Show Thread Enhancements - Thread Content Anti-Theft

Description:
With one of my sites members submit nicely formated content in select forums. Most include thread content with a bunch of images/thumbs (sometimes hundreds of images) and over time we found that some users were using the quote button to get the content and image BBcodes and doing a copy/paste on the entire first content post and reposting on other forums claiming it as their own. This template edit helps to curb this practice. I have had several people ask me how this was done so I will provide it here. I imagine the method may help people to adapt it in other ways as well.

What this does:
This template edit removes the QUOTE, MULTI-QUOTE, and QUICK REPLY button in the first post of a thread in select forums and replaces it with an "Anti-Theft" image button instead.

Note:
Nearly nothing is this world is perfect. There are a couple of ways to get around this but we have seen a DRASTIC reduction in copy/paste thread theft due to this. This is especially useful when the thread content contains lots of images and thumbs linking to images BBCode. I also, see no reason why this would not work fine in any 3.x.x install at the very least.

Install:
In template POSTBIT and/or POSTBIT_LEGECY

Find:

<a href="$post[editlink]" name="vB::QuickEdit::$post[postid]"><img src="$stylevar[imgdir_button]/edit.gif" alt="$vbphrase[edit_delete_message]" border="0" /></a>
            </if>

After add:

<!-- ANTI THREAD THEFT -->
<if condition="$post[postcount] == 1 AND in_array($forum[forumid], array(a,b,c,x,y,z))">
<img src="$stylevar[imgdir_button]/anti-theft-postbit.gif" alt="Thread ANTI-THEFT Enabled" border="0" />
<else />
<!-- / ANTI THREAD THEFT -->

Find:

<if condition="$show['moderated']">

Above it add:

<!-- ANTI THREAD THEFT -->
</if>
<!-- / ANTI THREAD THEFT -->

That's it.
In the first code addition, customize the array (a,b,c,x,y,z) with the forum IDs of the forums you want this to effect. All other forums not in this array will not be effected and appear normally. Also, you will have to create an image and alter the "img src=....." part.

I have attached two screenshots. One is the normal postbit button layout and the other is what it looks like with the Anti-Theft enabled.

[bashy]

HI

Correct me if im wrong?
Cant the user/member just highlight the post and click copy?

Also the 1st post is normally the post you want to be quoting in the thread anyway?

[RMS-Chef]

Originally Posted by bashy

Cant the user/member just highlight the post and click copy?

For text, yes. But if you are say submitting 30-40 pictures as thumbs linking to full size images it makes it hell for copy/pasters without all the formatted IMG BBcodes.

Originally Posted by bashy

Also the 1st post is normally the post you want to be quoting in the thread anyway?

In my case they are submitting content so there is no reason to quote it.

It's not for everyone. I also thought the conditional created may help people in doing something else based on it.

[rjmjr69]

I like the concept. One thing. Instead of making people who "are not" stealing feel as if something wrong is being done, or they may take it as in "insinuation" as if they "may be thief's"."
Wouldn't it be a bit more "PC" or polite to say something like No Copy? Other than that I like it. Oh sorry how about a bit more control over say user groups and such in the admincp?

And one other really big thing.... Is there a button supplied?

[Luky]

Originally Posted by bashy

HI

Correct me if im wrong?
Cant the user/member just highlight the post and click copy?

Also the 1st post is normally the post you want to be quoting in the thread anyway?

I was about to say that, also in firefox, its not hard to right click an image and go Copy Image location, or you can highlight it and copy + paste and it will paste image location.

[JamieLee2k]

You will never beat the system no matter how hard you try, good hack though.

Copy and paste is easy if right click is disabled (Ctrl + C) does the same job
if you have IE you can hover over the picture and save as

[Luky]

Originally Posted by JamieLee2k

You will never beat the system no matter how hard you try, good hack though.

Copy and paste is easy if right click is disabled (Ctrl + C) does the same job
if you have IE you can hover over the picture and save as

Dont assume... You can do the following, block all access to your site unless they use a custom browser desgined by you, it watermarks everything and disables the CTRL and print screen key, also has an application guard making sure no screen recording or capturing software is ran. And before users are validated, they must pass a national security background check. Or... you could just let others steal your designs and when they do, sue them?

[RMS-Chef]

Originally Posted by Luky

I was about to say that, also in firefox, its not hard to right click an image and go Copy Image location, or you can highlight it and copy + paste and it will paste image location.

Of course but as stated, you would have to right click the thumb, find the URL for that. Then click the thumb and get the location of the full size image. Then produce hte image code for the two. Now like I said, if there are xx or even xxx number of images this becomes a huge hassle to duplicate the post. It has proven to be more than enough to hinder the problem in my case. Remember, this has never been to protect the images themselves but the formatted/BBcoded content of the post as a whole.

I also created a simple image and attached it.

[cheat-master30]

While the idea is good, it is also extremely flawed when it comes to vBulletin forums, as any use of copy and paste then pasting it in the WYSIWYG editor will copy everything, formatting, pictures, links and text, which means it still doesn't really work.

Nice idea though for some cases.

[o0Hubba0o]

Jeesh people, you're reacting like this was supposed to be the end all to plagiarism. This just makes it way harder for people to come along and just take stuff. When someone quotes a post the bbcode and all is there for the taking, this eliminates that. And no form of copy paste I've ever seen duplicates the bbcode formating.

Like he said, nothing is perfect, there's ways around it, don't know why with mods like these everyone always feels the need to come in and prove their hacking abilities to get around it lol.

I for one understand the point to your mod and will be using on my graphics tutorials so if anyone really wants to rip them they'll have to WORK HARDER to get them, since I KNOW it doesn't totally prevent it.

Though I'll have to make a custom button for my style, but I think a re-wording of the button is a good idea too.