Bill Schmalfeldt’s lame attempts at cyberthuggery using manipulated images have often caused him trouble when a copyright holder filed a DMCA takedown notice. Six years ago today, I provided him with Some Copyright Information.

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Late Thursday night, a friend sent me a link to a picture of my late wife that had been posted on Schmalfeldt’s FatManPodcast website. In a comment in the caption Schmalfeldt posted with the picture, he claims the image was used under the Fair Use doctrine and that “Hoge can suck my frittatas!” I’m not the copyright holder. The copyright for that portrait of my wife belongs to the professional photographer who took the picture. If the photographer discovers Schmalfeldt’s appropriation of his work and takes action, he’ll do it on his own. For now, having that picture up on Schmalfeldt’s website highlights two things: 1.) his general ineptitude at image manipulation and 2.) his meanness.

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BTW, here’s the picture of Mrs. Hoge that Schmalfeldt tried to manipulate. It was take less than two weeks before she died. AI print of it sits in the bookcase in my bedroom. It’s the first thing I see each morning.