What type of images can I upload?

PhotoPile supports many of the most common image file formats. This includes .JPG, .GIF, .TIF, .BMP, and .PNG formats.

Can I upload animated files?

Currently, PhotoPile is for photos, not movies. However, you may upload animated .GIF files, although they are not fully supported. The graphics utilities we use to do image manipulation, such as for resizing or for changing the brightness of images, does not support animated files. If you upload an animated .GIF, be sure to uncheck the box labeled Automatically resize photo suitable for an auction. Other animation files cannot be uploaded and will be detected as an unallowed format. Examples of these unallowed animation formats are Flash, Quicktime, Windows Media Player, MPEG, AVI, etc.

Can I upload files that are not images?

PhotoPile Image Hosting specializes in the image hosting business. Therefore we do not do general file/web hosting. You may only upload files that are in supported image formats. We not allow any music (i.e. MP3) files to be uploaded.

How long do my images remain in my account?

Images will remain in your account and accessible as long as your account is active and funded. Valued Member photos must be funded at the standard photo rate per photo per month, or sooner if the photo's maximum bandwidth has been exceeded. Premium Member photos are funded by each month's premium payment, and may require additional funding if bandwidth limits are exceeded. You may close your account at any time, but doing so will result in the immediate removal of all your images. Photos that draw extreme excessive bandwidth (greater than 20,000 hits per hour) may be removed automatically by our performance monitoring software.

What are some common reasons to upload photos to PhotoPile?

PhotoPile Image Hosting is most commonly used as an image hosting service for auction images. However, people use PhotoPile for many other purposes. With our service, you can also upload and organize your images into electronic, online photo albums. These photo albums can be emailed to friends and family out on the 'net. Thus, PhotoPile is a great way to share memories with your other family members, such as for weddings, vacation shots, new baby photos, etc. PhotoPile is also used by people on message boards to store their Avatar (their personal photo displayed beside each of their posts). Other uses include online journals or blogs.

Are there any monthly transfer rate limits, and if so, why do you have them?

Yes. For Valued Members, this limit is 100MB per photo, and for Premium Members, this limit is 5000MB for the entire account, per month. Valued Member photos that exceed their monthly transfer limit will result in them being Auto Renewed. Premium Members that exceed their 5000MB monthly transfer limit will be billed against their available account credit at the rate of 1/10 of 1 cent per MB. The reason why we have monthly transfer limits is because we are charged by our ISP for the bandwidth that we use each month. We have to translate this cost into cost to our customers, in order to stay in business and provide a reliable service.

What happens when a photo Auto Renews?

Valued Member photos must be renewed monthly, or sooner if their bandwidth limit has been exceeded. Auto Renewing refers to the process whereby the standard photo rate is deducted from the member's account credit, and a new expiration date is set on the photo. This process automatically happens as long as the image is in an active account and funds are available. Photos that need to auto renew but can't because of insufficient funds will result in their deletion once the grace period has elapsed.

Why is PhotoPile not free?

PhotoPile is not a free service because there are many expenses involved with running a good image hosting service. There are costs involved, such as for server hardware, software, Internet bandwidth and connectivity, custom programming and web development, and support infrastructure. None of these can be provided reliably and consistently without capital. Some image hosting services on the Internet claim to provide "free" service. And, they may, in fact, for several months or so, until the money runs out or their circumstances change. These services seem to come and go easily, with no real assurance that they can keep providing the same level of service you might have received from the beginning. The services that rely on donations rarely receive the money that they to need stay in business from month to month. Other services that attempt to lower costs by "sharing" Internet bandwidth with another company, such as a college or hospital, find their service suddenly shut off because of contract or management changes in the other company. This is why PhotoPile is not a free service. We wish to provide a service that is self sufficient, reliable, and here for the future. Because of this, it is worth the money you pay. We have an aggressive pricing schedule that is very competitive, keeping costs as low as $4.95 per month, or 10 cents per image per month, depending on which option is right for you.

Why do I have to verify my email address?

This is described in detail on our Email Usage page.

How long does my free trial last?

The free trial allows you try out our services without any financial commitment. Because PhotoPile is not a free service, we made every effort to provide a sufficient "try before you buy" so that you may decide if PhotoPile is right for you. You will be given a $1 non-refundable account credit which you can use to upload images (up to or less than 10). All free-trial images that are uploaded will follow the same rules and regulations as normal images. They will need to Auto Renew if kept in your account. To continue using the service after your free trial credit has expired, you will need to purchase one of our packages.

What do I have to do to keep my account active and open?

Accounts are removed automatically under the following circumstances. Any user that does not logon to their account in over six (6) months will be sent an email notice informing them that their account will be removed. Any new user that does not confirm their email address within three (3) days from signing up, will be removed without notice. All photos from any removed accounts will be deleted and become unavailable. Premium Member accounts that cease payment will revert to Valued Member accounts. Any new uploads after this time will require a positive Valued Member account balance. All existing photos after this time will need to be Auto Renewed immediately.

What if I upload the wrong image by accident? Can I get my money back?

Yes. If you upload a photo in error, you can simply delete it from your account within one (1) hour to receive credit back for that image. This only applies to Valued members, which keep an account balance. Premium Members do not need an account balance because they receive an unlimited number of uploads per month.

Can I remote-link to images that I upload?

Yes! The URL you use is conveniently found beside each photo in your photo album. Just copy and paste it whenever and wherever you need to remote-link. Please keep in mind that remote-linking your image will most likely result in your photo or member bandwidth to be used. Please monitor your bandwidth usage if you would like to stay under your limit and avoid additional charges.

Are your servers fast?

Yes. Currently we use state-of-the-art 2.4GHz processors, and our servers are on a high bandwidth 6-way redundant Gigabit Ethernet Internet connection. We monitor our bandwidth utilization daily. We have actually been told by some members that our website is faster than any other website they have ever been to and it is almost like the website is running locally on their computer!

What kind of content do you allow me to have in my account?

This is covered in detail in our user agreement. Basically, we accept all types of content, with the exception of adult related or pornographic material. We also prohibit copyrighted material unless you hold the exclusive rights or have been given permission to use the material in such way.

Can I upload multiple photos at one time?

Yes. Our upload page supports up to ten (10) images at one time. Also there is a fixed 8MB limit on the amount of data you can upload at one time. If you are uploading very large images, you may not be able to upload 10 at one time. In this case, you will need to do multiple uploads and keep the total amount of data uploaded at one time under 8MB (8,000,000 bytes).

Is there a limit on the number of images I can upload with a Premium account?

No. You can upload as many images as you want, as long as you keep your account active and paid.

After I upload my photo is it safe to delete it from my hard drive?

PhotoPile makes regular nightly backups of the images that you upload, in case of hardware failure, etc. And, to date, we have never lost a user's photo. However, we cannot in good conscious recommend that you remove any photo from your hard drive that you do not wish to keep. This is for legal liability purposes.

Can I create photos with PhotoPile?

No. PhotoPile is an image hosting service, not an image creation service. We provide access to your photos from the Internet. We only provide basic image manipulation, such as resizing or brightness control. Most PhotoPile members use their digital camera or scanner to bring photos into their PC. Then they upload them to PhotoPile. If you wish to create artwork, we would recommend software such as Adobe PhotoShop or Print Shop Pro.

If I pay by eCheck, will my account be activated immediately?

No. PayPal requires that your eCheck to clear, which can take from 3 to 5 business days. After your eCheck has cleared, PayPal will send us an electronic notification, which is processed automatically by our system. Your account balance will be credited at this time. Because of this, we would recommend that you make a credit card payment if you would like to use the service immediately.

I cancelled my Subscription in PayPal, but my account still shows as active on your website. Or, I cancelled my account but I am still being charged by PayPal. What gives?

When you sign up for a Premium account, two PayPal tranactions are created. One is for the first payment, and the other is an auto Subscription transaction which will automatically renew your service at the end of your payment term. This will keep your account active until you wish to close your account. If you have cancelled the Subscription from PayPal, this only cancels the auto-renew feature. When PhotoPile sees a subscription cancellation, we do not assume that you no longer want to use the time which you have paid for. Some people want to use PhotoPile for a month (and only a month) with unlimited uploads, so they purchase a Premium account. They then cancel the auto Subscription PayPal transaction and continue using PhotoPile for the remainder of the time that they have paid for. If you do not want to use PhotoPile any more, you need to cancel your PayPal subscription, and ALSO close your PhotoPile account using the option in the My Account page.