Unfortunately, its legal, and was in the terms you agreed to when you signed up.  But, since I used to have a Photobucket account, I also remember them sending e-mails to everybody to tell them they would have to subscribe by a certain date or they would lose access to their photos.  Not sure about anybody else, but I have never thought of any photo hosting site as the one and only place to store my photos...let alone a free site...that's just asking for trouble.  So, it looks like you have the right plan for getting your photos back.  Once you do that, make sure to keep a copy of them in local storage.  I just use photo hosting sites when I want to share picture on forums like this one.  I never use them as my primary means of storing photos I want to keep.  A good one I can recommend is ImageShack.  The subscription there is $3.99 a month, so its not bad at all.

I had that foul PB experience as well. Left and never looked back.

I've used Postimage for several years now with a completely free account. It's been super reliable and dead easy to use. The link above goes to their FAQ page if you'd like to check it out.

Cheers

Hi;

 Yeah, PhotoBucket was the one I was using when I tried to start. Then the fee thing.

 Most of the folks have been recommending PostImage so when I can figure a few things out that's where I probably end up.

I've been using postimage since photobucket started their extortion scheme. I've also got an iCloud account for a minimal fee to host images as well for a back up. Unfortunately, unlike Kitmaker and Scalemates, you can't upload images from icloud accounts directly onto FSM. I've been slowly downloading images of my completed builds from photobucket onto both sites as insurance against postimage pulling such shenanigans as photobucket did.

I still use Fotki and am happy with it.

When the photobucket thing first happened, I immediately downloaded everything and then just ignored them. They still write me and threaten to take my images but I could care less.

Bill

They are still bothering me with messages to reactivate my account or lose my pics. They are only model pics so I just have been ignoring them.

Jim 

Stay Safe.

I have been using Postimage for the past few years,it's free and really simple to use.

I've been using imgur and have been pleased.  Free and has an app for your phone so you can take a pic and upload

I've been using Image Shack since I dropped Photo Bucket. They billed me the other day, nineteen bucks US for a year. It's worth that not to deal with the constant ads of PB's free service. I wish I'd switched years ago. 

gregbale

I had that foul PB experience as well. Left and never looked back.

I've used Postimage for several years now with a completely free account. It's been super reliable and dead easy to use. The link above goes to their FAQ page if you'd like to check it out.

Cheers

 

Me too.

After the PB fiasco, I used Google Photos for image hosting for a couple years, but that doesn't work as it used to for posting to websites anymore.

Greg

 

 

gregbale

I had that foul PB experience as well. Left and never looked back.

I've used Postimage for several years now with a completely free account. It's been super reliable and dead easy to use. The link above goes to their FAQ page if you'd like to check it out.

Cheers

 

 

 

 

Me too.

After the PB fiasco, I used Google Photos for image hosting for a couple years, but that doesn't work as it used to for posting to websites anymore.

 

Interesting, All my previous post using Google Photos still appear to work. I havent posted anything for a least 3 years, my opion on Google Photos may change.

Tojo72

I have been using Postimage for the past few years,it's free and really simple to use.

 

I really like it.  It is easy and fast.

damouav

Interesting, All my previous post using Google Photos still appear to work. I havent posted anything for a least 3 years, my opion on Google Photos may change.

And your pic still works. (Great Corsair, btw!)

You know what? The steps to make this happen (go to a direct link with image only, as your example does) were a bit convoluted, and I had a bookmark saved with instructions how to do it.

I went to post something a bit ago, and the instructional link was dead. Of course, I couldn't remember the steps.

So I might have been wrong in stating what I did about Google not working as a web-host anymore.

Imgur, Hobby photo, bublup, Shutterfly, post image, imgbb.com/ and post image are very capable of hosting your images and totally free unless you want to upgrade.

It's too bad that photobucket (without warning) went from THE primary website to a has been that just can't compete anymore.

Photobucket died several years ago and is only dead ghost to me.

Greg

 

 

damouav

Interesting, All my previous post using Google Photos still appear to work. I havent posted anything for a least 3 years, my opion on Google Photos may change.

 

 

And your pic still works. (Great Corsair, btw!)

You know what? The steps to make this happen (go to a direct link with image only, as your example does) were a bit convoluted, and I had a bookmark saved with instructions how to do it.

I went to post something a bit ago, and the instructional link was dead. Of course, I couldn't remember the steps.

So I might have been wrong in stating what I did about Google not working as a web-host anymore.

 

Hey Greg, Whatever works for you. I got burnt like everyone else using the other platform and my free option was Google, but that may not work for others. P.S. Thank you for your comment on the Corsair.

Postimage is the winner for me.

I too went through the photobucket fiasco, and after re downloading all my pictures to postimages I left a VERY VERY NASTY 2 page rebuttal  on their customer  service ( HA)  page.

I use Flickr, but you have to know what image url to grab to post an actual picture and not a link.

I also use Fotki, very pleased with it. When I look at photo's on the various model sights, I click on them to get a better view but the PB logo comes up stamped all over them!

With Imageshack, you just click on the "get links" button next to the pic you want to share, then copy and paste the link in the "forum" box right into your post here.  Its also easy to select the size of the pic, and whether or not you want to post it as a thumbnail or full-size pic.  I pay a nominal subscription fee to get more storage space, along with the peace of mind of knowing I'm supporting people who are providing me a service.  Helps to make it more likely they'll be able to keep providing that service in the future.  

I use Imgur. It is free.

I ditched PB when they announce the pay scheem. Deleted my account and moved to imgur.com. Still hapily there. I say pay, take your pix and run.

I used Photobucket, too, but I had a paid subscription when they decided to change the account structure and offer image linking only with the most expensive subscription.  There was indeed a year's deadline between the time they annouced the fee structure change and the date it would go into effect, so there was time to find alternatives.

They've walked that back since, but I won't go back, either.

As Eaglecash noted, I don't use these hosting sites to store my photos, those are in local storage, on my hard drive or external storage.  I just use the hosting sites to let me link images and not have to deal with every forum's different parameters for uploading or attaching images.

As far as alternatives to PB go, I went with Postimage's free account.  It's OK, probably not as rich in features as some of the other sites, but it suits what I need.  Postimage has paid accounts, too, but I'm not at a point where I need to pay them to host.

One caution about Postimage is that twice in the past, the owners let their domain lapse, and it was snapped up and held for ransom-someone claimed the domain, and demanded that Postimage pay to get it back.  Postimage refused, choosing instead to get a new domain.  What that meant for its customers was that the links we used around the Web were temporarily invalid, till they got their mapping/routing updated.  If they let that happen twice, I wouldn't be surprised if they would let it happen again.