Thanks for quoting this announcement from two months ago. Rereading it, it's clear to me why his post doesn't instill the confidence as it was hoped to. Kier says he didn't want to announce his return until he felt confident that he is back to stay, that he can devote time and effort on the product and the community. He did _not_ say that he needed to stay away from the community so that he could focus on the product - as some members insist to believe.
Exactly.
Hello everyone, it's been a while.
I'm aware that many of you have been concerned that I've not really showed my face around these parts recently. I can only apologise for my absence and ask you to understand that I've been working through some very difficult personal issues that have been a source of uncertainty and anxiety for me for some time now. I've been conflicted as to whether or not to post, as I haven't wanted to announce my return until such time as I've felt confident that I'm back to stay, and that I can devote the necessary time and effort to focus on our great product and wonderful community. Here I am.
By any measure, XenForo has been and continues to be a phenomenal success. The software has turned out better than I could ever have imagined, and the response to it from the community at large has been incredible, both in terms of sales and feedback. Seeing enormous sites like IGN moving their forums over to our software is hugely rewarding. It's a great pity that Mike, Ashley and I have been unable to really celebrate that success due to the dark shadow of the ongoing lawsuits hanging over us and the grotesque cost of mounting a defence against them, which has meant that virtually every penny that XenForo has made has been consumed by legal fees rather than paying us a salary or allowing us to hire more staff to develop our products faster. Nonetheless, I continue to have faith that the claims against us will be shown for what they are, and that in time we will emerge even stronger than before, and will continue to build world-beating software that people will want to use.
I'd like to thank the many people who've sent me personal messages of support recently. It's heart-warming to see that so many of you care enough to get in touch, even when I'm not around. Thank you, all.
Now, let's get on with doing what we do best.
The above post also pretty much settles the "they can't comment on the lawsuit, or anything for that matter" argument.
How do you know they haven't been told not to say anything, not even that they arn't allowed to say anything.
Have you considered it might be for their own protection?
They are after all being sued by a billion dollar organisation who probably has someone crawling this site daily for the slightest hint of something they could throw at them.
Perhaps absolute silence is the lesser of 2 evils.
Nobody is asking them for their opinion on the court case, nobody is asking them to comment or express how they feel about IB or Vb. Yet as you can see above, comments are being made.
Considering this and even if the above comments had not been made: there is absolutely zilch legal reasons not to say: Guys, here's how far we've gotten with stop forum spam, the mobile theme, the resource manager, etc.
None whatsoever, what you are presenting is a legal canard.
I'll get back at the legal aspect further down the line.
This is a flawed arguemnt Mark.
You buy the product because of its features, stability, support and license at the point of purchase. Not because what "might be coming" or "communication from the developers". If you are making a purchase based on what might be coming in the future... then it is no different if the developers are talking to us or not.
You could compare this to the purchase and commission of a house.
This is xenforo, it lacks walls, and a kitchen. You've heard the construction workers make mention of them, but at this point you don't know whether the bathroom fixtures you expected to be part of the package you purchased and continue to pay for, are abandoned in some dusty trailer, have been sold off, or are still in transit. You've tried to communicate with the prospector whom you paid good money to, asking what ever happened to the promises he made, but all he tells you is to just wait. Lately he doesn't even bother picking up your calls, your house hasn't changed in appearance in months, there is no visible activity on it. Maybe there's a handy man working on it, maybe not, one thing is certain work has not happened a the habitual pace.
Meanwhile, you've been living in a hotel for the past 8 months, you have sold your previous house, you can chose to abandon this housing project and make significant loses, or stick to it, increasing the potential impact on you and your family if the project never comes to fruition.
Frustrated yet?
To get back at FX now, at this point in time you're right in saying that it
might be coming or not. Albeit vague, promises have been made, people have every reason to be tired of waiting for features like the mobile theme. It's been more than one and a half years, and by the looks of it, it could very well never come. I can't afford to just sit idly, invest further in XF products, on the off chance they come around and live up to the expectation and promises KaM themselves put forth. The release of big board search was equally veiled in mystery, this has been a problem for a long time and it apparently is only getting worse.
Half truths and nearly conflicting official statements do not help retain trust in XF's sincerity.
Some members are requesting an update and all I will say is that we are working towards developing and supporting XenForo. We are also dealing with a law suit and there are clearly many conspiracies already formed, ready prepared and this scaremongering is unhelpful, to say the least.
Who is working on what?
Now in closure: re legal.
I am of the opinion that KaM have vastly underestimated how much the tighter (group 2 as someone called it) community cares about XF, i.e those that are unsatisfied with the way business is being done, yet still have a vested interest in XF's continued existence.
I for one have not much to contribute on the financial front, I don't make a fortune with the XF product. What I do on the other hand have is a passionate disliking of as you called it: Billion Dollar organizations, messing with the little guy. Better yet, one of the things I do is bring together folks who feel the same. That is not to say they are by any means a personal army, they are most definitely not. However, I myself have for the past 4 years, and this is not to toot my own horn, meddled with a relentless multi billion organization, known to harass, legally destroy, slander or otherwise lash out at vocal critics of said organization. An organization found culpable of criminal neglect, intimidation and coercion, criminal harassment, human trafficking, fiscal fraud and many other crimes.
In doing so, I have gotten to know and often earn the respect of great many lawyers, whether it's IP, copyright, human trafficking, torts and other legal fields. I on a regular basis, if not continuously benefit from this network myself. If I learned one thing, it is that freedom of expression and freedom to pursue a livelihood is important not only to I, but also to those I have gotten to know.
Without making promises or wanting to raise expectations had XF's continued existence become a community matter, had KaM decided or realized this was too much for them to handle on their own as a business, I know that I would have done whatever is within my possibilities to assist, and I have no doubts I would not (have) be(en) the only one.
Either we are in this together, or we are your customers. In which case it is well over due to be treated as such.
You can't have both.
I didn't work it out either, having extensively watched the threads the same faces become familiar in the threads.
I don't know how anything posted today has altered that perception at all. So my puzzlement remains.
Infact given the long, well constructed and balanced nature of several posts made today, I would actually say the opposite, it apears more people are accepting that it will come when it comes... and aruging the same points back and fourth serves no purpose.
What thread have you been reading? Is this wishful interpretation or are you seriously oblivious to the fact quite a few early adopters, and individuals that wanted to support no matter what, are on the brink of taking their loss and stop giving a single F*ck.
They are not obligated to apologize to anyone for being quiet for a couple of months. No one.
For the better part of a year, notwithstanding that most aren't asking for apologies or for them to eat humble pie. A concrete update and development status announcement, and an ETA to 1.1.3 or 1.2 would suffice to most. I for one don't want to know what they thought they could accomplish 6 months ago, I would like to know where they are and what they think now.
.
