WoWInterface - Another Site Hosting AddOns

WoWInterface (https://www.wowinterface.com/forums/index.php)

- General Authoring Discussion (https://www.wowinterface.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=20)

- - Another Site Hosting AddOns (https://www.wowinterface.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31193)

Cairenn

03-11-10 11:30 AM

Another Site Hosting AddOns

May want to check and see if yours are there, without permission:

addons1.mmosite.com/wow/

Xrystal

03-11-10 11:40 AM

Thanks for the heads up Cairenn.

Soeters

03-11-10 12:30 PM

Agree with Xrystal, thank you :banana:

Seerah

03-11-10 12:41 PM

Thanks - I've sent out a C&D email. :)

Starinnia

03-11-10 02:22 PM

Thanks for the heads up!

Sythalin

03-11-10 04:14 PM

Thanks for the notice. Just sent an email about my project listings as well.

Xrystal

03-12-10 07:02 AM

Well, I wrote the following to them yesterday:

Quote:

From: "Xrystal" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Subject: Xrystal's Addons
Date: Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:26:08 -0000
To Whom it May Concern,

I respectfully request you to remove my addons from your site. I personally didn’t upload them and no-one contacted me and asked if I would like them hosted on your site. They should in fact only exist on WoWInterface.com or Curse.com or my own personal website. The following are the ones in particular :

nUI : InfoPanel [MagePorts] : addons1.mmosite.com/wow/content/2009-12-17/20091217005350274.shtml
nUI : InfoPanel [GuildChat] : addons1.mmosite.com/wow/content/2009-12-15/20091215191229435.shtml
nUI : InfoPanel [Decursive] : addons1.mmosite.com/wow/content/2009-11-18/20091118005533085.shtml

I don’t mind people linking to the WoWInterface page itself but please, take the files off of your server and direct people to the wowinterface page for downloads and more information. I will be checking back every so often to see that it gets done. I appreciate your speedy response to this request and await with baited breath for a speedy resolution.

Thank You
Xrystal

I then got the following in my mail box this morning ( unusally prompt reply ).

Quote:

From: community community [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: 12 March 2010 10:32
To: Xrystal
Subject: Re: Xrystal's Addons

Hi, Xrystal

We are so sorry about this, we will remove your addons soon, we hope that we can use your addons, waiting for your reply.
Have a nice day!
Imee

I promptly replied back as it sounds like they won't do anything until I do.

Quote:

Hi,
If you had asked initially maybe but seeing as you didn’t in the first place the answer will have to be no. As I mentioned if you want to list your favourite addons then a link to the official page is the best way to go. So, I want the following done:

1. Remove the files from your server
2. Either remove the pages from your site or have them link to wowinterface.com pages for the relevant addon

Thank you in advance for following my requests relating to my addons.

Xrystal

nightcracker

03-12-10 09:51 AM

I guess as soon as you upload a new version they will steal it again. They just have a script subscribed to our RSS and automaticly steal everything uploaded here including the description. They even stole my [/font] typo at the end of my ncUI description: addons1.mmosite.com/wow/content/2010-03-02/20100302232327112.shtml.

I would request anyone capable of representing WoWInterface to ask them seriously to stop downloading and reuploading addons from this site. It actually wouldn't surprise me if they would hotlink WoWInterface.com's files, since they use a .php download script to mask the real upload. They just couldve done this, where somequerylookup() would return the WoWInterface download link:

Code:

<?php

if (isset($_GET["id"])) {

        $link = somequerylookup($_GET["id"]);

        $addonname = someotherquery($_GET["id"]);

        $file = fopen($link, "r");

        $data = fread($file, filesize($link));

        fclose($file);

}

if ($data) {

header("Content-type: application/octet-stream");  

header("Content-disposition: attachment; filename=$addonname.zip");

echo $data;

}

?>

Xrystal

03-12-10 09:59 AM

Well, it looks like they did what I asked. My google searches on their site for my few addons they acquired linked to a page that contained no information and the download link errors out.

nightcracker

03-12-10 10:13 AM

If what I suspect is true, if you would upload one of your addons with an update it will be available on their site again. But they also could have a blacklist, or do it all manually, who knows?

Xrystal

03-12-10 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nightcracker (Post 181463)

If what I suspect is true, if you would upload one of your addons with an update it will be available on their site again. But they also could have a blacklist, or do it all manually, who knows?

Well I updated one of my other addons last night but they only had my 3 most downloaded addons out of the 15 I have. They won't really need updating till 3.3.3 so looks like it will be awhile rofl.

Diagnostics

03-12-10 12:07 PM

Scumbags! I sincerely hope they stop all these shenanigans.

Zyonin

03-12-10 02:04 PM

I did a browse through this site and it's pretty clear (obvious to any one with an IQ level equal or better than a standard brick) that it's yet another Chinese rip off site. Lots of graphics ripped from other sites (mainly Chinese style anime characters though some Japanese style as well).

In the AddOns section, I am not finding any links back to other sites, it does list WoWInterface as a "development" site however no links or anything. Of course any gaming site that has an "adult" section is enough to set off alarms and such. Definitely dodgy all around.

I wonder if Blizzard can go after them since they are using WoW graphics (including the Wrath logo) yet they are not an authorized fansite and some of this site's content is definitely not "T" rated.

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

OK, another thing, we don't want to give this site any help in Google's PageRank system. To avoid this, if you post a link to a file or page on their site, do the following:

Before you click "Submit Reply", scroll down.
Under the edit field and row of smilies look for three check boxes.
Clear the check box from "Automatically parse links in text"
Or put spaces in the URL so the system does not autoparse them and turn them into links.
Now you can click Submit Reply

I have fixed a couple of posts which had working links to that site. If you edit your post, you will have repeat the process.

p3lim

03-12-10 02:19 PM

Thanks for the heads up Cairenn

Diagnostics

03-12-10 02:21 PM

A WHOIS search at domaintools brings up some interesting information.

Xrystal

03-12-10 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zyonin (Post 181484)

Before you click "Submit Reply", scroll down.
Under the edit field and row of smilies look for three check boxes.
Clear the check box from "Automatically parse links in text"
Or put spaces in the URL so the system does not autoparse them and turn them into links.
Now you can click Submit Reply

I have fixed a couple of posts which had working links to that site. If you edit your post, you will have repeat the process.

Ah thanks Zyonin. Both for editing my post and for telling me what that actually meant. Yes, the simple things usually confuse me more rofl. :D

Zyonin

03-12-10 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xrystal (Post 181490)

Ah thanks Zyonin. Both for editing my post and for telling me what that actually meant. Yes, the simple things usually confuse me more rofl. :D

LOL :D

Yay! I am filler text!

Xrystal

03-18-10 11:20 PM

Hmm, just thought I would go check and make sure they truly have removed my addons. And I find this comment on one that the download link doesn't work anymore but the page exists.

Quote:

All addons on our site are Uploaded by Users, and can be Downloaded For Free.
We shall not be liable for any disputes concerning the addons' copyrights.
All are welcome to upload addons. Click here to upload now!

Now, how do we cope with that issue ? Sigh, and another email to send as they have allowed another one of my addons to be uploaded. Time for me to make some steps.

Cairenn

03-18-10 11:52 PM

You send them a C&D &/or a DMCA take down notice, and send copies along to their IP &/or domain host.

Xrystal

03-19-10 12:08 AM

Thanks Cairenn,

I looked it up and located the EU equivalent. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32001L0029:EN:HTML At present they are quickly taking them down as they appear and repeatedly trying to get me to use them as another host to download from :rolleyes:

For now I will keep an eye on it.

Petrah

03-19-10 01:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xrystal (Post 182035)

Thanks Cairenn,

I looked it up and located the EU equivalent. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/...1L0029:EN:HTML At present they are quickly taking them down as they appear and repeatedly trying to get me to use them as another host to download from :rolleyes:

For now I will keep an eye on it.

If you need a cease and desist template, you can get a free one from R.I.G.H.T.S (Redistribution In Graphics Has To Stop).. they've been around for 10 years or so. If you look on their Examples page you can find a few templates to use (these are the vary templates I used when I did C&D letters for one of my old hosting clients when her graphics were stolen). Just change the wording in the template to suit your needs.

http://www.rightsforartists.com

nightcracker

03-19-10 03:26 AM

Pretty offtopic, but that RIGHTS site has a damn nice design.

Seerah

03-19-10 09:19 AM

The last email I got from them said that they removed the ones I had specifically mentioned and would remove the rest soon. This hasn't been done. I alerted them to this in an email just a bit ago, and told them that the notice plastered on each download page is "unacceptable" and that it is precisely their liability for copyright infringement. I said that if they did not take care of my addons and remove the notice from all pages, that I would take the issue to their IP host. I also mentioned that some authors are already going that route, and said "Cease and Desist orders are, contrary to what you may believe, 'serious business'."

I'll let you guys know what I hear back.

Elhana

03-19-10 09:29 AM

I'd imagine they can switch host rather easy and their domain registred in CN, so gl in Chinese court )

Xrystal

03-19-10 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seerah (Post 182059)

Wow, my links were removing within an hour if that of my email being sent. Thats why I haven't been worried about sending them any official paperwork as they have been dealing with my requests promptly.

Torhal

03-19-10 04:58 PM

They may be reacting promptly, but the fact that any user may upload an AddOn means that you may be requesting removal of the same AddOn several times.

I'm also of the opinion that their users aren't the ones uploading the AddOns, since every one I've seen has had verbatim layouts from the original site - font, text color, external links, etc: It would appear that they're scraping the sites and re-constructing the AddOn pages themselves.

Petrah

03-19-10 09:51 PM

They removed the donation link for Scott on one, so they are editing.

Sythalin

03-20-10 07:29 AM

From their main page:

Quote:

We shall not be liable for any disputes concerning the addons' copyrights.

I got a chuckle out of that one.

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