Regarding third party hosting, it's really not needed to post on CHR, but does provide a more convenient way to post a large number of images on one post, like posting 200+ images from a car show. Where the third party host shines is if you ever take pictures of events, like a retirement gathering, baby shower, or holiday gathering and want to share a large number of images with a bunch of folks. The third party host can't be beat for convenience. I'm using SmugMug now, and my images on PhotoBucket are held hostage, but who cares....