thanks for explaining what you're up to!
I'm so sorry you have to do this because of greedy jerks. I confess I rarely click through on short form posts, and usually end up unsubscribing, but yours is definitely one I will do it for. Thank you for sharing all of your hard work with us, and for free too! Your sites are a fantastic resource for those of us trying to eat healthier.
Aww, I'm so sorry that thats been happening to you. I don't care what you do with the site...as long as you keep all of the delicious recipes coming!
I think this is a good idea. I read your feed through my livejournal, as it works better for me to keep up (due to the size). However, many of my google reader items are shorts that then take me to the original post.
Not only is this more time-efficient for me - I read only what really catches my eye - it also means that those blogs get a visit from me, which I'd assume reflects on any advertising they have on their page.
I'm sorry you had to go through this though, that has to be disconcerting. I will definitely be clicking through when the change comes! :)
Renee
I couldn't care less about having to click through - your recipes are more than WORTH an extra click!
I LOVE your blog and have no problem at all with your decision. I would literally curl up and die without your blog. =D
I was actually surprised when I got the complete blog via email. I'm glad you are changing it so that it makes it safer for you and your family!
I will miss getting the whole thing via email, but hey, whatever you have to do!
Thanks for letting us all know!
That's awful, Susan! Well, you gotta do what you gotta do. I'll just use your e-mail as a reminder to check your site.
I wrote an earlier comment which I think Blogger devoured, so if there are two please delete one of them! I made a similar decision about my blog after finding my entire posts were being copied by a supposedly "reputable" site who justified it because they were giving me a link. Of course, no one ever clicked the link. Why would they when the entire post was already there.
I can tell you I haven't regretted the decision for a single minute. People who are really fans won't mind one tiny little click more to see the blog. And I'm spending maybe 10% of the time chasing down scrapers now as I used to be.
I can promise you, I love your posts and will definitely click through to read them!
I'm sorry this is happening Susan. I'll definitely click through though from now on (wouldn't want to miss something super yummy after all!)
Have you considered writing your name and/or web address on the actually pictures? I don't know if it helps but it will at least let the sharp readers know that site is copying work.
As a blogger myself, I think it's perfectly acceptable to only display the first few lines of your post in feeds. I have mine set up like that, much to my son's annoyance. Why shouldn't people click to get to your blog? They get the "full meal deal" (seems rather appropriate for your blog) and see your blog page, your links etc, not just unformatted text.
Oh my gosh Susan I had no idea that this could even happen, although I should have figured it could. I have no idea how to switch my feed to a shorter version but when i figure it out i'll be doing the same. I'm so sorry this has happened to you!
The circumstances of the Internet these days make it so easy for this form of theft. But I hadn't any idea that it occurred on this scale; that's outrageous.
I am so sorry that it has come to this for you, but if you feel that it's what you need to do to protect yourself, you should feel totally comfortable for doing so.
Susan, I am so sorry that this happened to you! I know how you feel as somthing similar happened to me (it was a pretty uncomfortable feeling to read my own blog entry - in which I also wentioned details about my family - on another blog).
I would click trough to your blog every time as I really love your blog. I hope this was the last time such a thing happened.
How awful, Susan. This change will in no way keep me from devouring your posts! Your blog was the inspiration for me to take the plunge and blog, and as an official cookie monster, I am very much looking forward to your next post!
That's awful, Susan! I'm sure all your loyal readers will have no problem with going to your actual site to read posts. It's a shame there are people out there who exploit others in this way. Thank you for the info!
Susan,
Sorry... It has to be weird to see your work, your daughters bday etc... on someone else's site it is almost like Identity thief. The bright note of this mess is that you were aware of it.
I have my favorite blogs on a roll on my site and when I see the change I just click to visit their sites. I actually like being visiting the sites- it is a sense of closiness to me.
BTW- I went to the bookstore to get a couple of books rec. by you thank you!
I understand...not a problem.
Stay safe.
Eileen
Thank you so much for the explanation. I've gnashed my teeth when my favorite blogs make me click through, and now I understand why. Not a problem at all now that I understand the reason.
What a bummer! I totally understand your need to make this change for now, though :) I'll definitely be clicking through!
That's awful! I hope they take the site down soon.
I'm so sorry to hear that has happened.
But you have my loyal readership!
I hope that the change helps your situation.
Ugh. That's so slimey of anyone to scrape like that! But to punish all your readers for the sake of a few isn't really great, either. I'm only one reader, but I make a point to not subscribe to any feeds that only do summaries. I have enough to read without having to click on every single post twice, and so, I'm afraid, I will be bidding you adieu. I've made lots of fabulous recipes from your site over the last year and I understand your choice, but my time is limited, too.
Oh Susah, I'm so sorry to hear that has happened. I hope this solves the problem. I do read you through Bloglines, but will be sure to click through and see your beautiful pictures and fantastic recipes.
Best of luck!
Thanks to all of you for your support. To those of you who won't subscribe once I make the change, I'm sorry that you feel that clicking to the site is just too much work, but I'm finding that dealing with these scraper sites is just too much work for me. It takes a lot of time to track down the owner of a scraping blog, email or post a comment repeatedly, contact his website host, and (most time-consuming of all) file a DMCA complaint with Google Ads, who require that you send it by mail or fax.
Some of you wondered if the scrapers would just start visiting my blog to steal the posts, rather than use the RSS feed. I've been told that most of these sites use a software program to subscribe to legitimate bloggers' feeds; the programs automatically post the feed to the scraper's blog. There's no need for the scraper to lift a finger once the program is in place. Just to show you how undiscriminating these scrapers are, this post is currently up on the scraper blog!
I know this isn't a perfect solution and that there are still ways for unscrupulous people to steal content, but I'm going to give the short feeds a try and see if it makes a difference. If it doesn't, I'm perfectly willing to go back to the long feeds later. I hope that most of you will stick with me through this experiment.
I also wanted to mention that I would LOVE to post a sort of mid-sized feed, including a photo, but unfortunately Blogger doesn't allow that option.
Again, thanks to everyone for your support. I've agonized over this decision, so your kind words really mean a lot to me.
SO sorry that happened to you Susan! Glad you are doing all you can to protect your blog and its contents. I will of course take the time to actually come to your site! It's so worth a few extra clicks!!
There's a website that you can use to check if any one has been plagiarizing your content:
www.copyscape.com
Type in your URL and it will search for websites that have the same content as what's on your site.
Of course, it's after the fact -- but it does keep you informed of suspected sites.
Hope that helps.
Natalie
PS: No need to apologize about the shortened feeds. You have great content and a solid fan base. They will click through :)
Hello Susan. I too am sorry to hear about your internet troubles and hope that your solution works. I'm kind of embarrased to admit this, but I have no idea what any of this means. I don't read the blog through readers or email (I don't even know what that means), I just type in your blog address into my address bar and visit your site to read the new posts. Will the format be changed for 'old fashioned/low-tech' people like me, or is it just for feedreader/email version? Thank you for the heads-up and for your patience with people like me who are apparently behind the technical times a bit.
Hi Angela--Please don't be embarrassed! I'm sure that there are a lot of people who are wondering the same thing you are. (Until I had a blog, I didn't know what a feed reader was, either!) The answer is nothing at all will change right here on the blog page. The change will only affect what people who subscribe to the feed receive, as you mentioned, though email or feed readers.
Thanks for reminding me to clarify that!
Wow... lot's of comments. We love your site. I use a reader, but will click through when I can.
Thanks for all :D
Wow. I'm sorry to hear that. I had no idea someone would do such a thing. That's horrible.
Now I am in a quandry. I read over 800 + blogs a day and have been deleting those who aren't on full feed. Right now my Reader says 691 and I know I will not be catching up tonight. So I can either dump the rest or hold them over. Then I am even more behind because I can't speed read partial feeds. It may be a toss up. I certainly understand your problem. I have had my art work taken. One of the reasons I am thinking about giving that blog up. Crap-will have to sit on this for a few days and see what plays out. But I have no partial feeds right now.
Hello! First, I wanna thankyou for your marvellous blog, I found many great recipies and ideas/inspirations here. I think I understand why you get upset about your material being copied/scraped, and yet I'm a bit sad that you've chosen to restrict the way your readers can enjoy your lovely blog because of it. Personally, I read a lot of different blogs, and I almost never click to read more on an entry in the "short-feed" form because I simply find it inconvenient. I really hope you change your mind about this.
That's awful! It amazes me what some people do... Sorry, this happened to you. I love your blog, so I will continue reading as usual.