The Friday Forum - August 12

Every morning, when I head outside to feed the foxes, I think about their wary existence. Always on the run and fearful, even of the hand that feeds them, they wait for me to come out with dog food (or the occasional takeout treat). They are so beautiful, I wonder where they normally hide during the day. I know that occasionally they hide in my "jungle," but I've also seen them headed for a secluded area of woods nearby. I have a silly fox with dark legs like this one who prefers peanuts to dog food. Almost every morning, he waits for "round 2," when I throw peanuts on the ground for the squirrels and birds. I come inside, look out the window, and there he is, eating the peanuts.

This was quite a week! I feel like I spent the whole week fighting copyright infringement. There are Web sites that steal all of their content (photos and the text of complete features) from other sites. I've been a frequent target this year (only found one consistent thief last year). It's very frustrating to see your work - your cat, your arm, your thoughts - turn up on another site a few short hours after you publish. You must hunt them down, which isn't always easy, and send a legal notice. It's most effective to send the notice to the thief's Internet Service Provider. Some hosts require that you send the URL of your own work and of every single infringing post, which requires hours (or days) of work (and is rather ludicrous since one look at the violator's site provides proof of theft). Others simply require a cogent explanation of your claim under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (or their country's equivalent), along with some representations.

This week I went after two sites that were republishing every single one of my features as their own. It was gratifying to see that one had been taken down overnight. That site had been cleverly disguised, and I had not been able to identify the host. My friends and fellow bloggers helped, and I'm grateful. By the way, if you are reading this feature in its entirety anywhere other than Best Things in Beauty, it has been stolen.

Turning to a more pleasant subject, a few weeks ago, London Makeup Girl wrote on Twitter that she would be going on vacation for a couple of weeks and asked for help with guest posts. I wanted to help - everyone deserves a vacation - so I offered to write a feature about beauty in a rush. You can read it at London Makeup Girl.

It's time for The Friday Forum, our open chat. What new products did you discover this week? Did you find any deals you couldn't resist this week? Are you using a fabulous product and want to sing its praises? Did you find a beauty product disappointing? Do you have a question others might be able to answer? Want to talk about skin care? What's new in your life? Just use the comments. Don't be shy. Just make sure to ask any question you might have over the weekend. By early the next week, most (not all) readers have moved on.

Don't forget the giveaway contest for Philosophy's Divine Illumination Blushing Bronzer. The deadline for entries is tomorrow, August 13, at midnight. If you don't enter, you can't win!

Update 8:39 am: This feature has now been published on another site. You can only imagine my rage.