mod feedback

[PhpMember]

If someone creates a mod, and someone else creates a similar mod completely re-written, is that bad?.

 

[Paul B]

As long as the code hasn't just been re-factored, then there's nothing to stop two or more authors writing the same add-on.

 

[Cezz]

It depends really on your intentions...

• If you are only writing the mod because you have seen the other mod and want to make a profit (assuming your selling yours) yes this is bad.
• If you see a mod that is already out there and you think you could do better then no I don't think this is bad.
• If you take an existing mod and base yours off that one then yes this is bad.
• If you are just creating a mod with its own feature set but is just similar in functionality as another then no this isn't bad.

This is my opinion anyway.

 

[DaveL]

I personally see two mods a great thing for the end consumer. Its a little bit of competition and hopefully one of the two will be supported.

 

[PhpMember]

Someone is threatening me to file a DMCA with my host, over a "Recent Activity" Mod, that I rewrote completely. It is a free. The functionality is only similar.

Also over the style of the site, this person and I started the site together, everything was implicitly said to belong to the domain. I owned the domain, then this person, decides to brake up and start a whole new site, he has taken all our users, posts, threads, personal data, everything. I recreated the original site then.

I changed the style background, parchment, header, etc. And he claims the style is his.

What do you suggest?.

 

[Slavik]

It depends really on your intentions...

• If you are only writing the mod because you have seen the other mod and want to make a profit (assuming your selling yours) yes this is bad.
• If you see a mod that is already out there and you think you could do better then no I don't think this is bad.
• If you take an existing mod and base yours off that one then yes this is bad.
• If you are just creating a mod with its own feature set but is just similar in functionality as another then no this isn't bad.

This is my opinion anyway.

1) competition breeds innovation, and ideally a better range of options for the end user
2) agree
3) I guess I should remove my vbulletin 4 subscription importer then as its based off paul m's importer? It depends on the situation
4) Agree

If someone creates a mod, and someone else creates a similar mod completely re-written, is that bad?.

If the mod is completely re-written... then no...

 

[Slavik]

Someone is threatening me to file a DMCA with my host, over a "Recent Activity" Mod, that I rewrote completely. It is a free. The functionality is only similar.

Also over the style of the site, this person and I started the site together, everything was implicitly said to belong to the domain. I owned the domain, then this person, decides to brake up and start a whole new site, he has taken all our users, posts, threads, personal data, everything. I recreated the original site then.

I changed the style background, parchment, header, etc. And he claims the style is his.

What do you suggest?.

Maybe this thread would be better in off topic?

Put simply, if you re-wrote the mod from scratch, you have nothing to worry about.

As for the style, this will come down to where you live. If the style was created for and used by your site with the relevent agreements in place, you have nothing to worry about.

 

[Cezz]

1) competition breeds innovation, and ideally a better range of options for the end user
2) agree
3) I guess I should remove my vbulletin 4 subscription importer then as its based off paul m's importer? It depends on the situation
4) Agree

1) Valid point and I think it is fine to create a competing product but I still think Etiquette wise you should not explicitly copy features and ideas from another product to make yours...
2)
3) No the situation I meant, I totally agree depends on the situation and it is more an Etiquette thing than right/wrong I think if you base your works of someone elses who has not explicitly released it as Open Source then you should first contact the original author and check they are happy with this!
4)

 

[Paul B]

1) Valid point and I think it is fine to create a competing product but I still think Etiquette wise you should not explicitly copy features and ideas from another product to make yours...

That happens with all software though.

Take forum software as a case in point.

 

[Cezz]

That happens with all software though.

Take forum software as a case in point.

I Don't know, ideas can be taken from ideas but I mean when they are explicitly copied... For example xenforo is a forum software just like IPB and vBulletin and though they have many features the same, after all they are all forum software, the way that different features look, work and act is what makes them different... if xf where to explicitly copy functionally of another forum software even if it were written from scratch then this would be very bad in my opinion... However having similar features or ideas is what competition is about...

 

[Slavik]

I Don't know, ideas can be taken from ideas but I mean when they are explicitly copied... For example xenforo is a forum software just like IPB and vBulletin and though they have many features the same, after all they are all forum software, the way that different features look, work and act is what makes them different... if xf where to explicitly copy functionally of another forum software even if it were written from scratch then this would be very bad in my opinion... However having similar features or ideas is what competition is about...

Some features are a requirement to make a product work, even if it means copying someone else.

Imagine a forum which doesn't have a reply button.

 

[ragtek]

If i see a add-on which i could use, i check the code and install it on my test boards.

If it's fine and i see something what's missing, i'm requesting it in the thread, because everything coded by others means less coding & support time for me and i can spend the time with other things....
If it's a small request, i'm coding it as extra add-on for my board, till (if) the coder includes it....

If the add-on is bad(for example horrible code, very bad performance), i'm coding it from scratch for my boards.
Then i ask the original coder( because of Etiquette ), if it's ok for him, if i release my version here too.
I respected all coders which said no, because every new release means much more support time, but on the other side, i wanted(i stooped it now) to share as many addons as possible with the community here, so the users could move to xenforo as soon as possible..