So what's it all about?

     Okay, here's the deal: The site name's mine, so's the design and layout
     and review content - mine, all mine. And the toons I've indexed, and the
     news I report? - No, that stuff's not mine. Every character, series and creation
     has its respective copyright owner or owners. This site wouldn't exist without
     this amazing group of animators, cartoonists, creators and site owners.
     I'm attempting to be as thorough as I can with my acknowledgments,
     but if  I've missed anyone out, or credited someone incorrectly then
     tell me, please - I'm a struggling cartoonist myself, so I know all too
     well how frustrating it is to be incorrectly credited...

   

     Reasonable Usage

     Now, speaking of copyright. I'm trusting that the images and illustrations
     incorporated in these pages are covered by that ambiguous web term
     "reasonable usage". If I don't have specific clearance for usage, I've been
     careful not to make pages image-heavy, and trust that the percentage
     of images used equates to the correct percentage of use for review
     purposes (say, what?).

     I'm ultra-cautious when it comes to usage. For that reason, there
     are no full-page comic strips, and very few sound and movie files
     (aside from ones with proper clearance). Toonhound is, first and
     foremost an information site. Think of it as a toon database, like
     the IMDB.

     And whilst we're discussing usage, I'm aware of a great many folks
     hotlinking to the site via MySpace, etc. At times it gets quite mad, and
     I've considered adding scripts to block such behaviour. But I'm fearful of
     blocking legitimate links in the process. So let's just say I'm monitoring
     the situation. That monitoring includes eBay, where far too many people
     seem to be lifting whole chunks of my index pages to include in their
     sales patter without due credit to me or the site. Every so often I'll bite
     back. I'll change image files or contact the dodgy dealer directly to
     point out their error. Part of me is flattered, of course. But you can
     usually tell the difference between legitimate toon fans and sellers,
     and folks just out to make a quick buck anywhichway they can.
     So again, folks, I'm monitoring you!

     I'm also monitoring the beast that is Wikipedia. Time and again I'm
     finding my content being copied and pasted straight straight over there.
     If I'm lucky, I might get a link back as if I'm a supplement to their index.
     It can be very frustrating...      

   

     In Review

     Now to those reviews. If  I've caused any offence, I'm sorry. I've tried to
     be frank and truthful when I've checked out a toon or a site. I'm all too aware
     how much effort is required to get a series off the ground, a movie into
     production, a book into print, a comic into circulation or a homepage
     up and running. I don't see any point in ripping stuff to shreds in review.
     I'll always look for something positive in its construction. But if something's
     a little clunky or it would benefit from an edit or two then I've mentioned it.
     Hey, I'm duty-bound...

     It needs to be added that I can not and will not be held responsible for
     the content of any of the sites I link to. If there's inflammatory, pornographic
     or offence material there, or viruses or trojans or lord-knows-what - heck,
     that's nothing to do with me. I do my best to avoid that kind of thing but it
     could very well sneak through. You follow The Hound's links at your
     own risk, folks...

  

     Yes, there are adverts here. They're unavoidable. I need the revenue to
     survive, now that the site is taking up so much of my life. So you'll find
     a number of Amazon links embodied in my index pages, and on my
     news pages. But you asked for them specifically, so you really
     can't complain! - Seriously, my Inbox is regularly stuffed-to-busting with
     requests for DVDs and book info. Oh, and whilst we're talking about
     Amazon, their Associates Agreement insists that I state the following:

    “Frazer Diamond and Toonhound.com is a participant in the
     Amazon Europe S.à r.l. Associates Programme, an affiliate
     advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites
     to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking
     to Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.”

     Blah, blah, blah. Can we move on now? - Okay, you'll also see there are
     numerous Google AdSense blocks and banner ads scattered around the
     place, but I've done my best to stop them from intruding on the site content.
     I'm probably harming my revenue streams, but I hate it when a site
     stuffs these things in my way, and I'm sure you do too.

     Now I don't personally deal in cookies and all that tracking stuff. But
     you can bet that Amazon and Google do. And the latter has a specific
     page-tracking thingy to help tailor the ads they show on the site. So,
     for the record, because I once more need to, I have to remind everyone
     a) that this is going on, and b) that it's outside my control. If you don't
     like it, I quite understand if you want to leave. But I'm hoping
     you'll stick around, or you'll miss out on the fun.

     Oh yes, I mustn't forget that, in and around the big two advertisers
     I've highlighted above, I do sometimes include links and fanfares for a
     few selected friends. But the stores I recommend are all ones at which
     I shop personally. And I reckon, if I'm happy to spend my pennies
     there, then I'm pretty sure you will too. What's more, most of these
     are freebies - I don't earn anything from them at all...

   

     Technically speaking

     For those who want to know, Toonhound has been built using a combination of
     Dreamweaver, Fireworks and Coreldraw software. The code is probably all over
     the shop. I have only a basic knowledge of HTML and suchlike. But it all
     seems to load in the browsers I've tested it on, so what the heck, maybe I do
     know a bit about programming after all...

     If any copyright owner or site owner's still unimpressed, then let me know. 
     Toonhound's still a puppy so I might need some housetraining. I can't be
     fairer than that, can I?

      - Happy hounding!

                    - November 2010