Archives for September, 2007
NetNewsWire Theme “uni” Updated
A very quick note to let those who use my “uni” theme for NetNewsWire — one of my 10 must-have apps — know that I gave it a point update today, which addresses the use of the “pre” and “code” html tags in articles. Click to download the updated skin if you use it. To install, simply double-click the theme in the Finder & NNW does the rest.
Bogart v0.7 Released
A quick note to let readers know that my Bogart WordPress theme has been updated to 0.7. This new version properly adds tagging for the new 2.3 version of WP, while maintaining backwards compatibility with earlier versions (see my last post). I also fixed an issue with missing code related to preloading theme images.
Thoughts on Derivations of WordPress Themes
Today I came across this post (nofollowed) by an individual who uses Bogart for the theme of their site. In his post, the author shares how to add a single line of code in two pages of the theme which will make the new tagging feature of the soon to be released WordPress 2.3 available.
While I applaud the author for taking the time to provide his tutorial to the WP community, I’m a bit disturbed by the fact that this person feels he now has the right to (a) re-brand the theme as “Bogart 0.6 Taged” [sic], (b) redistribute the theme from his own forums (which require registration), and (c) place a credit link back to his site in the footer of the re-distributed theme essentially giving himself credit as a “co-author” of Bogart. All without making any attempt to contact me.
Yes, I’m aware I released Bogart under a GPL (General Public License) — perhaps a mistake on my part — and that the license essentially allows this individual to modify and redistribute the theme as he likes with minimal restrictions. But I have to wonder — does this person ethically have the right to claim contribution (authorship) by simply reading how to do something on another blog (as his post claims), and then adding (perhaps copying and pasting?) one line of code into two different files of the theme? Does that really seem right? Does the GPL honestly allow for those kind of derivations?
Not only that, but since this individual made his changes without any kind of error checking, the theme will break should it be used with a WordPress install prior to 2.3. Could his actions potentially taint my reputation as the original author? Should I be responsible for helping someone who has issues with the modified theme?
I wrote Bogart from from scratch starting at line one. I’ve put many hours into making the design what it is. Josh Cook was kind enough to offer to widgetize the theme at a time when my schedule wouldn’t allow for it. As a thank you, I chose to list him as a co-author. He made a solid contribution to the project and earned credit for it. Now someone comes along, adds two lines of code (well, one line really), and says “Look — I’m part of this too!” Should I honor the GPL license and allow him to take credit for the “change” he made or not?
I think there are bigger questions that need to be addressed here as well; Where should the line be drawn on derivitave works under the GPL? What honestly constitues genuine change or contribution to a GPL’d project? Should the originating author be informed of changes before or after they’re made to a GPL project? Should they be informed at all? Am I just being a whiny sissy and overreacting to the whole thing? To me, it just doesn’t feel right. I’d love to hear what others think about the limitations — or freedoms — of the GPL, and whether the actions of this individual seem appropriate to them.
Technorati Tags: WordPress, General Public License, GPL
Forum Registration Actually Works Now
A quick note; If you’ve tried registering in the forums, and kept getting told the reCAPTCHA you entered was wrong, even when you knew it was right — well, um yeah, that was due to me. It seems I didn’t follow the integration instructions as well as I thought I did, and managed to leave out a necessary part. Silly, silly me.
Anyway. It’s fixed now (and tested before making this post), so if you want to sign up on the forums now, go for it.
We’re Back Online…
Well, it appears we’re back online after being “suspended” for nearly a day. For those wondering, the problem wasn’t with my site. Instead it had something to do with the company who hosts me, which is a hosting reseller — as in they get their hosting from someone else further up the ladder and charge me a little bit more than what they’re charged in order to make some cash.
I have no idea what their problem was, but I think I might need to start looking for a new solution. I’ve yet to hear from anyone after sending support emails and leaving voicemails. That kind of customer service worries me. It’s almost the same thing that happened when my previous host decided to call it quits all of a sudden.
Thanks for bearing with me through this unexpected surprise. More info to follow if there’s anything worth reporting.
