Database Info

attn devs - give me your coffee links

Hey now.
So back in November I whipped up a simple page, dropped it on my server and bought a domain for it, blownfuze.org, and though it's still a single page with no pictures or advertisements, it's not so simple anymore. It's part guide part cab repository part entertainment and it's getting about five hundred unique IPs a day and climbing. But I wouldn't be getting those hits if it weren't for you developers.
Though I am not interested in donations or any other way to make money off of this site or just get enough scratch to have it pay for itself, and that is something I am confident that will remain the same even if I get very potentially lucrative traffic, I am interested, especially since I removed the password and said hello to google, in making absolutely certain that I am 1) not hosting warez, 2) not giving out free or shareware software against the authors' public instructions (unless I have permission), 3) that I cite at least the underdog developers' names and give thread links (IE touchresponse and lumos but not Google Maps) and now, and this is a new one, 4) that I give out "coffee" links to those developers who want them.
So I invite you to examine my site and look for something you or someone you know or respect designed or just passively peruse the thing and if you see anything that is in breach of 1, 2 and sort of 3 (3 is a bit of a gray area) and advise me either through pm or through the contact form at the bottom of the site if anything isn't kosher so that I can correct it.
For 4, the coffee links I want to put up, post them in this thread. Might as well make those public, right? You might get a donation from someone on this thread, you might get other guys like me out there to do what I'm trying to do. I could do that myself but it would take me many many hours, time I don't have. I should have done it from the start but it didn't occur to me and I didn't think I'd get enough traffic for it to matter.
Lastly if any of you developers see your work on my site, and if you made something badass it is either on my site or should be, and you're curious how many times it's been downloaded versus the rest of the traffic stats, I'll hook you up with that information. One of the perks of hosting this on my own machine.
I am grateful for your work, I truly am. All of you, even those of you whose applications I haven't put up [yet]. I've been having some fun with this thing; couldn't have done it without you.
Yours, Doug

Cyanogens Current State!

The current state..
The last few days have been difficult. What has become clear now is that the Android Open Source Project is a framework. It’s licensed in such a way so that anyone can take it, modify it to their needs, and redistribute it as they please. Android belongs to everyone. This also means that big companies likes Google, HTC, Motorola, and whomever else can add their own pieces to it and share these pieces under whatever license they choose.
I’ve made lots of changes myself to the AOSP code, and added in code from lots of others. Building a better Droid, right?
The issue that’s raised is the redistribution of Google’s proprietary applications like Maps, GTalk, Market, and YouTube. These are not part of the open source project and are only part of “Google Experience” devices. They are Google’s intellectual property and I intend to respect that. I will no longer be distributing these applications as part of CyanogenMod. But it’s OK. None of the go-fast stuff that I do involves any of this stuff anyway. We need these applications though, because we all rely so heavily on their functionality. I’d love for Google to hand over the keys to the kingdom and let us all have it for free, but that’s not going to happen. And who can blame them?
There are lots of things we can do as end-users and modders, though, without violating anyones rights. Most importantly, we are entitled to back up our software. Since I don’t work with any of these closed source applications directly, what I intend to do is simply ship the next version of CyanogenMod as a “bare bones” ROM. You’ll be able to make calls, MMS, take photos, etc. In order to get our beloved Google sync and applications back, you’ll need to make a backup first. I’m working on an application that will do this for you.
The idea is that you’ll be able to Google-ify your CyanogenMod installation, with the applications and files that shipped on YOUR device already. Or, you can just use the basic ROM if you want. It will be perfectly functional if you don’t use the Google parts. I will include an alternative app store (SlideMe, or AndAppStore, not decided yet) with the basic ROM so that you can get your applications in case you don’t have a Google Experience device.
I’ll have more updates soon as I get all the code hammered out.
Thanks for all the support thru all of this.
http://www.cyanogenmod.com/home/the-current-state

The stuff Dreams are really made of....
I knew! Where there's a will there's a way! You can't keep a real boss down! Cyanogen I look forward to playing with this new stuff in the works. Rage on brother rage on, I for one honestly didn't want to leave android really, but I will continue to research back-up plans in case Google has anymore monkey wrenches laying around itching to be thrown...Good luck Cyanogen. We all owe you donations...real recognizes real! Dueces

This is great news Thank you!

fkn awesome!

this exactly what i thought and hoped would happen. everyone got in a tizy over nothing. so we have to back up before we flash which is just another way that the basic moder like myself can better understand the phone.

Does this means we need to wipe every time we flash a new rom?

tomvleeuwen said:
What do you guys think of sharing the 4.0.4 version over p2p networks?
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Everyone already has it.

Great
This sounds good, there is more than one way to skin a cat. I think they got upset when the new market app was released before they could get it out. They had to do something, but I think it will die down.

don't go there
tomvleeuwen said:
What do you guys think of sharing the 4.0.4 version over p2p networks?
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Cyanogen is doing his best to respect Google's legitimate copyrights, so suggesting that XDA get involved in distributing proprietary applications without a license only serves to undermine what is going on here. Mods: please remove.

ei8htohms said:
Cyanogen is doing his best to respect Google's legitimate copyrights, so suggesting that XDA get involved in distributing proprietary applications without a license only serves to undermine what is going on here. Mods: please remove.
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I posted this in another thread but it would seem to be pertinent to here too:
Loccy said:
Let's face it, strictly speaking, all ROMs are warez.
Personally I'm surprised that it wasn't the Hero devs who got into trouble first, but this was all just a matter of time. I never understood the bizarre fixation that cropped up recently with QuickOffice and everyone going "omfg it's warez can't include it in romz!!!111!1one!". Why QuickOffice and not, say HTC_IME, or Work Email, or any number of other binary blobs that ROM cookers include as a matter of course now that have been "acquired" from non-orthodox source?
The Hero ROMs, let's face it, give people a means of "turning" their old phone into the latest and greatest HTC device. Each stable Hero ROM on the Dream/Magic potentially means a Hero device purchase lost. HTC are being far more hit in the pocket than Google are here - which is why I'm surprised the cease and desist wasn't directed at them.
I do think, however, this site and the people who run it are going to have to pick a side at some point. Either the position is "this is a site for developers, and as long as copyrighted material is not hosted on here in a fashion that would make us liable*, we will not suppress the work of individual devs". Or, their position is "no copyrighted material in any form, be that in the form to links to offsite storage repositories (eg. Rapidshare), or any other method". XDA doesn't *need* to do this in order to ensure the site does not get into legal hot water. I suspect they *might* do it, however, as some kind of misguided moral stance (and in my view the QuickOffice preoccupation was an example of just this). But in my opinion if they choose the latter then XDA is over as a site for realistic Android ROM development (and indeed, Windows Mobile and other OSes, if they apply the same standards across all their boards).
* elaborating on what I mean here - if people attach zips directly to their posts, and those zips are stored on the XDA servers, then XDA as a site is potentially liable. Alternatively, if instead people give a URL or a search string whereby people can find a ROM, but those files are not physically stored on XDA, they are not - any more than Google is liable for the many copyrighted MP3s you can find links to via their search engine.
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The bottom line is that if ROM devs decided they were going to respect ALL legitimate copyrights, there'd be no Hero ROMs, no Windows Mobile ROMs, in fact no ROMs apart from barebones AOSP ROMs which do less than a stock ROM.
ei8htohms said:
Mods: please remove.
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And I'm sorry, that's just ignorant. Just because you don't agree with a sentiment doesn't entitle you to demand the mods remove it. If the mods want to remove it they will (and in my view that would indicate which "side" they were choosing.) Personally, I don't know what it's like elsewhere around the world, but here in the UK one is at least allowed to speak freely, if not necessarily act freely.

kudos to cyanogen!

Loccy said:
If the mods want to remove it they will (and in my view that would indicate which "side" they were choosing.) Personally, I don't know what it's like elsewhere around the world, but here in the UK one is at least allowed to speak freely, if not necessarily act freely.
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I think common U.S. practice is: if you speak freely, you get called names by people until you either cry or shoot them, thus proving to everyone that your original point is invalid.
But XDA has always had a policy of "if it doesn't get the site admins in trouble, it's probably ok." If memory serves, the site is in the Netherlands, and is subject to EU laws as to copyright, etc. I think that's important to remember when it comes to such things, since the EU laws as to intellectual property are in flux and not quite the same as those in the US or UK.
But the official policy is available in one of the toplevel forums here:
Flar said:
Hi Everybody,
We noticed that there is some confusion when it comes to posting sensitive material on xda-developers.com and mostly about what can and can't be posted.
We would like to clarify our point of view through this post.
Since the start of xda-developers this has always been a site that once in while has some sensitive material online, through the years this site has grown so big it's no longer possible to check every file on our servers or every post on the board, we also feel it wouldn't benefit the community if we did.
However with increased popularity comes an increased amount of legal complaints when sensitive material is found on our servers. Which is the reason why we have been more careful lately. Recently some sensitive material has shown up on the servers and we received legal complaints from companies who have the copyrights for this material, although we all feel this is very interesting and valuable material we cannot risk the future of xda-developers by ignoring the legal requests we receive, therefore this material has been taken offline.
We understand that maintaining the balance between legal and illegal is sometimes confusing and/or difficult but that is unfortunately how it works.
When it comes to posting sensitive material there are a couple suggestions we can make:
- if possible do not post the files on the xda-developers servers.
- use your common sense (if you feel something might not be legal it probably isn't).
- always keep in mind when posting software of any kind, that we will take it offline if there is a legal complaint from the copyright owner.
Warez is in no way accepted and will be removed upon discovery.
I hope this post will serve as a clear and valuable guideline.
Greetz,
Flar
Site admin.
P.s. When you have any questions you can always contact me or one of the moderators.
Last edited by Flar; 17th January 2007 at 10:14 AM..
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Everyone has an opinion, and they have, or should have, the right to decide for themselves what is correct. I am on the side of Cyanogen. I do not think what he did caused any harm or loss of revenue to anyone. We can not always have our way though, and I think that's the case here. I don't know him, but I do think he's smart enough to keep doing what he is EXTREMELY good at without putting himself in a bad position. It's just a stumbling block to get past. We are puting a lot of effort into pointing fingers and throwing around ideas, but if we placed this much energy into finding a fuctional solution, we might get past it a whole buch faster. A good army fights the war, not the battle.

Warez is in no way accepted and will be removed upon discovery.
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But every single ROM on here is warez to some extent or another! Certainly (just for example, I'm not picking on anyone specific here) Drizzy doesn't own the IPR for the contents of his Hero ROMs. I'm pretty sure the WinMo ROMs aren't being posted by Microsoft. If the policy is that "warez is in no way accepted and will be removed upon discovery", they're not doing much of a job, are they - every other post is "warez", if you take a strict interpretation.
I suppose I'm saying that "warez is in the eye of the beholder". I fully endorse the attitude "if it doesn't get the site admins in trouble, it's probably ok" - but I can't help thinking that relaxed attitude has been firmed up of late for whatever reason, given the QuickOffice oddness. I'm pretty sure no-one who own the IPR for QuickOffice was ever in touch (although do correct me if I'm wrong), so why the odd fixation recently?
Bottom line: stick to the attitudes and approaches that have made this site what it is, please don't start getting over zealous when there's no reason to.

Honestly did this need another topic though? I mean I'm all for good news like this, but add it on to one of the many topics that are out there. -.- (ready for flaming)

easy now
Loccy said:
The bottom line is that if ROM devs decided they were going to respect ALL legitimate copyrights, there'd be no Hero ROMs, no Windows Mobile ROMs, in fact no ROMs apart from barebones AOSP ROMs which do less than a stock ROM.
And I'm sorry, that's just ignorant. Just because you don't agree with a sentiment doesn't entitle you to demand the mods remove it. If the mods want to remove it they will (and in my view that would indicate which "side" they were choosing.) Personally, I don't know what it's like elsewhere around the world, but here in the UK one is at least allowed to speak freely, if not necessarily act freely.
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First off, I'm not demanding anything. I politely requested that the mods remove a suggestion that clearly seeks to circumvent the policies of XDA: We won't distribute warez. The poster knew the suggestion was specifically aimed at getting around the XDA policy, otherwise there would be no reason for a P2P distribution alternative in the first place.
A key component of intellectual property and copyright laws (at least in the US) is that the holder of the copyright must act to defend the copyright to some reasonable extent (no, I'm not a lawyer and I don't know what this entails exactly). Now that Google has acted to defend their copyrights in these instances, the line is clear. Google apps are paid apps (licensed to the handset manufacturers or service providers) and are not free to distribute without a license. Consequently, there shouldn't be much further debate about the fact that these are warez and are not to be distributed on or through XDA.
I'm not trying to attack anyone (the original poster, ROM devs or certainly yourself), but I am interested in XDA maintaining the high ground here and continuing to operate in a respectful and respectable manner.

Perhaps we should stay on topic?

te5ter said:
Perhaps we should stay on topic?
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Fair point. Maybe we should take the "warez is in the eye of the beholder" debate to this thread. I do actually think it's a fascinating debate, personally. Oh, incidentally, just re-read my earlier post, and want to apologise to ei8htohms - I didn't mean to come off quite so brusque.

First, I'm very happy that there seems to be a workaround that Cyanogen feels comfortable in using.
However, I see it as a band-aid to a much larger problem. Yes, it addresses those few apps that Google specifically mentioned. But there seems to be potential future conflicts that could adversely affect this whole Android community.
What about all the other apps in there? The Camera/Camcorder/Gallery app for instance. The UI? Other HTC bits? And the biggie, the Search component? Does Google also lay claim to unified search, the widget, the particular framework involved in that?
I don't know the answer to that, I'm just asking. So much is left unanswered, I just feel this is only the beginning. For now, I guess it may be enough. But it still leaves so much up in the air.
Now the 2nd major issue: Cyanogen should be commended for taking the high road here and doing his best to adhere to Google's current request. I think we all know that there was never ever any question that no one saw this coming. It came from left field and shocked everyone beyond belief.
But will other rom devs be as diligent as Cyanogen? Will theme developers adhere to this? And with all of these added steps required to get a functioning "Google Experience", consider the flood of newbie questions this forum is about to endure. We all thought "brick" and "hardspl" questions were tedious at best ... prepare yourselves for the onslought of mass confusion. That fun has just begun.
I still believe the burden lies with Google to make this right. I'm not saying they should make their apps open source by any means. I'm just saying that there must be a way for Google to allow the inclusion of their apps (perhaps a different license or maybe some encryption trick that protects the apps from modification <I don't know, I'm not that smart>). Google needs to step up to the plate in this. They also need to save-face and stifle this PR nightmare. Android does not need this, Google does not need this, HTC does not need this, carriers do not need this, Cyanogen does not need this, and users do not need this. Growth of the entire Android project is simply too important. I see this as speed bump. They just made the bump too big and it needs to be shaved down some so everyone can get it over without damaging anything else.

this is great news indeed. can't wait to see what is to come!

Open Android Alliance has moved

OAA has been having some problems this week.
Right now I realize that I have been deleted from my own site, which I spent hours working on and getting to look nice.
Basically, the day I went to register the domain, a user on XDA by the name of 'akapoor' hijacked the domain right before I got it (due to my webhost delaying registration). I messaged him about it and was quite mad, but we worked together to get a site up.
He provided the domain and hosting, which I was kind of weary of but we went with it:
akapoor said:
evilpig said:
akapoor said:
evilpig said:
Hey man, I was just reading the thread and I'm curious if you somehow snatched the domain before my webhost did.
If so just let me know I can give you the nameservers to connect it to the site. http://android.teamriot.net
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Yeah man, not sure how it happened. Because when I saw your post on XDA saying that you registered it, i had JUST hit the submit button on Godaddy for the domain.
It was taking a while (4-5 minutes) but then it finally came through.
That's very weird though, I'll admit
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Hmm well would you be able to point it to my nameservers once the domain finalizes? That would work great
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I think I'll stick with my current host for now - but if anything goes awry, you'll be the first in my mind to come to.
Btw : What's your Gtalk. I'll hit you up and we can collaborate on this.
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He gave me admin access and I went straight to work. Now go to log in today and see my account is gone, all my posts are deleted. And threads thanking ME have been renamed to akapoor.
Also the news on the front page is changed to his name and I have been locked out of my own site.
This makes me angry, and would like help from you guys to do something about it. Even though the project is slow right now, the fact that someone would do this is evil.
I contacted him and he said it was someone else blah blah blah. Yea a hacker will hack into the site and delete my accounts, and rename everything to you. He got me admin panel back, so I went and backed it all up and deleted it from his servers. And then I moved it back to mine. I don't trust this asshole.
Also I need someone to help manage the project, the person who originally started the project just disappeared, and I am just a webdev.
The project is up @ http://android.teamriot.net (I gotta fix the look of the forums later on in the week.)

that is some shady stuff right now. what's up with xda and all this shaddy stuff going on lately. anyways, glad u got it back up and running.

I dealt with this in the past, the forum I founded a few years back had a very slow start, it was just my playground really to post up project i've been working on while also be able to discuss things with users, didnt want a blog.anyway, a started a project that was unique in my field, only other person doing it was charging insane pricing to a teen crowd, I spent 6 months reversing a certain phones firmware and writing code for said project and after it was done was contacted by someone to team up....long story short things were going great until one morning I was locked out of my own system(I paid hosting, owned/ceated domain, did all the behind the scene projects and other guy handled the public forums). we got into vicious hacking wars lasting a few days while arguing with the hosting company back and forth over who actually owned the site. host locked both out until I proved I owned everything as well as paid the bills, all proven with receipts, emails, etc. I did eventually get back control and still have the site but its been a ghostown ever since. I only keep it up for the same purposes it was for originally....my playground. guy was trying to turn this into a profitable business but thats not why I do the things I do online., I do this stuff because I enjoy it.
If this is whats going on with you and this guy pulled a similar stunt I would walk away and never return. if you owned the domain, as well as legal rights to the database fight it, otherwise theirs going to be 2 sites with the same usersbase only 1 will be larger in the end...one will die. I know the situatation as to why It was started and honestly dont see a real need for it. it would be nice to replace all the closed portions but continuing the project would only come back later when HTC decides to crack down on drivers which unless you guys have the datasheets and skill/time to rewrite will take longer than its worth, which will need to be redone as new models come out. just gottta decide for yourself if its worth continuing with it.
Good luck, ****ty situation I know.

BinaryDroid said:
I dealt with this in the past, the forum I founded a few years back had a very slow start, it was just my playground really to post up project i've been working on while also be able to discuss things with users, didnt want a blog.anyway, a started a project that was unique in my field, only other person doing it was charging insane pricing to a teen crowd, I spent 6 months reversing a certain phones firmware and writing code for said project and after it was done was contacted by someone to team up....long story short things were going great until one morning I was locked out of my own system(I paid hosting, owned/ceated domain, did all the behind the scene projects and other guy handled the public forums). we got into vicious hacking wars lasting a few days while arguing with the hosting company back and forth over who actually owned the site. host locked both out until I proved I owned everything as well as paid the bills, all proven with receipts, emails, etc. I did eventually get back control and still have the site but its been a ghostown ever since. I only keep it up for the same purposes it was for originally....my playground. guy was trying to turn this into a profitable business but thats not why I do the things I do online., I do this stuff because I enjoy it.
If this is whats going on with you and this guy pulled a similar stunt I would walk away and never return. if you owned the domain, as well as legal rights to the database fight it, otherwise theirs going to be 2 sites with the same usersbase only 1 will be larger in the end...one will die. I know the situatation as to why It was started and honestly dont see a real need for it. it would be nice to replace all the closed portions but continuing the project would only come back later when HTC decides to crack down on drivers which unless you guys have the datasheets and skill/time to rewrite will take longer than its worth, which will need to be redone as new models come out. just gottta decide for yourself if its worth continuing with it.
Good luck, ****ty situation I know.
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Well lucky for me, I talked to him and he played dumb saying it wasn't him. I convinced him to give me passwords to the admin panel and got all my files and databases and deleted it from his server. So he has nothing but an empty domain now. He also logged into another admin account when I was moving it to my site and started deleting forums and users, I had to add the database to my site a 2nd time and instantly delete him and ban him.
I moved it back to my hosting (which I really wanted in the first place) and I will get a new domain in the near future.

Domain Name
evilpig said:
Well lucky for me, I talked to him and he played dumb saying it wasn't him. I convinced him to give me passwords to the admin panel and got all my files and databases and deleted it from his server. So he has nothing but an empty domain now. He also logged into another admin account when I was moving it to my site and started deleting forums and users, I had to add the database to my site a 2nd time and instantly delete him and ban him.
I moved it back to my hosting (which I really wanted in the first place) and I will get a new domain in the near future.
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is he willing to transfer the domain name? you can always do that if you wanted to maintain the same name .. he just has to give authorization in the registrar for you to take the domain .. just a thought

LucidREM said:
is he willing to transfer the domain name? you can always do that if you wanted to maintain the same name .. he just has to give authorization in the registrar for you to take the domain .. just a thought
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I have the .org version, and I will transfer it to evilpig. Or I will point it to his DNS servers if he wants. I got it in the beginning before the .com site went up. So I just have it sitting there. I don't give a damn about the $10, so if the community will use it, I'll donate it.
evilpig: PM or email me and let me know if you want to use it. You can run the hosting so this can't happen again. I'll email you the transfer code or just change the DNS, whatever you want.

Evilpig (i love your avatar by the way) have you brought this to the attention of a forum Moderator? They should definitely be aware of anyone using this site to take advantage of other people. And what you've explained was a blatant disregard for any of us...
I believe what he did was intentional, from the beginning when you announced your intentions. This is unacceptable...
I hope something is done about it....

ttabbal said:
I have the .org version, and I will transfer it to evilpig. Or I will point it to his DNS servers if he wants. I got it in the beginning before the .com site went up. So I just have it sitting there. I don't give a damn about the $10, so if the community will use it, I'll donate it.
evilpig: PM or email me and let me know if you want to use it. You can run the hosting so this can't happen again. I'll email you the transfer code or just change the DNS, whatever you want.
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Thanks man. The .org should be up in 24-48 hours.
sykokenndogg said:
Evilpig (i love your avatar by the way) have you brought this to the attention of a forum Moderator? They should definitely be aware of anyone using this site to take advantage of other people. And what you've explained was a blatant disregard for any of us...
I believe what he did was intentional, from the beginning when you announced your intentions. This is unacceptable...
I hope something is done about it....
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I hope a mod will catch this thread and do something about it.

Ok so it's been brought to my attention that Evilpig's, accusations are purely FRAUD.
I agree that I had registered the domain - but I did not STEAL it. Since your host had not registered the domain in time, I had taken the opportunity to do so.
I'd like to clarify that Evilpig's was the one attempting to take over the hosting and domain the entire time. (see convo's below)
As per the logs, it turns out that Jared's IP was registered as last logged-in.
The biggest complication with the accusations that Jared is imposing is my own benefit of providing him with the administrator access after the situation.
As anyone can verify, I had not been an "active" member on the site. (in the sense that I would not log in everday.) I would visit the site on a weekly basis.
There would be no need for me to get into the site, change everything as Jared claims, and make the site my own.
You've been trying to persuade me for the hosting since day one.
9:08PM 9:08 PM
would you mind if I hosted the site and set up the domain to point to it?
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Oh and Jared, I'd like to remind you that you are failing to stay upto your word.
Jared: with this project
any money is going to you for hosting and the rest could be saved up for who knows what
3:25PM Jared: woot already $1.13 on ads
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I haven't received any compensation, as you stated would occur.
I've tried to contact you, but I get no response.
All in all : These actions were clearly done by him as his motive was to migrate the site/domain to his own hosting so that he could take total control.
His accusations toward me are considered defamation, and I hope this gives you a sense of the actual character of Evilpig's.
I do legally own the domain and what he has done is effectively theft of the site which is my intellectual property.

Actually, as he is the web dev and I see no contract, he owns anything he personally works on regardless of what domain he uploaded it to.
Period.
So... you own no intellectual rights to anything. You own no copyright, nor do you own any form or fashion anything carried on under the domain name.
You simply own a .com. Nothing more. Nothing less.
I don't want to get in the middle of this, but I work in the industry as a developer for web applications, graphic design, and minor creative development of projects. Without a contract, copyright, or trademark (in the case of logos or other property) all you can do is thank him for the work he did and move on.
This is why if you register a domain and collaborate with someone, you always have it in writing. Otherwise, when you try to screw someone, they can just walk away and take everything.
All you can do is feel bad that you didn't think it through first.

Well, I think Jared's role needs to be clarified then.
As far as web development goes, I had installed and configured all of the applications used, i.e. WordPress and phpBB.
All Jared had done was have someone create a banner and add it to the site, which I really don't consider to be "web development."

It would still be his content if he added to your wordpress in the form of posts and uploads. Regardless of his role. Again meaning that without a contract or some other legally binding action, you can't accuse him of stealing intellectual property.
I'm not picking sides, I just want to clarify to everyone before people start throwing mud in each others faces.
Last thing this community needs is people being shady and going behind each others backs. Open source is not about who did what and who gets the most fame and notification. It's about working on something for a greater cause as a community. Those who deserve it will get their recognition without stealing, threatening, or taking anything.

{Make Sticky} We need Source

Dear Forums,
As we all know, the key to having a truly customizable device is having the source for their builds, and as we also all know, Viewsonic has not released the source code for their Gtablet.
If we all find the correct email to contact, much like all other companies they will be pressured into releasing the source to the community.
Let's get this done.
LETTER
Dear Viewsonic,
We are aware your company has directed many customers calling for technical support to the gTablet sub-forum of xda-developers
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=841
Please consider listening to what the community as asking for.
By using the Linux Kernel in your device you are required by the Free Software Foundation's General Public License (GPLv2) to release the source code for the kernel. If there is any proprietary software involved in said code, then you have the right to protect your investment, and not include that with the source release.
We are entitled to the source to change our tablets in the way we see fit with the full understanding that when we modify our tablets software we remove ourselves from any sort of warranty you may offer.
Furthermore, we would like an open dialog between with your developers concerning the software which is shipped with the gTablet. It well known among the community that the return rate for the gTablet is unnaturally high. The version of Android developed by Tap n Tap does not provide a positive user experience for the average user. By this time you should be aware of such feedback coming from the main distributors of the gTablet, Sears and Staples. This situation will only continue to get worse as detailed professional reviews of this product begin to circulate around the Internet. One such review I am referring to will be posted to Anandtech.com in the next few days.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4054/first-look-viewsonic-gtablet-and-tegra-2-performance-preview
Barnes and Noble has released a Software Development Kit as well as source code to enable the community to make the Nook Color the best product it can be.
http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/press_releases/2010_oct_26_nook_developer.html
Please follow their example. By working together we can make the gTablet a real competitor in the burgeoning tablet marketplace.
Sincerely,
The gTablet Community from xda-developers.com

I'll second that. Not sure what we can do, but they should be reminded.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Viewsonic's main website has a support tab that you can send inquiries. Do you think it would get to the right place if we used that?

The email avenue did not work for me
xmr405o said:
Viewsonic's main website has a support tab that you can send inquiries. Do you think it would get to the right place if we used that?
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I tried using the email tech support method for the web site; got this response back:
Dear Mr. Walker,
Thank you for contacting ViewSonic Technical Support.
I apologize but as much as I wanted to assist you with it, the product that you are inquiring about is handled by a different technical department.
You may contact them by calling 1-866-501-6405 between 8am-5pm PST, Monday through Friday.
If you have other technical concerns, feel free to contact us again. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to assist you.
Sincerely,
Josef
ViewSonic Technical Support
(800) 688-6688 (USA)
(866) 463-4775(Canada)

[email protected] said:
I tried using the email tech support method for the web site; got this response back:
Dear Mr. Walker,
Thank you for contacting ViewSonic Technical Support.
I apologize but as much as I wanted to assist you with it, the product that you are inquiring about is handled by a different technical department.
You may contact them by calling 1-866-501-6405 between 8am-5pm PST, Monday through Friday.
If you have other technical concerns, feel free to contact us again. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to assist you.
Sincerely,
Josef
ViewSonic Technical Support
(800) 688-6688 (USA)
(866) 463-4775(Canada)
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Go for it. it has to drop sooner or later. the more pressure from the community, the better. I'll drop them a line as well.

I get the feeling that instead of taking the time to lock the device down like is done with phones and other android devices, they decided they will just not release the code and hope to stall out mods that way.

TheMongol said:
I get the feeling that instead of taking the time to lock the device down like is done with phones and other android devices, they decided they will just not release the code and hope to stall out mods that way.
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That'd work, except for the fact that it's against the GPL, and that'd be breaking the law. They have to make it available, it's just a matter of pressuring them into doing so sooner than later.

just sent off my second email to viewsonic regarding the gtablet (along with a note telling them to fwd the email accordingly). i will let you guys know if i get a response.

Just called in. They are taking people's contact info that say they are android developers (they started doing that today) and they said they are not doing it to track us or anything like that, but to contact us...like say...when the source is released.
Everybody, call. Emailing isn't going to get you anywhere.
I informed them that they will legally have to release source under GPL, he said he will be passing that up to the developers. It sounds like we may be getting somewhere, but we need to call...the more the merrier. It sounds like they have a small call center so its not how many times you call, but how many different people call at this point.

myndwire said:
That'd work, except for the fact that it's against the GPL, and that'd be breaking the law. They have to make it available, it's just a matter of pressuring them into doing so sooner than later.
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Oh yes indeed. But that doesn't mean people won't try to get away with things from time to time. Perhaps they are not even aware. I know I am going to call and ask soon even though I just started developing on android.

I called them today, as well - good bunch of people over there and a pleasure to talk with them.
I'm serious - in a world of reps in third world countries speaking broken english and working off a script, the VS reps are a breath of fresh air and Viewsonic should be commended for that alone. I put in my usual request to please release the source and I was told that they will pass it onto the development team.
I don't expect anything to come from it, but they do know who I am and who we are, so I'm hoping that VS management throws us a bone once they realize what a mistake it was adding that TnT layer.

roebeet said:
I called them today, as well - good bunch of people over there and a pleasure to talk with them.
I'm serious - in a world of reps in third world countries speaking broken english and working off a script, the VS reps are a breath of fresh air and Viewsonic should be commented for that alone. I put in my usual request to please release the source and I was told that they will pass it onto the development team.
I don't expect anything to come from it, but they do know who I am and who we are, so I'm hoping that VS management throws us a bone once they realize what a mistake it was adding that TnT layer.
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I agree. The guy I talked to was pretty cool. He also said that the developers are being very persistent about keeping TnT in place. Very nice to talk to someone that can actually speak English

scsione889 said:
I agree. The guy I talked to was pretty cool, and even he came out and said xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. He also said that the developers are being very persistent about keeping TnT in place. Very nice to talk to someone that can actually speak English
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Watch out, they read these forums, don't want to get the poor guy fired!

jacindc said:
Watch out, they read these forums, don't want to get the poor guy fired!
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x2 on that! Rule of thumb - if you write something here about a conversation with CS, assume that their management might read it and how that would look.

Just spoke with Mike @ Viewsonic gtablet support. First, they are very nice! Second, Mike said that they are working on a release, but no date yet. Finally, Mike said that they would be posting it to viewsonic.com/gtablet website (and to also check xda-developers.com for other updates).
They also took my e-mail address - hopefully to send out a blast when they are finally able to post it.
BTW, Mike - thanks!
I also have to echo others who have posted here - Thank you, Viewsonic, for having people who can speak English!!

I figured I would do my part as well. I called & spoke to a tech who said they were not releasing it & have no plans to do so. I said its linux based & the GPL says they have to release the source by law. He said they dont support changing the operating system. I said Android is linux based & falls under the GPL. He then transfered me to a senior tech who said:
Tap n tap is proprietary & therefore it doesn’t fall in the GPL. He said the TNT is also horrendous & they want to protect the tap n tap ‘investment’ which is why the source wont be released. They did not ask for my information aside from my first name for the conversation we had. He basically said they were not going to release the source regardless of how many people called. The only way to get it is to sue the company & force them to do so. Obviously, I am not looking to spend more money just to get the source. He knows that, the company knows that & until someone bucks up & hires an attorney, viewsonic doesn’t care.
He did say that they did get a number of calls, he feels for me, he said others have rooted it but tough titties (my summary).

RichTJ99 said:
He basically said they were not going to release the source regardless of how many people called. The only way to get it is to sue the company & force them to do so.
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Boy, did my blood pressure just skyrocket.

RichTJ99 said:
I figured I would do my part as well. I called & spoke to a tech who said they were not releasing it & have no plans to do so. I said its linux based & the GPL says they have to release the source by law. He said they dont support changing the operating system. I said Android is linux based & falls under the GPL. He then transfered me to a senior tech who said:
Tap n tap is proprietary & therefore it doesn’t fall in the GPL. He said the TNT is also horrendous & they want to protect the tap n tap ‘investment’ which is why the source wont be released. They did not ask for my information aside from my first name for the conversation we had. He basically said they were not going to release the source regardless of how many people called. The only way to get it is to sue the company & force them to do so. Obviously, I am not looking to spend more money just to get the source. He knows that, the company knows that & until someone bucks up & hires an attorney, viewsonic doesn’t care.
He did say that they did get a number of calls, he feels for me, he said others have rooted it but tough titties (my summary).
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Thanks for the info.
What I don't understand is why is it that HTC is bound to GPL in that it must release source for its devices even though the majority of HTC devices has the proprietary software, Sense?
I don't think having proprietary software on a device exempts a company from conforming to GPL.

i think they must be new to linux or HTC is very used to dealing with Linux.
The senior tech was sympathetic but was firm in repeating the company plans. Heck their twitter page sais the same exact thing.
It makes me wonder if I should return it.

RichTJ99 said:
i think they must be new to linux or HTC is very used to dealing with Linux.
The senior tech was sympathetic but was firm in repeating the company plans. Heck their twitter page sais the same exact thing.
It makes me wonder if I should return it.
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I agree- without source, the gtab won't be able to experience its full potential especially if Viewsonic thinks anyone likes tapntap. Makes me wonder if I should return mine even though (outside of a few annoyances) I really like the device.
Viewsonic has to release source. Their device is Linux based with a proprietary software user interface just like HTC devices. This is ridiculous.

CyanogenMod scammed by one of there own

Holy cow! CM just posted this on Facebook a few minutes ago. I hope this guy gets whats coming to him. Real **** move if ya ask me.
Original Post - https://www.facebook.com/CyanogenMod/posts/10152367978770425
We at CM are very trusting of our members, showed by both respect and permissions granted to those people we consider part of the team. Last month, this trust was violated in a substantial way. In the spirit of openness, here is what happened.
CM’s history is well established, with Cyanogen releasing his original ROM for the G1 on XDA forums. Back then, there was no “CyanogenMod” in terms of the organization and structure that we have today. The builds were hosted on Steve’s personal machine, the original server was a donation of spare kit from Phaseburn. And due to the small size (and lack of funds), the CyanogenMod.com domain was bought by a third-party back in 2009 and donated to CM, when CM was a much smaller project and had no online presence besides XDA.
Fast-forward 3 years, we have 3 extremely powerful build boxes donated by the community and an army of developers, contributors, and supported devices. But, a little over a week ago, things took a bad turn. The person owning the CyanogenMod.com domain was caught impersonating Steve to make referral deals with community sites. When confronted and asked to hand over control of the domain amicably, he decided he wanted 10K USD for it, which we won't (and can't) pay.
We contacted those he had established deals with, only to discover that the person tasked with maintaining our web presence was setting up deals under the CM name, and impersonating Cyanogen himself. Plenty of satisfying evidence was provided by those sites / entities to make us certain that this wasn't a misunderstanding or one-time thing.
This leaves us at a critical impasse. Being trusted with CM’s web presence means this member had control over the CM social network accounts (Twitter/FB) as well as domains (cyanogenmod.com). We have changed ownership of the social media accounts. When asked again to make the transition nicely, he responded with the following
“Hi, so you think by removing all my access across the infrastructure was going to be a great idea? We had a chat yesterday, you've decided to end this bitter. How about I just change the DNS entries right now. CM will practically go down.”
Refusing to be extorted for funds, and then being threatened is “ending it bitter”? Today, it happened: all of our records were deleted, and cyanogenmod.com is slowly expiring out of the Internet and being replaced by blank pages and non-existing sites. @cyanogenmod.com e-mail is now being directed to a mailserver completely out of our control, too.
We have begun the dispute process with ICANN to reclaim our domain. In the meantime, please utilize CyanogenMod.org and all applicable subdomains.
As mentioned, this member also managed our Google Apps for Business account, and therefore our @cyanogenmod.com email addresses. These addresses should be considered discontinued until further notice. We will be contacting the Google team to reclaim rights to the apps account. In the meantime, please contact [email protected] for any devrel questions or other issues. A mailserver is being established to transition devrel and other support email addresses. We will provide those when they are finalized, and they will utilize the .org domain.
We don’t like how this played out, and we are deeply hurt. Likewise, we are deeply saddened at the confusion this may have caused the community. We will continue to be open about the what, when, how, but unfortunately, we may never know the ‘why’ - though greed comes to mind. The team itself has not made a profit off of CM and that is not our goal. But to have one of our own betray the community like this is beyond our comprehension. We will update you all as things progress.
Know that we are pursuing every available legal means to regain control over our domain.
Please note, all donations that were given directly to Cyanogen (aka [email protected]b.org) did indeed reach their destination and are not affected.
If you are a company out there that believes they have also entered into agreements with “CM” by this person impersonating Steve, please contact [email protected]. We’d like to get a handle on how widespread this was before we file charges.
-The CyanogenMod Team
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I run CM on my Hero and once and a while a CM based ROM on my Evo3D and like CM or not, these guys have worked hard to support a lot of android devices and have brought a lot to the table if you ask me.
If this is in the wrong place feel free to move it.

I find it hilarious lol. As sad as this is, it was pretty ballsy of him which you have to give props to.

Hgaara said:
I find it hilarious lol. As sad as this is, it was pretty ballsy of him which you have to give props to.
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How is this in any way funny? This guy could have/might have done a lot of damage in CM's name.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

Hgaara said:
I find it hilarious lol. As sad as this is, it was pretty ballsy of him which you have to give props to.
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How many times you gonna post this same comment? It'd be pretty ballsy of you to post something different from time to time. But we probably wouldn't give props if you did.
Tool.
Sent from my EVO using xda premium