Check out this link !
For Each word you get right in this word game they will donate 20 grains of rice thru the UN World Food program to Help end hunger.
[link]

******************************* OPEN for COMMISIONS******************************
-sketchcards
-character concept art
-Black & White / FUll Color
-Please contact me via Note for details !

A hearing of the House Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property was held on March 13, 2008. You could watch a video webcast or read the transcripts of the witnesses here. [link]

Want more details of the the Orphan Works instead of relying on hearsay or opinionated journals? Read the actual transcript of Marybeth Peters (Register of Copyrights) who supports and defends the bill here. [link]

Points made in summary:
-The Orphan Works Problem
-The Proposed Solution
-Response of the Copyright community
-Prior legislative action
-Current Issues
-The role of best practices
-The role of technology
-Other issues

The response of Victor S. Perlman (General Counsel and Managing Director the American Society of Media Photographers) concerning the Orphan Works could be found here.[link] He highlights the problems of the Orphan Works bill but at the same time understands the need for Orphan works legislation. The organization that he is part of (ASMP) is representing the interests of freelance photographers as well as several major organizations representing freelance commercial artists and illustrators.

Points made in summary:
-Fair and Workable solution
-Most published images are likely to be "orphans"
-Incorrect assumption
-Image recognition search technology
-Alternative dispute resolution needed
-ASMP's proposed solution

Good to know that at least the artist community is covered in this matter (thanks, ASMP, for raising the concerns and representing artists regarding this important matter). Seeing both sides of this issue, I now see the need for a fair and just Orphan Works legislation. There are iffy parts within Meredith's transcript which were pointed out by Victor of ASMP...but hopefully in the end, it will be rectified and everything will end with a fair resolution on both parties.




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please send a note if interested or thru my email.

"Thanks to Sh3lly and all the otehr posters who've gone in-depth in researching and following the news on this subject.
This new updated post now points out points from both sides of the debate... ! "

Protect our rights as ARTISTS to own our works !
Do not let the Orphan Works bill to pass !

Its about us as artists loosing the rights to our work.
[link]

this is the article.. Its pretty long, thats if you want to read it
[link]ageone&article_no=3605&age=1


it's very important to any artists out there. please check the link.. our copyrights ( past , present, future ) are in danger of becoming null and void because of this bill they're trying to pass!
If left un-attended , they are trying to pass this Bill by summer!
JOIN the FIGHT! Protect our rights as artists!!!

EDIT : the audio link i have is temporarily not working but here's a better explanation and link to the article and bill. thanks to Sh3lly :
US Congress is planning on passing a bill this summer called "Orphan Works". Artists stand to lose the rights to their own art with this bill and it's just another way for corporations to make more money at your own expense.

"Currently, you don't have to register your artwork to own the copyright. You own a copyright as soon as you create something. International law also supports this. Right now, registration allows you to sue for damages, in addition to fair value.

What makes me so MAD about this new legislation is that it legalizes THEFT! The only people who benefit from this are those who want to make use of our creative works without paying for them and large companies who will run the new private copyright registries.

These registries are companies that you would be forced to pay in order to register every single image, photo, sketch or creative work.

It is currently against international law to coerce people to register their work for copyright because there are so many inherent problems with it. But because big business can push through laws in the United States, our country is about to break with the rest of the world, again, and take your rights away.

With the tens of millions of photos and pieces of artwork created each year, the bounty for forcing everyone to pay a registration fee would be enormous. We lose our rights and our creations, and someone else makes money at our expense.

This includes every sketch, painting, photo, sculpture, drawing, video, song and every other type of creative endeavor. All of it is at risk!

If the Orphan Works legislation passes, you and I and all creatives will lose virtually all the rights to not only our future work but to everything we've created over the past 34 years, unless we register it with the new, untested and privately run (by the friends and cronies of the U.S. government) registries. Even then, there is no guarantee that someone wishing to steal your personal creations won't successfully call your work an orphan work, and then legally use it for free.

In short, if Congress passes this law, YOU WILL LOSE THE RIGHT TO MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR OWN CREATIONS! "

Please read the full article here. It's a long article but it's worth it. It is important that artists stand up for their rights! [link]ageone&article_no=3605&age=1



Please pass the message to everyone you know.

EDIT: Question, this is something that is being considered in the US and the UK. How does this bill affect other countries considering the presence of the internet?

Greetings one and all !
I've come to realize that if I were to provide my services as a freelance artist, that here on DA I may just discover creativity and imagination so vast that I've never before experienced.
So please, let your ideas come alive and I shall create your vision!

Will be open to designing the following :

- Character concept art ( full color )

- portraits ( graphite )

-portraits ( mixed media, for fan art )

-Fan Art ( Black and white / full color )


I'm a Huge fan of fantasy and sci-Fi , as well as Anime and horror flicks !
Please send me a note to contact me for details... standard payment methods and Paypal preferred !

Thank you in advance for your support !

So.. i decided that i want to pass along any feelings of positive emotion and hope that the good vibes resonate universally and bring forth good things !
I'm going to post a few quotes that I wish everyone should at least think about and try to use in thier daily lives.

" All power is from within... and is therefore, under our own control. "

"Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you, where there were only walls. "

"Whether you think you CAN or you CAN'T.... you are RIGHT. "