Why not make the images available for viewing without registration/login?

[GPak]

@DashCamMan
Why not make the images viewable without logging in?
I can't view the images when I'm away from my home office, like at work or at a hotel with a public computer where I don't want to log in for privacy reasons.
Similarly, I share DCT links with friends, family and coworkers, but they can't view the images without registering, and most people don't want to register right away if they're not interested yet.
This discourages people and they walk away, who might otherwise register with DCT down the road.

On the other hand, the videos are available without registration.
So it is not a security or content issue.
Obviously no one should be able to post content without registration.

People love images and videos, and even if they decide not to register, they will still come back to see new content (more views means more ads), but without access to images, the desire to come back disappears.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

Bravo GPak.
You don’t know how right you are.
I started coming to DCT in 2019 when I was researching my first “real” dash cam purchase, (A129 Pro Duo).
Before that 2018 I was using the cheap dash cams I found on clearance at my local Walmart, ($5 - $33).
It took me 3 full years of coming to DCT before I finally registered for an account in 2022, and it was always annoying I couldn't see screenshots from test footage.
Of course it would be nice if you could see photos without logging in, but I have a feeling DashCamMan has a very good reason to make users register.

Thread 'Hello, my name Chuck.'

Jun 11, 2022

Hello nice to meet everyone, my name is Chuck McCoy.
After lurking the halls of Dash Cam Talk since 2018, I finally decided to register, and it’s all DrekiTech’s fault. lol

I bought my first dash cam in 2019 (Viofo A129 Pro Duo). Ever since then I’ve fallen in love with dash cams. After buying, using, and testing various dash cams for the past 3 years, I still consider myself a basic amateur.

I have a small Automotive YouTube Channel I started in 2019 as a hobby, (not monetized, not an Amazon Associate). It’s mostly about preventative maintenance, but occasionally I love to review dash...

• Chuck McCoy
• Replies: 12
• Forum: Introductions

• 

 

[DashCamMan]

That is the standard Xenforo functionality. It is one of the benefits of being a member (i.e. seeing attachments, no ads). I could change it but I believe members should have some extra benefits over guests.

 

[Nigel]

I don't think many members would mind if guests could see the photos!
I also don't think it would reduce the number of people registering.

Although extra people registering probably wouldn't significantly increase the number of posts, there seem to be a lot of active members that never post, but it would decrease the number of adverts shown. I guess that is the reason it is as it is.

 

[Chuck McCoy]

I don't think

This subject is kind of similar to what happened on YouTube a few years back.
Around 2020 - 2021 Google decided it wasn’t making enough money, and started placing ads on YouTube videos from channels that were NOT MONETIZED.
This was a huge change.

Around this time there were also a lot of channels there were monetized that were complaining they weren’t being paid “fairly”, and YouTube was taking too much of a cut.
Well guess what, it’s YouTube’s “playground”, and we all get to play for free so we have no right to complain.
If we don’t like it we can start our own video sharing platform.
And some folks did.

So the same thing applies here.
DCT is my favorite online playground because it’s a bunch of like minded people, and we all get to play for free.
DashCamMan has the right to take the ball away at any time, for any reason.
And if we don’t like it, we can start our own forum.
So I’m grateful we have DCT, and the way things are because it could be a lot worse.

Do you remember when Elon took over Twitter, and started charging a $1 Annual Subscription Fee?
We’ll lets hope DashCamMan doesn’t put membership behind a paywall.
Because that would really suck.
But on the other hand I don’t expect anyone to work for free either.
I’m sure it takes precious hours out of DashCamMan’s busy day trying to keep this place respectable, and BOT & SPAM free.

 

[lufa6977]

There are numerous reasons to keep the images unviewable to guests. Bandwidth cost could be one of them. Particularly so with the AI crawlers now in use. A website could have several hundred crawlers consuming bandwidth to log, or download the images and other data, then there are the 'takers' and influencers that will use bandwidth to copy an image to use on their site, or to sell elsewhere. The cost is not always great, but it is there. If a dascam user can get an image to fix their problem, and not be a member, then it takes from the site. If that person joins to get the image, they may stay and participate.

 

[GPak]

That is the standard Xenforo functionality. It is one of the benefits of being a member (i.e. seeing attachments, no ads). I could change it but I believe members should have some extra benefits over guests.

Thanks for the reply,

I think the real benefit of being a registered member is the ability to post content, i.e. discuss issues, ask questions, share experiences, etc.
Viewing attachments is not a real benefit by itself, viewing attachments without ads is.
If guests can see attachments with ads, it should attract more guests and more ads.

I'm sure you have all the necessary statistics, such as how many guests viewed the content and how many new members registered, say, in a month.
I think it might be worth trying to make the attachments available to guests with ads for say 3 months and see if that increases the number of views and maybe the number of signups.
Just a suggestion.
You can always revert everything back if you are not satisfied with the result.

P.S. Based on my personal behavior/reaction, if I intentionally or accidentally visit a new site, browse its content, and receive a message asking me to register to continue browsing, about 95% of the time I leave and never return.

 

[GPak]

.... but it would decrease the number of adverts shown. I guess that is the reason it is as it is.

........But on the other hand I don’t expect anyone to work for free either........

I think allowing guests to view attachments with ads should increase both trafic and ad volume.

There are numerous reasons to keep the images unviewable to guests. Bandwidth cost could be one of them...... .....then there are the 'takers' and influencers that will use bandwidth to copy an image to use on their site, or to sell elsewhere......

I think that the main goal and source of the forum funding is to attract as much advertising as possible to ensure the sustainability of the business.
The growth of traffic, has a positive effect on the volume of advertising, sure the bandwidth will increase, but that is the core principle of this type of business.
Images are not as large as videos, and their size can be limited, to mitigate the impact on bandwidth.
As for the 'takers', I think, all content here is in the public domain, that is, it is not proprietary, and anyone can use it at their own discretion.

I could be wrong, I'm not an expert in this area.

 

[DashCamMan]

Not a bandwidth issue as images are pretty small. It is just a default setting in the software to encourage people to register. "No Ads" was just another benefit of registering as a member, not really linked to showing attachments. I have turned on showing attachments to guests. Not sure if that will impact people registering but will try it out.