22 replies to this topic

[AnonAMouse]

Sorry but a site advertising for use authors downloads such as
RMPrepUSB
Posting on sites listing the tool and saying download link here is fine.
However forcing people to register when they get here just to get a tool they need sucks.
Ban me for my opinion if you like, but the site needs some work to fix this situation!

[olegpov]

I with you categorically do not agree.

[amalux]

Hi AnonAMouse, welcome

I tend to agree but also understand that this is done to keep site leeching to a minimum, bots have a harder time re-directing links if registration is required, also, the author is free to host the file anywhere for free (and should)

[Lancelot]

Better if authors use mediafire etc. that has counter (I guess counter counts has emotional importance to author ) , If authors trend goes that way maybe boot-land administration can change policy.

Or with shortly saying

I with you categorically do not agree.

+1

[Wonko the Sane]

A perfect choice of timing.

This topic was the object of an exchange of opinions just today:
http://www.boot-land...?...=10821&st=9

Now, if I were the Author of the utility, I would be so much pissed off by this attempt to deprive me of my intellectual property and of my rights to do with it whatever I wish or see fit, masked as a democratic vote, that I would add to it an authentication code and an IP verification one, with twice a day challenge code and captcha, just for the fun of having the l33t peeps spend some time on it.

@AnonAMouse
I would like if you could try using your little grey cells to compute this:
Since the poll can be voted ONLY by members of the Board, how likely it is that they en-masse will vote for a change that won't affect them in the least and can be additionally viewed as a deprivation of some of the "special rights" memebr have? <- if Board members are honest and lovers of freedom, which I believe they are , this poll will have NO votes or a large majority of "Don't ask me..." as the "No, not if the author directs to their downloads." implies reducing the freedom of the Author and his rights.

And yes, I am explicitly saying that whoever votes for the "No, not if the author directs to their downloads." thinking to be somehow a defender of freedom is actually stealing freedom from the Author.




Wonko

[Brito]

It's funny because the first three lines of the registration window for new members says:

If you're registering because you want to grab files then there is no need to create a new account as you can visit the bugmenot site to use some of the accounts already made before.

There's even a link for people to visit the bugmenot site and get the user details that are available over there.

The download system inside the forum is not very efficient and we had a lot of trouble with leechers in the past.

Also, any developer can request hosting on boot land and we'll provide good conditions to upload the files, we even add a counter as well.

Here's an example: http://lancelot.winb.....iptslancelot/

----------------

So, nobody forces people to register here. This is a necessary measure, in fact, I even discourage using the attachments here on the forum because they make the database get slower and bigger. It's preferable to just host them outside the forums inside subdomains or temporary hosts if it's not something relevant to keep forever and ever.

[Lancelot]

we even add a counter as well.

well if you follow the example you will notice counter does not work . Besides I do not care "counter", I just want to inform. I guess some developers "avoid" because of that.

Besides, It maybe "tempting" to offer (they maybe busy or not aware of such feature) famous developers (remember I requested a few times ) hosting with a good working counter (which I guess they would like to count, I honestly understand the good satisfactory emotion to the author ) . Hence this probably result with low download through boot-land.net which I remember you asked long while ago (that is the reason I use external picture hosting sites and also attachments following your old request)

And of course, above is all about my badddd midway habit, simply ignore if you do not like.

[pscEx]

Sorry but a site advertising for use authors downloads such as
RMPrepUSB
Posting on sites listing the tool and saying download link here is fine.
However forcing people to register when they get here just to get a tool they need sucks.
Ban me for my opinion if you like, but the site needs some work to fix this situation!

Maybe that here is an administrative mistake the author made.
As far as I remember (I'm too lazy to try to find some links) the author said something like "free for Boot-land.net".
On the other hand, if the author decided, to make the download available for boot-land.net members only, it is his decision, and has to be respected.

My suggestion to steve6(?? I do not remember exactly ) and AnonAMouse: try to find a reasonable solution!

Peter

[Brito]

well if you follow the example you will notice counter does not work

How strange, can it be a permissions problem? It was working very well during my testings. Under FTP, try to make the file counter.txt (if I'm not mistake) to have 777 read/write permissions.


But nevertheless, this is just a small script that we provide as a help. There are plenty of php counters on the sea: http://www.hotscript...grams/counters/

The point is that developers can choose the method or rules to distribute their work.

Of course that I'm happy to see new members joining our community but I'm not a fan a ghost-registrations.

[steve6375]

I will put on a download from elsewhere if Boot-land would prefer it and you do not want thousands of 'ghost' registrations just to get the download. I had no idea it would be so popular and do not want to cause the server and admins any problems, - or maybe you could make unregistered download easier or add Captcha check?
If people register and have any issues/ideas/feedback I want them to post here. If people just download it, try it and then delete it, we do not learn anything and no progress is made.
Overall, I would vote for easy unregistered download + captcha check.

[Brito]

Either solution you choose is fine by me.

Don't you already have a boot land FTP account?

This can be arranged very quickly.

[Wonko the Sane]

Just for the record, what happened 12 days ago on 911CD, (another place, another time ):
http://www.911cd.net...o...23696&st=22


Wonko

[Gostep]

This discussion is moot ...

It is much easier and quicker to register then to find the downloads later.
So giving the downloads to unregistered users would not change the pain at all.

Instead I would suggest to work on the navigation of this site

[Brito]

Ok, good comment.

[X00D45]

Thanks for asking Nuno!!!!

Regards!

[ksanderash]

Ha-ha, 50/50 It won't be easy to decide for Nuno )

[Max_Real Qnx]

I do not agree, is it difficult to subscribe to this website ?

[ksanderash]

IMHO, this board doesn't need bots, spamers, or absolute newbies, that don't need so deeper knowledge. They won't take part in discussions -- cause just want to download ready project archive, make the ISO, and arrivederci. This is normal.

I think some general things, like Winbuilder and project files, should stay in open access. Other (attachments, e.g.) under registration seal.

[Wonko the Sane]

IMHO, this board doesn't need bots, spamers, or absolute newbies, that don't need so deeper knowledge. They won't take part in discussions -- cause just want to download ready project archive, make the ISO, and arrivederci. This is normal.

I guess everyone has been a newbie at one time or another, now if we draw a neat line between "newbies" and "experts", HOW would ever a "newbie" be able to become an "expert" (and get to know the "secret bootlander handshake" and get to read the "book of undeniable truths" )?

BTW, newbies as well as kids have a couple of characteristics:

• ingenuity
• thinking out of schemes

that often the "experts" completely miss.

I see newbies as an actual resource for a technical oriented board, some (an awful lot) will leave as soon as they find that the topics are too difficult for them (i.e. very soon), some (a very few) of them will have the perseverance to go on and hopefully become the "experts" of tomorrow.


Wonko

[Brito]

Ha-ha, 50/50

Well.. if I'm the tie breaker then the choice from my perspective is not difficult.

I'm in favor of allowing users to log with a bugmenot account and also allow authors to chose where and how to host their own files.

It's difficult to reach a balance where everyone is happy and that is the reason why we don't place many restrictions.

However, there are benefits for our community in Steve's decision if more people register on the forum.

Even if they are only interested in downloading RMPrepUSB and never participate, they will still receive our weekly newsletter at their email box and this is an opportunity to mention the works of other developers in the future.

So, if popular projects help smaller projects that are just starting up, then after a while we also see these new projects driving fresh visitors to the older projects since we are all sharing the same roof around here.

And this is what a community of developers is all about.


Perhaps it helps to remind that Boot Land was founded with the goal of becoming a place where developers and users have good conditions to publish their work.

We strive to remain faithful to this tradition.

[ksanderash]

I agree on the statement that closed community will smother itself, sooner or later. And I'm not against more freshmen. Not so much people at BootLand, btw. And see no spamers.

Putting Downloads under the registration seal we make in some way the community closed. I'll think hard about do I really need this file, or not, if it requires so much action (and captchas). I hate those "authorization required" when you want to download something from a board over the net. If the download will captivate me, sure I come, and register.

It's a double-edged sword, all this thing 50 / 50 just confirms it.

[Wonko the Sane]

It's a double-edged sword, all this thing 50 / 50 just confirms it.

In my view the 50/50 only confirms that about half the people who took part in the present poll is completely wrong...



Wonko

[½pfftery]

BTW, newbies as well as kids have a couple of characteristics:

• ingenuity
• thinking out of schemes

that often the "experts" completely miss.

experts wouldn't think of much of the stuff I think of, because that stuff won't work :-/

I see newbies as an actual resource for a technical oriented board, some (an awful lot) will leave as soon as they find that the topics are too difficult for them (i.e. very soon), some (a very few) of them will have the perseverance to go on and hopefully become the "experts" of tomorrow.

I can sometimes be a *relative* expert to a more newbish person. I've never become an expert in computers (though am ~expert in one very different topic)
but... for every newb that asks a question, how many read the thread as lurkers or non-registered? (rhetorical question. answer, imo: many.)


I'm hesitant to vote in this poll, because even after reading some comments, I don't sense a critical difference (for me) in the policy.
1) my Lurker perspective: There are some forums where I don't feel motivated to register because i don't expect to post questions or answers, but if I can't see thread attachments (such as screenshots), the info is devalued. So, I go search for the info elsewhere.
I mostly lurk here, but registered because I've expected to someday initiate a thread (a question. but my questions haven't jelled yet.)

2) my Downloader perspective: I haven't "downloaded" anything at boot-land (besides what browsers typically download, aka "content"). But I've used unetbootin, grub, easybcd, and grub4dos (those are examples of ~boot-land topics that I've downloaded *elsewhere*, not downloaded from bootland or bootland link.)

This site covers a rare combination of very obscure/rare while also far-reaching topics. So, there are very few things here that I'll ever try. But I see a few topics that are well-discussed here, and hardly found anywhere on the net (certainly very rare in a forum).

that was a long reply :-)