You have all pretty much said the same thing regarding the DRM... It's something, but it's not really going to work.

It's a mathematical equation. On one side is the customer. On the other side is the pirate. The more effective the DRM is at stopping the pirate, the more inconvenient it is for the customer. This equation will remain the same until there is some sort of shift in the fundamental nature of DRM.

It wasn't that long ago that the most effective DRM / website security was a Secure Key issued to every customer. Those keychain devices with the rotating numbers... But then some hacker was able to work out the algorithm the key chains were using. And everything went into disarray.

My point is two fold. No protection is bullet proof. And there are better steps to use resources on.

And some of my pictures have been used just like described. And I did just shrug and go oh well. I do this as a hobby. I don't expect to make money from it. I never have. I put them out there and I move on. There is absolutely nothing I can do to stop people who have no regard for others efforts. Just like my DRM equation above anything I do to stop unauthorized use (watermarks, reduced resolutions, etc.) has a negative impact on the legitimate viewers.

I have also had people to ask me to remove watermarks from pictures they want to use but don't want to pay for. I have refused and attempted to educate those people about what they were doing. Did they get it? No, because it is impossible for them to grasp a concept so simple unless it impacts them directly.

Again, as I have stated repeatedly, I am relatively calm right now. I am not worrying about it. I am waiting to see what happens before I crystalize my position.

Do I think my worst case scenarios will happen? No. I say them in the hopes that they don't happen. I hope that someone will see those thoughts and realize the idiocy of going down that path.

However I do have a personal motto that helps me deal with similar situations: "Never discount the impact of stupidity."

Even the smartest person can make stupid decisions. Even the stupidest person can somehow end up in a position where they are making important decisions. The stupidest idea can be made to look ground breaking. And the most ground breaking idea can be made to look stupid.

My fear is that somewhere up the DAZ leadership change there is that executive that exists in every company. The one that thinks he knows everything and is going to fix every ill of the company. The one that has no idea what the company sells or who the customers are. The executive that worked at the widget factory down the block and is going to deal with this company just the same way.He is going to make profit for DAZ come hell or high water. People who disagree with his (or her) plans get steamrolled. Logic is thrown out the window. The self-destruction begins as the quality and the customer base erodes. Etc etc.

I've been down that path with DAZ before. Some of you even allude to points in the past where that was going on. All I am saying is that I hope this isn't another one of those stages.