donationware versus freeware - General Topics

So, am I missing something? What does it take to cook a ROM? Why does everyone ask for donations like their software reinvented sliced bread? I am unsure as to the legality of cooked roms, but asking for donations seems to be a way to get around reselling copyrighted material (wince).
I'd rather just skip your post if there is 24pt blue/red text that says "DONATE" in your signature. If you feel your software is worth money, start up a company and sell it, somewhere else. If not, give what you've got to the community, and they will repay you in some way or another, although its not usually in money.
We can all help each other, and we don't have to be annoying to do it.
</end rant>
Let the flames pour in.

it takes alot of time and effort to build a rom, and whilst it may work fine for someone, others may find problems, so the cooks then reissue a new rom with these bugs fixed hence taking up more time and effort.
donations are worthy as they put in alot of extra effort making the best rom for other people aswell as themselves.
To be honest a small thing saying "Please feel free to Donate" isnt as bad as "2 day trial" or something! at the end of the day if you dont want to donate.. dont.

1.
do·na·tion /doʊˈneɪʃən/
–noun
1. an act or instance of presenting something as a gift, grant, or contribution.
2. a gift, as to a fund; contribution.
[Origin: 1375–1425, for an earlier sense; late ME < L dōnātiōn- (s. of dōnātiō), equiv. to dōnāt(us), ptp. of dōnāre to give (dōn-, s. of dōnum gift, + -ātus -ate1) + -iōn- -ion]
—Synonyms 2. offering, benefaction, gratuity. See present.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
------------------------------------------------------------
n.
The act of giving to a fund or cause.
A gift or grant.
[Middle English donacioun, gift, benefice, from Old French, from Latin dōnātiō, dōnātiōn-, from dōnātus, past participle of dōnāre, to give, from dōnum, gift; see dō- in Indo-European roots.]
(Download Now or Buy the Book) The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Donation is voluntary, when you sell something, paying is compulsory.
Donate if you want, if you have, if you like and if you consider it worth it.
2
We are all here because there are cooks amongst us. Without them we would be sticked to WM5 devices, or stock at least.
My advice to you: build your own ROM and change your attitude!

Why you *****in? That why it is donation ware and not a Price Attached ware. If you like it and want to be gratious donate $0.50 or $100 its totally up to you. With a lot of "FreeWare" and "ShareWare" i have found latelly that it is "Free" until to software locks you out without warning 30 days later. I think we have to redefine FreeWare and ShareWare and not complain about DonationWare.
Unless you want me to send my uncle Vinny and beat it out of you!

d1rtyd33z said:
So, am I missing something?
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Click to collapse
Yes, actually you are missing a lot of things. First of all, cooking a rom is not a simple task. I never tried it, but I am quite the geek and also a programmer and I can imagine the possible workload attached to cooking a "good" ROM.
ROM chefs are not reinventing anything but they are reshaping Microsoft's oval wheels into circular wheels, so that your device runs smoother and faster.
Is it legal to cook ROMs? I am not sure. But as long as you are not selling it or removing credits of the original provider, it shouldn't be a wrong thing to alter your phone's software. Still, I am not a lawyer and not an expert on the subject.
There is a HUGE difference between reselling stuff and asking donations for a hard work. Try selling stock WM5 or WM6 and let me know how much you make. Then cook a "good" ROM and distribute it donation-free.
Then you will have a basis to compare them.
I agree that extremely colorful posts are annoying. But I respect a chef's desire to present his work in unprofessional form. After all, we are not paying them for it, right?
Finally, nobody is forcing you to pay. Really. You can simply use all the software you find on this site and not pay a single dime. And when you really think that somebody deserves it, and that you can afford it, donate a couple bucks and motivate the chef/programmer for more.

whats goes into a rom
I'm not saying your time isn't worth money, and I haven't had the experience of being locked into wm5. There are, no doubt, some great rom cooks out there. I hope not to step on anyone's toes, I just don't agree with the "please donate" stuff.
As tnyynt said, Donate if you want, if you have, if you like and if you consider it worth it. I would. Who leaked the Sprint WM6.1 ROM?
I appreciate the insight into the more advanced ROM chefs' works. I know it isn't all plug and play, but I don't imagine the chefs are changing the actual wince core code either. What exactly goes into a cooked rom, that didn't come from a pre-made kitchen?

The work of a chef
d1rtyd33z said:
. . . I know it isn't all plug and play, but I don't imagine the chefs are changing the actual wince core code either. What exactly goes into a cooked rom, that didn't come from a pre-made kitchen?
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Oh, man - I think you've really stepped in it now.
You obviously haven't read very much in this forum if you don't realize the tremendous amount of work it takes working with the guts of a ROM - the .dsu files, the .rgu files, the PROVXML, the OPTIONS.XML and SETUP.XML - the complicated and arcane files and instructions that make up a ROM.
The guys that can do this are the ones that make the kitchen that allows the less knowledgeable and/or the less talented to cook their own ROM's, by precisely following the cookbook instructions of these guys that labored to strip factory Rom's - basically tearing a very complex machine apart, and reassembling with just the parts that they have found to be essential, and adding parts that they have found useful in improving the performance of the resulting machine. Try taking a car apart piece by piece, and rebuilding it in a new way, and actually have it drive better than the original.
I suggest you do a lot more reading before you put your foot deeper down your throat.

On a tangent:
I wish developers would offer other means of donations other than paypal. Some people here just don't have paypal, or a credit card. I wish they would offer other methods such as direct deposit, or event a Post Office Box where you could post them money! I think it would help developers get more money for their efforts, it might even make quicker releases and more incentive to further improve their applications etc.
>>Rant Over
>>Thread Hijacked

thanks
Thanks, I'll stop choking on my foot now.

Related

Ebay Roms and Developers work abused

Hi all,
I've posted about this trash before but now it is really annoying me.
We all do our work here for free and for the better good of the community and those who use these PDA's.
I am so sick of people abusing our work and selling it on Ebay without even a thank you let alone any form of re-imbursement for the hard work we do.
I know it's not piracy, and what we do here is pretty much open-source if you like, but this stuff is really getting on my nerves.
Everytime I go on Ebay and search for PDAs the same trash pops up, some idiot making a fast buck off the back of hard working Developers like us.
The guy is selling a Uni with Laurentius's and mine Rom on it and trying to make an extra £50- £70 for our hard work, since the Uni is normally going for between £160- £200 these days.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....ndexURL=4&photoDisplayType=2#ebayphotohosting
I have no idea what we can do about it, I am reporting him to Ebay and would be gratefull for the support of the community in doing the same with this guy and others like him.
It ruins this community and really winds me up to the point that I wonder if should even bother any more.
Cheers,
A very p....ssd off Beasty
I am more surprised that people actually paying to buy ROMs which are available for free. Beasty maybe you should be listing the ROMs since people don’t really want to hit the donation icon here. And I will give you a good feedback to get you started.
beast0898 said:
Hi all,
I've posted about this trash before but now it is really annoying me.
We all do our work here for free and for the better good of the community and those who use these PDA's.
I am so sick of people abusing our work and selling it on Ebay without even a thank you let alone any form of re-imbursement for the hard work we do.
I know it's not piracy, and what we do here is pretty much open-source if you like, but this stuff is really getting on my nerves.
Everytime I go on Ebay and search for PDAs the same trash pops up, some idiot making a fast buck off the back of hard working Developers like us.
The guy is selling a Uni with Laurentius's and mine Rom on it and trying to make an extra £50- £70 for our hard work, since the Uni is normally going for between £160- £200 these days.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....ndexURL=4&photoDisplayType=2#ebayphotohosting
I have no idea what we can do about it, I am reporting him to Ebay and would be gratefull for the support of the community in doing the same with this guy and others like him.
It ruins this community and really winds me up to the point that I wonder if should even bother any more.
MODS PLEASE STICKY THIS
Cheers,
A very p....ssd off Beasty
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't wish to sell them, and besides that it would be illegal to do so.
My point is that we do this for free and scum bags try to make money for nothing from others contributions to this community.
I know how stupid Microsoft will look if people start selling their modified ROMs. But I did discover one thing when you are pissed you do lose your sense of humor.
beast0898 said:
I don't wish to sell them, and besides that it would be illegal to do so.
My point is that we do this for free and scum bags try to make money for nothing from others contributions to this community.
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Yes... a lot of time goes in cooking\developing rom's and we are offering this ROM's for free here. How would you feel if we stop doing this!
I have no good words for people who are selling our ROM's on Ebay.
I might have to think about that if you stop making ROM how will I feel? I think then I will have no good words for you. Just kidding I guess then I will be disappointed because I keep coming back to your ROMs and you don’t even appreciate that I go through all that trouble and flash your ROMs. A little bit of appreciation will be nice from you people. No, seriously I do appreciate all the time you spend her and then even let people criticize you. If I was you I would just say “MAKE YOUR OWN BLOODY ROMs IF YOU CAN DO a BETTER JOB”.
Laurentius26 said:
Yes... a lot of time goes in cooking\developing rom's and we are offering this ROM's for free here. How would you feel if we stop doing this!
I have no good words for people who are selling our ROM's on Ebay.
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Click to collapse
And I do appriciate you flash our ROM's my friend
Thank you!
Regards,
Leo
faraz.riaz said:
I might have to think about that if you stop making ROM how will I feel? I think then I will have no good words for you. Just kidding I guess then I will be disappointed because I keep coming back to your ROMs and you don’t even appreciate that I go through all that trouble and flash your ROMs. A little bit of appreciation will be nice from you people. No, seriously I do appreciate all the time you spend her and then even let people criticize you. If I was you I would just say “MAKE YOUR OWN BLOODY ROMs IF YOU CAN DO a BETTER JOB”.
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Support
Hi Beasty,
I'm behind you guys 100% on this one, if you come up with a way we can all help then let us know. I guess this arse wipe is a member of this group, can we have him or them removed from it to start with. It might not be illegal to sell it on eBay, but it must be some kind of fraud. As a paramedic I am (when given permission) able to use a persons medical history to further my knowledge, but I've no right to sell it in a book on EBAY if you see my point!!!
Kind regards
Jay
THANK YOU
i would be very pissed off too if i'd work my butt off to get nothing some times not even a "thank you" and other motHer%$$·$% is getting the money for my hard-work. if anyone can come up with some good ideas to avoid this type of persons here in this wonderful comunity would be great (maybe get his IP address somehow and ban him/her for good)
i have no words for all you people that spend many hours cooking and developing, hours that maybe your wife, husband or kids would need or deserve but just think about the 1000s of happy faces we have everytime we flash you piece of artworks or all the countless hours we wait for a new ROM to come out or just the big smile we have in our faces everytime the flash is finished and we see the new ROM for the first time. Just think that he/she migth be making a few bucks, but you have the appreciation, respect, knowledge and the love of many (maybe thousands) of people every single day with every new ROM . To all this you may have notice that english is not my maiden language(im from mexico) but i do want to show you my respects, i wish i could donate but in the country i live...life is not easy and all i can do is say...... !!!!!GRACIAS!!!!!!
BEST REGARDS. Erik.
Although I do agree with Beast on this issue - I don't think anyone (other that a Developer) can really comment on it.
Consider, most developers for the Universal have been using my hosting - which I welcome them to do. However, not a single person who has downloaded a ROM from my hosting has donated a cent to me to help pay the hosting cost.
Don't get me wrong - I don't want the developers to pay (they're already contributing a huge amount to the community). But, when was the last time you (being a random forum member) have donated to a developer for their work or to me for my hosting? Truly, unless you have put something back into the community, you are being a hypocrite by posting in this thread!
Anyway, thats my 2 cents (Australian Cents ) on the issue - and I apologise to no one that I may have offended
So Disgusting
This is very disgusting if anyone is doing so........as a members of this community we should really stop this .This forum is for us and we should appriciate our developers for giving us such ROM's........which they develope by contributing their valuable time for us.
I really feel very sad about it.
Hi all,
I have no desire to make money from my work here, or demand donations for anything I contribute, all I request is the common decency from fellow human beings not to ruin this community by exploiting others.
TehPenguin does have a point though, his hosting does cost him money and adds great value to this community, the FTP Server and BugTracker are invaluable (when used correctly) and TehPenguin and this site could really use donations to help them keep running costs down.
TehPenguin said:
Although I do agree with Beast on this issue - I don't think anyone (other that a Developer) can really comment on it.
Consider, most developers for the Universal have been using my hosting - which I welcome them to do. However, not a single person who has downloaded a ROM from my hosting has donated a cent to me to help pay the hosting cost.
Don't get me wrong - I don't want the developers to pay (they're already contributing a huge amount to the community). But, when was the last time you (being a random forum member) have donated to a developer for their work or to me for my hosting? Truly, unless you have put something back into the community, you are being a hypocrite by posting in this thread!
Anyway, thats my 2 cents (Australian Cents ) on the issue - and I apologise to no one that I may have offended
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I feel so ashamed of myself that I have decided not to download any ROM from your domain for one week. Seriously, did people have a bad weekend because everyone seemed to be pissed off? I am disappointed that you called me a hypocrite because I have been accused of this before and I’m anxiously waiting for someone to come up with something new. Everyone whom posted in this thread will have to send a handsome amount of donation to the “hosting dude” starting with Beasty who started this thread. Honestly, I do agree people should pay a little back to help those who are trying to help others. I think even if everyone pays as little as US $1 it will make a huge difference. I am surprised myself people come up with so many ideas how to change the ROM (Whisper: Most of them are lame) and they are more like demanding. I really don’t get why developers put up with that and I told Beasty that why he’s apologetic.
I do agree that we should do a little something to help. So what you need me to do?
TehPenguin said:
Although I do agree with Beast on this issue - I don't think anyone (other that a Developer) can really comment on it.
Consider, most developers for the Universal have been using my hosting - which I welcome them to do. However, not a single person who has downloaded a ROM from my hosting has donated a cent to me to help pay the hosting cost.
Don't get me wrong - I don't want the developers to pay (they're already contributing a huge amount to the community). But, when was the last time you (being a random forum member) have donated to a developer for their work or to me for my hosting? Truly, unless you have put something back into the community, you are being a hypocrite by posting in this thread!
Anyway, thats my 2 cents (Australian Cents ) on the issue - and I apologise to no one that I may have offended
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Click to collapse
Why don't you guys make a solution
Hey beast,
Why don't you developer make a credits section in your roms that is listing your names and all your comments.
I'm not a developer, but let me give an idea, why don't you create a program, that makes a watermark comment on the todays screen, which makes it clear to everyone that this rom is free and nmt for sale, and calling everyone that purchase this rom to contact you guys through the xda-developers web site.
it is just an idea, and I'm sure that most of the guys here is supporting you and the other developers for the great work
TehPenguin said:
However, not a single person who has downloaded a ROM from my hosting has donated a cent to me to help pay the hosting cost.
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Click to collapse
Ive found the same when i set up htc-devs.com (when the ftp was wiped of m$ files)
TehPenguin said:
Don't get me wrong - I don't want the developers to pay (they're already contributing a huge amount to the community). But, when was the last time you (being a random forum member) have donated to a developer for their work or to me for my hosting? Truly, unless you have put something back into the community, you are being a hypocrite by posting in this thread!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I concur, In since i started developing my total donations are barely double digits (<£50) people think that things should be handed to them on a golden platter, and when they are not 100% to thier satisfaction that you shoudl put it right, immediately, but they would never consider donating
my 2p
I am not a developer too..or not considering me in that sort of group,because of the amount of time I spend in this (about 1-2hrs a week).
Just customized a Rom to my needs and I will be glad to share if someone wants it,freely!
Every person needs to find a good balance to Private life and Rom Developement,etc.. If this development is such time consuming,calm down..review your time!
Don't pretend donations (they are always appreciated but not to be Pretended or cast something up)
Development (and programming in general) in this forum are passions that we share together..
TehPenguin said:
Although I do agree with Beast on this issue - I don't think anyone (other that a Developer) can really comment on it.
Consider, most developers for the Universal have been using my hosting - which I welcome them to do. However, not a single person who has downloaded a ROM from my hosting has donated a cent to me to help pay the hosting cost.
Don't get me wrong - I don't want the developers to pay (they're already contributing a huge amount to the community). But, when was the last time you (being a random forum member) have donated to a developer for their work or to me for my hosting? Truly, unless you have put something back into the community, you are being a hypocrite by posting in this thread!
Anyway, that's my 2 cents (Australian Cents ) on the issue - and I apologise to no one that I may have offended
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think ANYONE is being a hypocrite on this thread, we are just supporting developers who have had their work abused and used by another party. I have the greatest admiration for the clever people who develop the amazing Rom's for our chosen PDA, without them our universals would now be an out of date device. I personally provide files and work to the LIMIT of my own abilities, and any rom I feel worth using, then I donate to the developer. I feel thats what this forum is all about. Yes I am guilty of not supporting ANY host of download sites, and was not aware that this puts you out of pocket till now. without the hosts support to this forum it would be useless but it is not unreasonable for people to express their OWN opinion.
Respectfully
Jay
responderman said:
I don't think ANYONE is being a hypocrite on this thread, we are just supporting developers who have had their work abused and used by another party. I have the greatest admiration for the clever people who develop the amazing Rom's for our chosen PDA, without them our universals would now be an out of date device. I personally provide files and work to the LIMIT of my own abilities, and any rom I feel worth using, then I donate to the developer. I feel thats what this forum is all about. Yes I am guilty of not supporting ANY host of download sites, and was not aware that this puts you out of pocket till now. without the hosts support to this forum it would be useless but it is not unreasonable for people to express their OWN opinion.
Respectfully
Jay
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Click to collapse
Thats a good point to note as well - Hosting cost me money, but it also costs the people who host this forum money. So, I wonder how many people have noticed the Donate link at the top of this page (near the Wiki link)...
Disagree with Beastie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I totally disagree with Beastie on this matter! If you take a look at the installed software on that Uni it has SPB Finance, Weather and Pocket Plus retailing at 70$ as well as a quite long list of other appz. More than that what we do here isn't fully legal either or at least moral. For example in our ROMs we include software that we do not have a licence or any right to use like MSVoiceCommand, MSOffice, HTC Stuff etc, etc, if you compare this to a PC it would be like buying a PC with Win98 then taking a copy(image) of a friend WinXP(with Office, and other apps) and loading it on your one. Do you thing this is right? And also if someone would do the same and sell this "New" PC complain about it. You develop for your own fun and hobby. If you decided to share something not very moral with others, don't complain when someone does something that is not fully moral by your judgement. Morality or legality of this matter is a subjective matter. And do understand the concept of open source. I'm coming from a Mozilla exdeveloper background. And Mozilla is used in numerous commercial applications with proper credits. You have no right to claim that someone used your work to make money on it, as you are using someone else work in your own interests (name, hobby, any reason). You have your reasons to make just what that guy did for his reasons(in his case money). One thief is judjung another!!! How moral is that??? Of course you do develop your own tools and enchacements, BUT on top of a STOLEN OS!!! Microsoft, HTC,etc invested money and time in their developers, designers, markeing depts. to bring this OS to life, and if they decide they don't want to give it for free it is their choice as a business model. You do not have the right to steal this OS tweak it and claim that it is YOUR and someone should pay you for this. Look a the whole picture not that just some guy used the ROM you dont own but tweaked it and claim it is yours.
PS. Last night i posted my 1st ever ROM on this forum wich is as vanilla as possible(for me), the reasons behind postin it here was exactly that. Anyone can download it and tweak it to his own use, or install new soft one it, new soft keybd, new media player, fast GPS soft etc, etc. I didn't own that OS, I took it of Thingonasping wich took it from someone else. You spend a some time and money in "developing" "your" ROMs, corporations spend billions on that, and someone comes along and steals it. Now that person do not have the need to upgrade his device anymore as "his" new OS will keep him happy for a while. How much damage do you do then to even HTC themselves who didn't sell another unit as their potential customer didn't buy it cos he's got his old device new features(without permision from legal developer).
PS. And how do you know or are so sure that he used "Your" ROM? Maybe he took your kitchen and compiled it, (wich in your view and interpretation), makes it "His" ROM now, isn't it?
I feel sorry for the poor sod who will buy this Universal:
1. As far as legality is concerned, any stolen goods doesn't pass the title of ownership to the buyer. Even though the buyer is unaware of this theft and he/she is innocent, the ownership title doesn't pass to him/her. A case in point about Spb software on the phone, which we are assuming installed on the phone illegally.
2. To add to this the poor sod's nightmare, he/she will be lumbered with Windows Mobile 6 with full of bugs. For sure it won't have video calling.
KOR!

Return to Mysterious Island

i realy want this game cracked but cant fin it can some one help me
Yes. Go buy it and I'll send you a crack!
LOL
hahahhha but no serious
serrious, go buy it
i thougt you guys could help me
you thought wrong.you are HelplessEver now...
soRry
do you now a funn and good quality game
Yeah! Return to the Mysterious Island - a very good game. You should definitely buy it!!!
do you hate me serius
Stop encouraging this guy by keeping his thread alive!!
Seriously, bestever, someone spent a lot of time and energy to create that game. Go buy it and show the programmer a little appreciation, rather than finding a cracked version and, basically, stealing.
How would you feel if you spent hours and hours and days and days writing a book, and you find a publisher and spend even more time - and lots of money, too - getting the book published, and as soon as it finds its way to the shelves, someone buys one, makes a gajillion photocopies of it, and started giving it free to everyone who asked. Suddenly you're not selling a single book - because everyone's getting it for free.
Wouldn't you be mad?
Seriously. Go buy the game if you like it that much.
You are joking, right?
I really find interesting everybody's opinion here, especially when considering the fact that all posts belong to a forum which is well known for it's illegal roms...
So, if I want a WM6 device I should buy one right? I shouldn't upgrade my old WM5 device, as by doing this I am not respecting the authors (aka programmers) of the new OS nor the producers (aka manufacturers) of the new devices. And they don't make profit anymore, as I don't have to buy a new device, since my old is upgraded. For example, my old Prophet runs on EXACTLY the same hardware as the Elf. But I don't have to buy the Elf anymore. Is that what your are telling us?
Great. Let's shut down this forum
The truth is that games & software are way too expensive. If they kept the prices in reasonable limits then we wouldn't consider cracking them...
i think booth have right in somewais
sorry for bad english
dj_aris said:
I really find interesting everybody's opinion here, especially when considering the fact that all posts belong to a forum which is well known for it's illegal roms...
So, if I want a WM6 device I should buy one right? I shouldn't upgrade my old WM5 device, as by doing this I am not respecting the authors (aka programmers) of the new OS nor the producers (aka manufacturers) of the new devices. And they don't make profit anymore, as I don't have to buy a new device, since my old is upgraded. For example, my old Prophet runs on EXACTLY the same hardware as the Elf. But I don't have to buy the Elf anymore. Is that what your are telling us?
Great. Let's shut down this forum
The truth is that games & software are way too expensive. If they kept the prices in reasonable limits then we wouldn't consider cracking them...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, there's a difference here. If "bestever" wanted to get a copy of the game with developing in mind - maybe create a new game based on the same engine or something - then there wouldn't be a problem. This is xda-developers.com, where people collaborate to develop new software solutions for our smartphones and pdaphones. The developers post their creations so that the masses can download, install, and essentially beta-test them. It's an intellectual exercise, and if a few people just download WM6 (for example) just for their own personal use, that's okay, the developers here don't seem to mind.
The game in question, however, was designed and is marketed as for-profit. The developer spent a lot of time and energy creating that software. If he spent a total of 40 work hours programming, editing, compiling, testing, reprogramming, and fixing bugs in this game and sold it for 20 bucks, he's making 50 cents an hour. He'd have to sell 15 copies just to hit minimum wage.
If bestever wanted to get a copy of the game to use it as a template to design his own, that's fine. At least with me. But he just doesn't want to pay for it. There's a word for that - "stealing".
On top of all that, the programmer of the game in question is not a bloodsucking monopolistic corporation worth billions of dollars and doing everything possible to squeeze every last red cent they can out of the average Earth-dweller. Whatever issues I may have with people and their illegal software downloads comes to a halt when I reach Microsoft. I don't like them, I don't like the way they do business, and I think they deserve what they get. The only reasons I use Windows PCs is because they're industry standard anymore, and I grew up using them long before I developed any sense of politics - I started at age 6 with Win3.1. The only reasons I use a Windows Mobile device is because of the huge third party app support, vastly superior abilities compared to your garden-variety cell phone, and the prohibitive cost (and lack of third party support) behind the iPhone.
If the developer of the game wanted it to be free, he'd be distributing it freely. If you like the game that much, show the developer some support and PAY FOR THE GAME. Otherwise, the game might not even exist.
I won't argue with you that the cost of games and software is way too expensive. I don't want to pay over 200 bucks for an operating system for my computer, but I don't know crap about Linux, whereas I'm very proficient in Windows (2k, XP, 2k3S, etc.) But here's the rub, and in order to be properly understood you have to be completely honest with yourself. If money wasn't a problem, if instead of making 25k/year you were making 250k/year, would you still be cracking software, or would you be buying it?
Alright guys. Let's all take a deep breath here. The age-old question of warez, and cracks and hacks won't get answered here.
If there are any moderators in sight, please delete this thread, It is totally off-topic, and should never have been allowed to propagate.
sorry for starting this

This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.:(

Iam a windows mobile user starting from wizard.
The HTC WM devices are known for few things,
1. Can get free softwares and cracked softwares easily.
2. Device can be SIM,CID, Security unlocked easily.
3. Shall be customized easily with new cooked ROMs.
More than anything, all these were available for free.
But now,
1. Security/Sim unlock - pay money
2. Hard SPL - pay money.
3. Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
4. Collecting donations telling some of their attactive future projects which they never have a plan to complete,
etc.
This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.
So figure out how to do everything all by your self.
Seriously, I don't blame anyone that charges for worthwhile software. I've spent a few hundred dollars on software for my phone which I spent much more money on.. I figure it only makes sense.
Not agree
If some are making money with the work of others is too bad.
But here all Devs give us their work for free, donations are accepted but no paying.
Of course this site has grown a lot and it´s a reference point on the web
Respectfully,
skr_xd said:
Iam a windows mobile user starting from wizard.
The HTC WM devices are known for few things,
1. Can get free softwares and cracked softwares easily.
2. Device can be SIM,CID, Security unlocked easily.
3. Shall be customized easily with new cooked ROMs.
More than anything, all these were available for free.
But now,
1. Security/Sim unlock - pay money
2. Hard SPL - pay money.
3. Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
4. Collecting donations telling some of their attactive future projects which they never have a plan to complete,
etc.
This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
your a fool i tell you
1, security sim unlock = FREE - the only one ive seen that you have to pay for is that blackstone, diamond, raphael, xperia but then thats only if you dont contribute, all of the rest are ftree but they will accept donations (BTW do u know what the money is used for? maybe its for buying new devices to create helpful softare)
2, Hard spl is free and will stay that way you can donate but for the reasons stated above its worth it
3, rom chefs may need to keep an eyes on what being downloaded so registration is helpful, also the ask for donations but then again rom building takes a lot of time to do and takes dedication and most of all caffiene, if you dont want to donate or resent the fact that theyve created something people like then dont
4, All serious app creator will follow up on the rpomises, every developer and chef will be consistant
to cut a long story short if theys guys werent able to provide this service then u wouldnt be able to have the choice to donate, itd cost you at least three times the amount you would donate
so these are free tools that people make so we can get it for free its either donate for consistent releases or shun them and leave it to companies and commercial solutions that would charge you an arm and a leg and why?
becuase we actually need this stuff
now time for pilots word of the day
if you resent paying or donating for a service then dont pay. but youd be the first to cry when they cant afford to host that rom u want and the sim unlocker you want
these people are the backbone of this forum if you dont like the fact they can make a quick buck either contibute or have a coke, a smile and shut the **** up
just noticed you donated to xda developers, are you some sort of complete thicko
skr_xd said:
Iam a windows mobile user starting from wizard.
The HTC WM devices are known for few things,
1. Can get free softwares and cracked softwares easily.
2. Device can be SIM,CID, Security unlocked easily.
3. Shall be customized easily with new cooked ROMs.
More than anything, all these were available for free.
But now,
1. Security/Sim unlock - pay money
2. Hard SPL - pay money.
3. Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
4. Collecting donations telling some of their attactive future projects which they never have a plan to complete,
etc.
This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi, Pilot showed me this thread.
let me tell you my opinion, as I've been around since HTC universal (same vintage as your wizard) and I make HSPL's and am part of SIM/Security unlocking projects too.
1. warez is not allowed on these forums!!!! so stop discussing that, also this is not HTC specific, so totally nothing to do with XDA please.
2. yah, on the htc wizard there is no radio security to hack. that changed with kaiser and newer devices (MSM7xxx). if you contribute then you can still have the security and sim unlockers free. otherwise, we won't allow shops etc to play the freeloader game and earn money from our work free.
3. Hard-SPL: wow, this shows who you really are. are you a shop who resells htc devices after hacking and customizing them??? because they're the only ones who have to pay for topaz or jade HSPL. if you are just a user, you get the license transparent and free and you even get personal support if something isn't working. so stop complaining if you are just a user - but if you are a shop, then you should understand this scenario.
4. as for roms, I'm not really following that space, so dunno. but if some do that then maybe they are saying the truth, hosting is not free for sure. of course I'm sure you are still not forced to pay for cooked roms, as you mention the word "almost" regarding the donations. so it seems you can still get them free, so then why does it upset you if they'd like you to donate while they still give it to you free if you don't?
if there is a rom you are actually required to pay for - well I guess it's in their right to ask for money, but this is not my area, this is just my personal opinion. show me a link to such a rom though, I'm curious
5. show me such a project? I again have to admit I don't follow everything on XDA, I'm curious to hear about those projects, got any links?
and a summary. as I see it, actually XDA became *less* of a place for earning money - from the viewpoint of the shop owners/phone resellers. (as they are somewhat forced to pay for things now)
XDA used to be a golden mine for these people, reselling devices with cooked roms or selling the software itself on ebay (roms, hardspl/sim unlockers) without paying anything to the following people: rom creators/cooks, HardSPL creators, free sim unlocker creators (for the latter 2: pof, jockyW, Olipro, me).
Although I respect the op opinion let me give you mine;
I cooked loads of ROMs for the wizard and I loved it. Then I got a Hermes and started cooking for it then it hit me, I never had a working device because I was flash/testing sometimes 10 times a day! The ideal solution was to have 2 devices but that costs money and even though I got some donations it was not near enough,so for that and many other reasons I kind of got of the game.
Now I got a touch pro 2 and sure I could have a crack at trying to unlock it but, are you nuts! I mean what happens when I brick it witch often happen trying to crack it?
Who is going to give me £425 for the new device? That rights no one.
Hell it took me 1 year to save up for the current device, then yes people require money because they need new devices’ to crack, to pay for software to do it etc....
Regards,
Ps;
i do not agree with people charging for ROMs or related tools, asking for voluntary donation hell yes, they do deserve it.
its their work so they have the right to charge if they want to....
but there are waaaay more free goodies than paid ones
skr_xd said:
Iam a windows mobile user starting from wizard.
The HTC WM devices are known for few things,
1. Can get free softwares and cracked softwares easily.
2. Device can be SIM,CID, Security unlocked easily.
3. Shall be customized easily with new cooked ROMs.
More than anything, all these were available for free.
But now,
1. Security/Sim unlock - pay money
2. Hard SPL - pay money.
3. Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
4. Collecting donations telling some of their attactive future projects which they never have a plan to complete,
etc.
This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was never forced into paying 1 cent to the developers.
Sorry if i hurt you people here.
It was just from a user point of view.(Iam a NORMAL USER ONLY)
Actually the truth is, iam really fed up of a HTC device and my point was why a user like me need to spend so much for tweaking a HTC device (Its not devs mistake, i adore your opinions) and still not getting a satisfactory result from the device.
This thread was just an outcome of a pure frustration upon the under performing HTC devices and the need of customization & tweaking required
Another side, I do respect the devs who give their time for developing
and i have donated to a few already including XDA dev forum.
Next thing about,
Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If i name a few its not so good and there are supporters for everyone and opposers for everyone and will openup a fight here.
Look at some ROM threads in Blackstone and Kaiser forum and you can understand why i say like this.
I think its a free world & one should have the right to earn from his talent if its worthy of giving him/her few bucks.
Cracks/Serials are there for every OS, Reverse engineering is a reality, imagine they are asking people to donate them & people are even paying them. So I don't think one should not ask for donations for a genuine original work.
Cooked ROM's are really a way for any young developer to earn a few bucks. I know few cooks personally & I know how good it is for them to earn. Its like a part time job for them.
I although appreciate the spirit under which the poster has commented on this tendency but that simply doesn't point out to original issues involved. Its something more than just cooked ROM's, HSPL etc.
I felt bad when I saw medkid left cooking for Kaiser just because he failed to garner enough donations out of it. But then its about thinking personally, its his intellectual property, who am I to feel wrong about it. If I dont like it I should move to other cooks w/o complaining.
Cheerz
Regards
Saksham Katyal
I admit that I am a cook, and a skinner that asks for donations. BUT I only ask for them in the form of tips, if you like what I do, tip me, just like at your favorite restaurant. I only ask for them on things that I have completed, or at least have uploaded already (I consider nothing of mine ever complete, there is always something to be done with it.)
But people asking for donation for things they havent released yet. i think isnt the best way because then expectations are high and what happens if you cant deliver?
skr_xd said:
Next thing about,
If i name a few its not so good and there are supporters for everyone and opposers for everyone and will openup a fight here.
Look at some ROM threads in Blackstone and Kaiser forum and you can understand why i say like this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you don't like it then don't use the fruits of their dedication and hard work.
Is there anything worse in this world then someone who takes and takes without giving back ( what 10 , 20 dollars/euros in donations ) and then has the gall to complain when people take their work semi private ?
I can provide technical help to the many users here , based on my many years of WM experience and my voracious appetite for reading and searching out info., but have yet to dedicate the time and patience it takes to program an app or cook a rom. So I happily and with as much $ compensation as I can, take advantage of everyone's abundant generosity. I do so by gladly adhering to any steps , hoops, registrations they may require.
The only thing I question is their sanity. If it was my creativeness, dedication and talent, I would leave all you people in the dust, run straight to the iphone app store, come up some stupid app like " iboobs " that all the iPhone drones ( who by the way have to pay just to poop with the iPhone in their hands ) can't do with out. Collect my tens of thousands of dollars from the Apple app store and live wealthily ever after. Instead of having to deal with some of the idiots here, who piss and moan and ( start new *****ing threads ) everytime a chef even suggests that he may like to take control of his work by having people register on his own site
denco7 said:
The only thing I question is their sanity. If it was my creativeness, dedication and talent, I would leave all you people in the dust, run straight to the iphone app store, come up some stupid app like " iboobs " that all the iPhone drones ( who by the way have to pay just to poop with the iPhone in their hands ) can't do with out. Collect my tens of thousands of dollars from the Apple app store and live wealthily ever after. Instead of having to deal with some of the idiots here, who piss and moan and ( start new *****ing threads ) everytime a chef even suggests that he may like to take control of his work by having people register on his own site
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, maybe not as crazy... there are many iphones and the appstore definitely makes it easy to find the apps, but nothing is perfect in this world either; if you don't have a really kick ass program then it will never make its way into the top 100 or whatever, and then it'll be hard to find it between the loads of other similar apps in the same category (especially as the search function is reported to be near useless). and many iphone owners are not willing to pay anything - just like on other platforms; many more don't even care about installing apps. just like for any other smartphone (though maybe the rate is a bit better for iphone? don't know numbers so maybe not at all). so you still have to do real work to get rich even on iphone. I read a blog of someone who made an iphone game which didn't get that successful even though it was an okay game, that's how I know so much about this
and you have to feel dedicated too.. I wasn't going to invest 99 usd and into a Mac so easily anyway for a platform that does not excite me that much though, if apple releases an iphone with a proper hardware keyboard and better screen resolution, I will be a lot more interested.
now this would make a new topic, i.e. why didn't we XDA devs switch to iphone yet or why should we?
Why this GREAT forum just can not help those GREAT freeware makers a better life?
Add one: If people think that donations can make them money you are wrong. Check the posted donation list and calculate the total amount and total time spent please.
skr_xd said:
Iam a windows mobile user starting from wizard.
The HTC WM devices are known for few things,
1. Can get free softwares and cracked softwares easily.
2. Device can be SIM,CID, Security unlocked easily.
3. Shall be customized easily with new cooked ROMs.
More than anything, all these were available for free.
But now,
1. Security/Sim unlock - pay money
2. Hard SPL - pay money.
3. Cooked ROMs- More cooks demanding registration in their own website and demanding (almost) donations for cooked ROMs with each one telling their own reason(web hosting charges, low internet speed, spending personal time, stolen device,etc)
4. Collecting donations telling some of their attactive future projects which they never have a plan to complete,
etc.
This forum has become a place for earning money for more people nowadays.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Come on man. You're indian. You should try and understand.
1. Security/CID was never free to begin with. Even with other devices and besides, if you contribute to the forums, olipro or cmonex will probably give it to you free.
2. Since when did HardSPL cost money?
3. More cooks sure, but the really good ones stayed and don't demand a single cent to download. If you can't accept that, learn cooking yourself and then you'll appreciate what they do.
4. I think you're really referring to TouchXperience here lol which is in effect and will be completed.
I don't see why one shouldn't charge and make a little money
I think the developers should charge for their work! w/out it you would have nothing, so why complain?
BTW, I have never been forced to pay for anything here, but love donating cos w/out a stable ROM my phone would SUCK. Donating allows the developer to buy more devices (hopefully) so they can cook more roms etc, it makes sense!
you are just STINJY!
I think people are not appreciating that fine thread running behind the idea of poster. I support him in that.
nvm nvm nvm
Well I have been reading this thread, but now decided to pen down my views.
I have been the member since there were only Himalaya and Wallaby.I remember so many revolutionary events, viz, porting of wm 2003 SE to Himalaya, then wm 5.0 to Himalaya and BA, cooking tools release etc etc..Well the creators never asked for donation and whole world got benefited.
Considering the current scenario, all I can suggest that xda-dev should decide whether it wants to act like a complete dedicated support to HTC devices or an independent windows mobile Solutions provider.If it is support, then of course no donations, if solution, then yes has right to accept money for providing service.But, then it should not discriminate.It should also have dedicated sections for other WM devices, Asus, Samsung, Acer/eten.
Anyone who wants to provide solution shd register it with the xda-dev by paying small amount and can charge for providing own unique solutions..well just like an app store.This will help the website and there will not be any fakers and we have genuine people to deal with.
It is true that this website is a source for millions of Shop keepers, resellers for various things viz unlock, hard spl, customization, support when device is almost bricked etc etc.But this is limited to HTC devices.Now the scenario is changing, end user doesn't have any time and wants the proper trusted solution irrespective of brand, so if it want to buy a Windows Mobile, it has lot of options other than HTC, and a reseller or shop keeper, will have to provide the same as the end user wants, and now when we have i phone, no one will think more about it.
I feel this community has indeed given a global platform for many talented people.Let's keep it clean and respect it.No one shd point a finger like this thread.

Why is chefs leaving?

If permitted may we ask why is so many chefs leaving?
care to be a bit more specific?
I can think of one reason.
$$$.
Maybe site like you knw whichone (htc pe*di*.com)
site might require them to have exclusive agreement with them.
In return they get some cut from sites revenue.
supersanj said:
care to be a bit more specific?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
itj, miri, hellonasty ......
jimk68 said:
If permitted may we ask why is so many chefs leaving?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is the App Store effect. It is really hard to put hours and hours, weeks and weeks of work into a rom or an app, then watch 3000 people download and use it, only to have 30 people actually press your donation button.
It is especially hard when you read things like this and realize the possibilities outside this " donation only " generating forum.
jimk68 said:
itj, miri, hellonasty ......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
duttythroy, freyberry, both from HD2 section in last couple of days..
I may only be a visitor most of the time, but I'm looking elsewhere too.
Threads are full of ego. totally off the original topic mostly and just one-upmanship.
It's just not friendly any more.
The number of people visiting this site has made it what it is and gained it no end of publicity and there is no question that there are some great people coming here and sharing their knowledge.
However I feel it has moved from a "community" spirit of mutual help to one of it being the roughest pub in town.
I really hope they can get their house in order. Threading with ranked comments perhaps?
I'm sure there are admins on here who know that change gotta come.
Chefs have their own life out XDA, they come and go.
I don´t think Chefs are leaving
orb3000 said:
Chefs have their own life out XDA, they come and go.
I don´t think Chefs are leaving
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are, they have said, all moving to another site but won't give a reason as if they're not allowed... not even allowed to post their ROMs here or support them here.
Wow!!
I was out from XDA and now knowing this bad news
I wonder why is this happening?
If anyone can tell the story...
Hope not all leave...
Yes i have also heard this. Many are saying that htcxxxxx.com is paying them to move on to their site and in a agreement that they should post their roms in their site only that is upload to their site only forever!!
jagan2 said:
Yes i have also heard this. Many are saying that htcxxxxx.com is paying them to move on to their site and in a agreement that they should post their roms in their site only that is upload to their site only forever!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
True........?
It could be true.
It started with udK I think.
[ElCondor] said:
It could be true.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good chefs have definitely said they'll be leaving in the last couple of days, leaving for another site, with no real reason (that they are able to give). I'm sure we'll see a lot more go in the next week.
I'm concerned people like monx who seem to be able to get hold of unofficial WM ROMs before anyone else will hold them and keep them for just people on the other site. This is all very bad for XDA.
I think our lost, that site never ask for anything other then register and download, always ask to refer back here. So many top chefs
Cheers
They'll probably buy out all chefs here, and when they're done, they sell the roms on HTCpedia.
The chefs will get paid in that way, and HTCPedia will make a lot of profit.
I am making my own ROMs, if everyone leaves, I'll publish them here.
Money....money.......money.........money..........
And don't think for one second, it is not all about money !!!!!!!
Xda as a web site is valued at close to a million dollars, some estimates over a million. What is XDA intrinsically ? A bunch of servers in a leased office in Amsterdam, with a hand full of administrators.
The true value is in the knowledge base of it's members, App developers and rom chefs. Like any other business, the " employees " see the " boss " making all this money from their knowledge and hard work, and say " hey , we can do this for ourselves and make all the money instead of them. "
A couple of chefs get together at HTCpedia and start to develop their own site, based on their own knowledge and their own cooked roms. They get some advertisers and some members and traffic. It turns things from, one chef deciding to list his work on his own site for convenience and control ( like sakajati did over at the Kaiser forum, or MobileMatt did with his great themes ) to competing businesses.
The chefs try to bolster their traffic by providing links in their rom threads here, ( something that has always been acceptable ) egos clash , accusations about stealing business, the fine line between personal links and advertising. Basically children with their toys try to carve out their own area's of the playground.
Money.....money......money...... and as with Apple vs HTC, who i going to be the big loser in this battle ? Does it matter to you where you download your roms ? If you donate to a chef here or over there, does it change your rom flashing experience ? Or could you care less about this petty squabbling and just wish everyone would just grow up.
As far as paying people to list roms on a certain site, that is a slippery slope that everyone walks. Chefs cook , manipulate, improve and port these roms, but the roms themselves are the intellectual property of M$ and HTC without question. This is the reason for the donation system and not the " pay per ". You can ask for a donation for the time and effort you put into cooking these roms, but you cannot sell what you do not own. And nobody " owns " these roms except the companies that created the rom bases.
Who is going to gain and who is going to lose from this " butting of heads ? " Who knows, but does anyone really want a public battle over the posting ( and ad revenues ) of intellectual property they do not even own.
Kick and scream too loud, and you might just get the attention of people that have been looking the other way for a long time. Money.....money.....money......I'm just sayin...........
dead right, as soon as the roms, or the distribution of the roms becomes a commodity, htc and ms have to take notice.
samsamuel said:
dead right, as soon as the roms, or the distribution of the roms becomes a commodity, htc and ms have to take notice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1.
I have been away from the site for a few months and this and another thread about the same topic have been the first things I have seen!!
This is all very bad news. For one thing, it looks like xda-developers is losing some of it's finest talent. Is this phenomenon limited to ROM chefs? What about developers who make applications (for example, Advanced Config)? I notice that the other site has that app up for download, has the developer of that app migrated exclusively to the other site?
As has already been mentioned, once people start making money off the cooked ROMs I am sure Microsoft will start to take note. Also, how many of the developers are using a licenesed copy of Visual Studio or whatever it is they use? And the SDKs required?
Will HTC start to take umberance to the fact that people are using the Manilla SDK and butchering their (already customised) ROMs?
Maybe much ado about nothing or maybe it will lead to problems for both xda-developers and the other site.
Syphon Filter said:
Maybe much ado about nothing or maybe it will lead to problems for both xda-developers and the other site.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, if they actually start charging for ROMs (one way or another) Microsoft and HTC will definitely crack down on this type of thing. I've read that they can make it almost impossible to install custom ROMs if they want to (not that it's that easy right now), not to mention taking various sites to court, Microsoft$ favorite past time..

Are devs getting greedy?

Just curious what everyone's opinion is on this.
When I got my first android phone in 2010, a Samsung Fascinate, it seemed to be a burgeoning scene with the developers doing dev'ing for the fun of it and getting rewarded by an appreciative end user.
Fast forward nine months and I am ready for 4g so I slap down my $600 for a charge and watch a molasses like and seemingly dormant dev scene.
There is excuse after excuse as to why the scene is quiet and then there is wind of an "in development" ICS ROM. This is put forth via twitter and then shows up on XDA not even by the developer mind you and everyone gets excited and is flooding said dev with donations on a ROM he labels "the most unsupported ROM ever" and proceeds to let it sit due to the same reason the phone has not had any real attention all along; no RIL code.
When said dev is called on about putting something out labelled "unsupported" and then has the gall to say donate to me(which the dev or mods remove from the thread) if you want the work finished; is this acceptable behaviour?
I am not an end user who is unappreciative and expecting of a dev's work.
I do play with some of the custom stuff for fun on occasion but always come back to stock.
You can keep the simple petty rhetoric that typically ensues to yourself. I am entitled to my $600 phone and that is what I use. Not anyone's work on the forums or IRC! If I do use anything I will test for problems and report back before jumping back to stock and pass along a gesture of appreciation.
Now that I have hopefully made you understand my intentions and absolve anyone of the typical schoolyard bashing that frequents these hallowed walls, is it acceptable for a dev to whip together a ROM that is useless and collect money on it from all of the hopeful and anticipating end users that will not realize an end product?
Especially now that manufacturers are pumping out new phones at an alarming rate that a new phone will be in the shadows every six months.
Thoughts?
Just allow electronic Darwinism to take its course! If someone is taking the piss, they'll soon die out, if people use common sense and don't encourage them
Most devs that I see, Or rather use ROMS from are quite active and very supportive and NEVER even spoke anything about donation. I was happy to donate for a few of them coz it is really worth it.
I think this opinion you speak of might have been due to your ill luck or some pretty bad devs you have encountered.
I'm not saying you are wrong but I'm saying that your prespective might be due to a unlucky or bad dev (one bad apple) incident.
As far as my phone the Desire Hd is concerned, the developers are still just as helpful and enthusiastic as ever.
There is no developer like a bad or good developer, its because of them 99% of people are using roms without donating, 1 % donates to developers
I know a lot of developer who work on projects for free, but even the developers out there like to drink a beer paid from their projects
-> Donations are welcome!
Well,a developer who makes something for XDA and then actually tries to sell it is a downright asshole.Pardon the word,but it's the most accurate description I can give.
This is a community of developers,for developers to share their work.Users are more like guests,who get to use everything for free and just help developers by pointing out flaws in their work.Users enjoy developers' work and developers make their work better constantly,because they want to.No one forced them or employed them here.But then again,it's only right that we should donate to them sometimes.They donate their free time and put large efforts for what's done here,so it's a fair "exchange".But that's it.Donating is optional,as it should be and as is right.The "developers" who try to sell their work here are in the wrong place.
Generally,the better the work,the more donations they will get,so actually instead of asking for money they could just make something better than what's already available and money will come.
We aren't fools who expect everyone to selflessly give us their work in this world,but for Christ's sake,at least pretend that you're selfless!
Anyway,this is in no way an attack or rant against developers,but rather to those self-called developers who exploit the community spirit for their gains.True developers,as most here are I hope,are more than just respected here.
tolis626 said:
Well,a developer who makes something for XDA and then actually tries to sell it is a downright asshole.Pardon the word,but it's the most accurate description I can give.
This is a community of developers,for developers to share their work.Users are more like guests,who get to use everything for free and just help developers by pointing out flaws in their work.Users enjoy developers' work and developers make their work better constantly,because they want to.No one forced them or employed them here.But then again,it's only right that we should donate to them sometimes.They donate their free time and put large efforts for what's done here,so it's a fair "exchange".But that's it.Donating is optional,as it should be and as is right.The "developers" who try to sell their work here are in the wrong place.
Generally,the better the work,the more donations they will get,so actually instead of asking for money they could just make something better than what's already available and money will come.
We aren't fools who expect everyone to selflessly give us their work in this world,but for Christ's sake,at least pretend that you're selfless!
Anyway,this is in no way an attack or rant against developers,but rather to those self-called developers who exploit the community spirit for their gains.True developers,as most here are I hope,are more than just respected here.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So developers on xda-developers are not allowed to sell software now? There's actually a forum dedicated to paid software, so you're wrong.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=993
Archer said:
So developers on xda-developers are not allowed to sell software now? There's actually a forum dedicated to paid software, so you're wrong.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=993
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Developers should be able to sell software they created, for example; applications, scripts, hell even mods that don't include any work from someone else. In my opinion this shouldn't include ROMs, why? Because with the possible exception of building completely from source, you are essentially selling modifications of someone else's software. Especially when you include proprietary drivers and software. Touchscreen drivers, camera drivers, audio drivers, radio drivers and the like in many cases are proprietary and licensed to be resold only by the maker of the device. Receiving donations for development is questionable at best, demanding donations for development is basically selling software you don't have rights to sell.
I think one of the reason I've previously seen mods block these sort of attempts is because it creates a legal issue for XDA itself. Plus you have people who donated but developers wanting more and the person who donated feel cheated.
Thankfully I haven't seen a lot of this in the Evo3D forums, I have seen a lot of RESPECT THE GPL immediately after DON'T EVEN LOOK AT MY CODE when half their code is kanged from someone else's hard work. Usually though, people start getting annoyed and those roms start to die off.
Or you have the case with Chad.Goodman, where he writes decent stuff on his own and people get annoyed by that and contact beats & qualcomm all while they release 'beats' mods on their own stuff. (which still doesn't make any sense to me)
Cabe24i said:
Developers should be able to sell software they created, for example; applications, scripts, hell even mods that don't include any work from someone else. In my opinion this shouldn't include ROMs
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I totally agree with that.
Archer said:
I totally agree with that.
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As does XDA, hence the rules at present
This is not a platform to make money from. For anyone who cares, I have made a total of £0.00 from XDA. I don't wish to make personal profit from here.
I spend large numbers of hours on the site, doing stuff behind the scenes. If I was to draw up a "bill" for the past year, it would be in the hundreds of thousands of pounds, based on the price I charge for my services.
But I wouldn't ever want to see myself as selling something here. That's not what this site is about! There's plenty of places to sell stuff. If you make your own app, fair enough. If you modify something belonging to someone else, then nope
bwheelies said:
Just curious what everyone's opinion is on this.
When I got my first android phone in 2010, a Samsung Fascinate, it seemed to be a burgeoning scene with the developers doing dev'ing for the fun of it and getting rewarded by an appreciative end user.
Fast forward nine months and I am ready for 4g so I slap down my $600 for a charge and watch a molasses like and seemingly dormant dev scene.
There is excuse after excuse as to why the scene is quiet and then there is wind of an "in development" ICS ROM. This is put forth via twitter and then shows up on XDA not even by the developer mind you and everyone gets excited and is flooding said dev with donations on a ROM he labels "the most unsupported ROM ever" and proceeds to let it sit due to the same reason the phone has not had any real attention all along; no RIL code.
When said dev is called on about putting something out labelled "unsupported" and then has the gall to say donate to me(which the dev or mods remove from the thread) if you want the work finished; is this acceptable behaviour?
I am not an end user who is unappreciative and expecting of a dev's work.
I do play with some of the custom stuff for fun on occasion but always come back to stock.
You can keep the simple petty rhetoric that typically ensues to yourself. I am entitled to my $600 phone and that is what I use. Not anyone's work on the forums or IRC! If I do use anything I will test for problems and report back before jumping back to stock and pass along a gesture of appreciation.
Now that I have hopefully made you understand my intentions and absolve anyone of the typical schoolyard bashing that frequents these hallowed walls, is it acceptable for a dev to whip together a ROM that is useless and collect money on it from all of the hopeful and anticipating end users that will not realize an end product?
Especially now that manufacturers are pumping out new phones at an alarming rate that a new phone will be in the shadows every six months.
Thoughts?
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My thoughts? If your main concern was dev scene, why would you get a locked down motorola?
Ok, I have been trolling here for sometime and have seen some devs who ask for donations. However, the vast majority just contribute their time and hard work for the betterment of the platform and the community as a whole.
As for slow development, I think a lot of that has to do with the phone. I have the SGS 2 and there is active development for that with a lot of great roms. My wife has the 4g Slide and the development is slightly slower. It all comes down to the popularity of the phone.
If devs make a product good enough for people to pay for then good for them. On the other hand, if they ask for donations but their software is crap then no one will buy it.
It's a free market, let them try.
It is alot of work and it requires a special skill set to do what devs do, so I can appreciate them asking for a couple bucks for their trouble.
I buy beers/coffee when i see two things..
#1 a good working Rom/ Root / hack /tweak that has a history of upgrades/work/tweaks from the chef.
# 2 the chef is active in the thread, helping others with questions/ issues etc etc..
Archer said:
So developers on xda-developers are not allowed to sell software now? There's actually a forum dedicated to paid software, so you're wrong.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=993
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with Cabe24i.See below.
Cabe24i said:
Developers should be able to sell software they created, for example; applications, scripts, hell even mods that don't include any work from someone else. In my opinion this shouldn't include ROMs, why? Because with the possible exception of building completely from source, you are essentially selling modifications of someone else's software. Especially when you include proprietary drivers and software. Touchscreen drivers, camera drivers, audio drivers, radio drivers and the like in many cases are proprietary and licensed to be resold only by the maker of the device. Receiving donations for development is questionable at best, demanding donations for development is basically selling software you don't have rights to sell.
I think one of the reason I've previously seen mods block these sort of attempts is because it creates a legal issue for XDA itself. Plus you have people who donated but developers wanting more and the person who donated feel cheated.
Thankfully I haven't seen a lot of this in the Evo3D forums, I have seen a lot of RESPECT THE GPL immediately after DON'T EVEN LOOK AT MY CODE when half their code is kanged from someone else's hard work. Usually though, people start getting annoyed and those roms start to die off.
Or you have the case with Chad.Goodman, where he writes decent stuff on his own and people get annoyed by that and contact beats & qualcomm all while they release 'beats' mods on their own stuff. (which still doesn't make any sense to me)
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The point isn't whether they are allowed to accept money for their work.They surely should put their creations on sale.And exactly here is where I agree with you.ROMs and kernels aren't their work.As good as someone's modifications can be,it's not new code written by them entirely(except for some patches,etc).While their work is and should be rewarded,it should in no way become mandatory that we pay to use it.It should be optional as it is.It's fair for everyone that way.Those who deserve it will get paid,end of story.
Selling apps on XDA is another story,but it's also completely right to do so,as they could just sell those on the market and be done with it.But it's about applications written anew,not modified ones.Did anyone sell a modified copy of a game?I don't think so.
We should show our appreciation to developers,but they should also show us some respect(I am more than content with what's going on here on the dev side,it's XDA's ungrateful noobs that I'm mad with like most of you here).Fraud is a crime after all.
I can see both sides of that argument actually. Whilst I do think it's unreasonable for a developer to request money for merely tweaking a ROM, it's the same as a painter painting your living room. He's not made you a brand new living room from scratch. He's just painted your existing one. That's similar to a ROM tweaker.
That said, I do understand and abide by the rules - I'm not arguing them. Just playing devil's advocate.
lowandbehold said:
My thoughts? If your main concern was dev scene, why would you get a locked down motorola?
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Not sure if you are asking me. I have a Droid Charge.
F2504x4 said:
I buy beers/coffee when i see two things..
#1 a good working Rom/ Root / hack /tweak that has a history of upgrades/work/tweaks from the chef.
# 2 the chef is active in the thread, helping others with questions/ issues etc etc..
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Click to collapse
This is one of the best posts I have seen on xda. Judging by this, the developer who posted a no effort ROM in a stagnant phone development scene who says donate and does nothing with the ROM is nothing but a modern day P.T. Barnum.
First of all, you don't have to donate
But I agree with OP it's not done to demand donations to finish work.
If your work is good and you support it well, possibilities for a donation are much higher.
But it is no guarantee for donations.
But isn't respect from others the best payment for your work? That's the reason I do my share for the community

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