How does the whole buying things in the marketplace work?

Overall, it is safe to buy from merchants at the various sites. There have been a few cases of copyright violations, but unfortunately there's a bad apple or two in every group. Different sites have different procedures if there is a problem. (Again, it's pretty rare.) When you purchase an item, either your credit card or PayPal account is charged. At Rendie, there's a delay with your first order as they verify your credit card. After verification, your account will have links to download the purchase(s). Every purchase after that goes through normally and you will have access right away. You can use the purchases to create whatever type of images you want, even sell the images you produce using the products. (Obviously making images that are illegal in your area, such as kiddie porn, is a BAD idea.) You can modify anything you purchase, but can not redistribute the items - no matter how much you modify them - without the explicit written permission of the person you purchased the item from. Hope this helps, Cres

feel free to buy any thing from me :) it's safe

I've spent hundreds of dollars at most Poser online sites, and have been entirely satisfied. Renderosity and DAZ3D are the two biggest online merchants, and each has excellent quality stuff and Customer Service. Sometimes you find merchants who don't seem to get the idea of running a business. But most are also very helpful. If you have a bad experience with an artist, "vote with your wallet," and don't buy anything more from them.

I haven't had any real problems from buying things online. I usually get download errors where the download stops running after awhile, or get errors when the download gets here, but they are almost always immediately fixed up when I contact the people involved.

Ditto Bobbie. The worst thing that can happen is poor response to your suggestions or complaints; that's annoying but not unsafe. And in a small-scale market like this, complaints get publicized quickly. Word spreads.

As an aside, the average Poser Artist probably won't get rich selling their stuff. If they're smart, they "won't give up their day jobs," and will treat their customers right.

I have bought many items here at Renderosity, at DAZ, at Poserpros and other places. So far, so good, no problem at all. On the few occasions when I had a problem or a question about something I bought, I emailed the merchant and got a quick and helpful reply. France

Estimated I have spent thousand$ over the last few years, including buying Software on line. Very rarely have I had a problem with the with the major on-line stores, Renderosity - DAZ - Runtime DNA - Poser Pros, if there has been a problem an Email gets things sortered out satisfactory. Only place I have had real problems is with a Poser Style subscription and I voted with my wallet.
Even buying non-downloadable items (usually software) I have found service and delivery to be excellent with usuall delivery times of a week or so to receive items here in Australia from USA or Europe.

I buy huge amounts of Poser related stuff and have done since '99. About 20 sites total. So far everything I ever bought had been OK (occasional support issue, but nothing major) and the transfer of funds has functioned without a hitch - using VISA and occasionally PayPal. One of the most dangerous things you can do is give your CC number and name to someone on the 'phone when ordering something - and the other thing that is even WORSE is giving it to the waiter in a restaurant who walks off with it out of sight... now THAT is taking risks!! And Helgard, what's with the sarcasm? What's your point? :] Fish

Buying products over the Internet using a credit card is actually less risky than using it in a restaurant, as FishNose points out. Most Poser stuff is sold via an intermediary, such as Renderosity. The merchant will never have access to your card number, only Renderosity (or whatever Poser site you are buying from) will. All Poser sites I have been buying from use a secure connection, meaning that your credit card info is encrypted during transmission for added security. Look for the little padlock icon in the status bar of Internet Explorer, it means encrypted connection, it should be there when typing in the card number. Or look in the address window, the address should start with https:// (not http://), it also indicates encrypted connection.

The only safety issue I have encountered with buying Poser stuff is that it fuels your Poser addiction and makes you buy even more stuff! ;-)

buyer beware. No refunds!! take complaints directly to the merchant- the sites will not deal with them! good luck. expect 10 to 20% of your purchese to be less then what you thought.

I have never had a complaint I was not able to handle to the satisfaction of my customers

Geoegress, Daz has that money back 30 day guarentee, and Daz does address complaints, on their own products. (Though nothing will ever be perfect in everyone's eyes)

Thats right Gareee- nothing is perfect. Gushing comments that all will allways be well is at best a falsehood. The man asked a question and deserves a straight, honest answer, period. I agree, just cause there are a couple of problems in the system dosn't mean that he shouldn't ever buy anything. Mock is right too (almost). There are some merchants that go way beyond the call of duty to solve your problems. Then there are some that are nothing but rip offs, and you know it. Merchants that, if you DO ever get a response back, take weeks to respond. Also Gareee- you had to go off site to name a site, lol, and one that continues to have problems comunicating with customers and there problems.

I would say that if you aren't sure if it safe to purchase from merchants or places here are couple of things in addition to the ones mentioned that you might want to try. 1.) If there is a merchant that you are interested in, see if they have any freebie downloads and check out the quality of the goods (keep in mind that sometimes a freebie isn't indictative of the current quality of their products, but does give you some idea). 2.) Try emailing the merchant prior to the purchase with any questions that you may have. If it takes them longer than you are comfortable with to reply, then you might not be pleased with their level of customer service if an issue should arise. 3.) Buy only one item at a time with your first couple of purchases. That way if you do get the shaft, you aren't out that much. 4.) Read the readme PRIOR to buying the item. To be sure that it is indeed what you want, need and can use. Good luck, Rebekah

I think there's two slightly different questions here. First, is the payment process safe? There's certainly some sorts of Internet trading where I wouldn't trust people with my CC number. Renderosity, and the other major Poser/3D sites are not in that group. Second, are the goods as advertised? Well, that's a problem you get everywhere, even in a face-to-face real-world deal. And there's certainly people out there who are better artists that advertising copy-writers. And, yes, there are problems. I'm sure some of the problems are called customers, too. If my eBay dealing are any guide, some customers must be real bastards. Compliments are almost embarrassingly easy to get.

Historically, one of the riskiest marketplaces to buy from is right here. There were a number of copyright-infringement problems. However, in the last year there have been fewer publicized cases that I've noticed, and Renderosity has enacted measures to better protect customers.
Most, probably in excess of 90% of my purchases, have been great. There have been a few that had problems, just like sometimes the toy that looked so cool in the store just isn't all that neat when you get home. Especially if you're new, make sure you understand what is included in a package, or you might find the hair you wanted most of all is a separate item from the pack you bought for it. The read-mes, which you can download separately before buying on many sites, often have a list of files included if the ad copy is vague.

As you gain experience, you'll also learn tricks and how to pick out clues from promo pics. For instance, if you're buying a texture, notice how the major seamline locations (head to neck, arms, that sort of thing) look in the promo, and if none of them are visible, it may pay to be suspicious. If you're buying clothing models and all of the shown poses have very (even unnaturally) mild bends, there may be a poke-through issue. If in doubt, don't be afraid to ask. I've found many merchants to be very helpful if I asked for a specific view of their product before buying. (For instance, asking for a picture of the back of an item or how a transparency renders in Poser 5.)