davyjordi

so, i wasn't quite sure where to place this, although after looking through the wikipedia page on the IS, i noticed that the previous generation was displayed within the main photograph box at the top right. i thought it a bit odd, although didn't put much thought into it until i went to the competitor's pages - the a4, the c-class, and the 3 series which all show current generation models at the top of the page. i was in the market for one of the aforementioned and was doing a bit of cut-and-dry research on wikipedia.

now, i do have a wikipedia account and was going to change the photograph, although i went to the talk page first to see if anyone had brought it up and it has been brought up although two moderators (one really severely) had struck down the member who tried to change it some time in 2013 and he/she really put up a decent argument.

i mean, i'm absolutely positive that someone within the community has photographs of the vehicle that meet the guidelines and is able to push back on the points made; i, unfortunately, don't have any propriety photographs. i really just feel as though someone may be trying to suppress the initial positive reaction that one may gain if one has never been exposed to lexus products and is in the market for an entry-level luxury sedan (the 3IS). german/japanese rivalry on wikipedia sounds immature but not unheard of.

the issue really is about uniformity - the entry-level lux sedans are all represented in their current iterations although the IS isn't which strikes me as odd because i am absolutely positive that there are many car shoppers who check not only auto-based sites, but also wikipedia when shopping around for a new vehicle.

what do you guys/gals think?
here is the page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_IShere is the talk page - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Le...d_Main_Picture

p.s. i wound up buying a 3IS, my second lexus after i had fallen in love with my 2IS.

gengar

I haven't checked the talk page, but legality supersedes perceived notions of fairness. Images can only be displayed on wikipedia if they are licensed properly. We can't just go around using other people's images, which is what I think you're getting at in your post.

The easy thing to do is take a picture of a 3IS and release it to wikipedia under a so-called "Creative Commons" license. That way, you can specify ways you don't want the image to used for (for example, prohibit commercial use) while still allow others to "build on" your work - for example, letting them crop or adjust the image for wikipedia in certain ways. The pictures still have to satisfy other wikipedia criteria, so if you choose to go that route, it's a good idea to check other pictures to see what is commonly accepted.

And really, the easiest thing to do is for Lexus to just allow some of its PR pictures to be used under creative commons license.

davyjordi

if only it were that simple, though. anyone on or off the forum can take photographs of his or her vehicle and/or a vehicle displayed in public and have the photograph(s) fall under the creative commons license should the photographer allow for such usage. i'm sure there are many clublexus members who are already in possession of a plethora of photographs of the 3IS that meet the guidelines that have been set forth within wikipedia's 'carpix' section.

the (flawed) rationale, ostensibly, holding back the individual who attempted in 2013 to change the photograph to that of one reflecting the current generation so that the page maintain its alignment with the competition's pages was two-fold -- the photograph he/she suggested was not up to par per wikipedia's guidelines as subjectively judged by the moderator and the contingency that stated that the photograph needn't be reflective of the current generation. the latter point was the contested strongly as, again, all competitor's marque's vehicles are using photographs of the current iterations of the vehicles within the segment and thus the flaw in rationale held.

as for lexus' pr department releasing photographs to be used under the creative commons license, well, yes, lexus could do this but i think that wikipedia shies away from using such images on consumer products so as to not have the article read as though it's an advert.

there does seem to be some bias, though. i think that's quite clear, unfortunately.

spwolf

i understand what you are saying completely.... it would be good to put up latest pic.

davyjordi

it really would.

SNiiP3R

iTrader: (3)

The top 3 Germans are probably behind this