Facebook Goes After Greasemonkey Script Developer 375
palmerj3 writes "The popular Facebook Purity greasemonkey script (now renamed Fluff Buster Purity) has been used by thousands to rid their Facebook feeds from the likes of Mafia Wars, Farmville, and other annoying things. Now, Facebook is threatening the developer of this script. Does Facebook have the right to govern their website's design and functionality once it's in the browser?"
No... (Score:5, Insightful)
No (Score:5, Insightful)
Sorry, you distributed content, we can throw it in the trash if we like
look what they gone and done (Score:5, Insightful)
Of course not (Score:5, Insightful)
It's no problem... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:look what they gone and done (Score:5, Insightful)
Indeed. This is officially the first thing that's ever made me want to install Greasemonkey.
Re:I didn't even know about greasemonkey until tod (Score:5, Insightful)
Had GS installed, but hadn't seen this script.
Thanks EffBee for letting me know about the script that keeps all your spam harvesting shit-ware out of sight.
Re:No (Score:5, Insightful)
This is common sense. Not much worth in court.
No they dont, and they better not threaten the dev (Score:3, Insightful)
even the mention of this story will upset their pr in dev community A LOT. we web developers, contrary to some who are developing for more closed platforms like ipod, do NOT like being herded, goaded, or ordered about. this will have consequences.
What about NoScript? AdBlockers? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:EULA (Score:1, Insightful)
I don't know very many people without facebook
Try hanging out with adults then. I've never had, nor will I ever have a Facebook or Myspace account. I'm not into teen events and gossip so I just don't see the point.
Besides, I have an actual web site if anyone wants to contact me.
Re:EULA (Score:3, Insightful)
To be honest, greasemonkey is the equivalent of a spam filter. Without it, you're drowned by stupid apps updates you don't give a damn about. And facebook become unusable and utter crap.
So let them disable whatever and shoot themselves in the foot. I won't drop a tear when that happens.
Re:No... (Score:5, Insightful)
You have to consider the American legal system. After they're done threatening legal action, then they'll drag him into court. It won't be a one-hearing thing either. It'll span years. They may get a court order that he can't develop nor distribute such software until the conclusion of the case.
Say he wins in court. He can continue to distribute his software. That's assuming he can afford legal representation for that long. Most normal people can't financially handle a prolonged court case, so even if he started fighting it from the start, he'd run out of funds and do exactly what they tell him to.
If he loses in court, it'll cost him an absolute fortune. They can hire better lawyers, and keep it tied up in court for years. Ok, now he has to stop distributing in the future (since they probably got the court order to not distribute for the duration of the court case, he'll be faced with fines, and probably Facebooks legal fees.
So his choices are to stop, and accept it, or to fight it and spend every penny he has in court.
Someone like Facebook doesn't mind spending the money to drag it through court. It's "encouragement" for others not to do the same thing.
Re:EULA (Score:3, Insightful)
My supervisor at work just asked me the other day if I play Farmville.
Re:Thank you Facebook (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:look what they gone and done (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:EULA (Score:5, Insightful)
So, what's the name of that site, mate? Anonymouscowardnumbersixpointeightthreebillion-giveortake.com? Sorry, Captian Luddite, but you're confusing the medium with the content. I'm 50 years old and have prodigiously developed abilities with Google Fu. After over a year of badgering to join Facebook—which I countered with arguments similar to yours, such as:
—I finally relented. Since doing so about a year ago, I've reconnected with a ton of old friends I couldn't find any other way.
As a shining example, two of us had an idea to start an ACTUAL website to gather material on musicians & bands we knew from our area, and from days and decades gone by. Despite sending tons of emails, and making tons of phone calls pleading for friends to get on board with the idea, nobody wanted to go to the trouble of contributing to it. I was even offering to send out pre-paid mailers for them to send me stuff to scan and audio/video material to digitize. It was just too much trouble for them
So, my friend and I started a Facebook group hoping to create a historic record of bands, clubs, & musicians from the Central Pennsylvania area, and in less than 2 months 360+ old friends and acquaintances have found each other again, to share hundreds of photos and stories, and to get back together to jam, or to go see each others' current bands.
I could also regale you with tales of smaller BBQs, ballgames, golf outings and beer bashes organized and thrown, of old loves rekindled, of new jobs found, of dogs and cats saved from being euthanized, of rare car parts bought & sold, of bands booking money-making tours in markets they would have otherwise never reached, of small group renunion cruises and vacations taken, and many more.
But apparently, you've explored it all enough to know that Facebook, MySpace and other SocNet sites are just for the pathetic, or the tech—challenged, or the kids...so good luck, and have fun with your decision to dismiss them out—of—hand. In the meantime, there are a whole shtload of us who are having tones of fun, both online and in meatspace, precisely because of them.
and since people laugh at eulas in... (Score:2, Insightful)
...every other country than the US, they will accomplish what, exactly?
Any attempts to enforce EULAs would be laughed out of court in the rest of the world. Consumer rights authorities in the EU are currently investigating whether it even is legal to present EULAs to consumers since there's currently a court case pending in Finland where someone was blocked from using a free service because they had filled out bogus info about themselves and the EULA "obliged" users to disclose real info.
Ps. It would be nice if someone (a Finn?) has more info about that case, I can't come up with search terms that don't result in too many irrelevant hits and I just cannot remember the foreign names well enough.
Re:No... (Score:5, Insightful)
Mod parent up. This is precisely what is wrong with the American legal system. Even if you do no wrong, companies and corporations can drag you through the legal system and exhaust any funds you have trying to defend yourself.
Even. If. You. Have. Done. Nothing. Illegal.
Rampant abuse by shady lawyers doesn't help either, since they get paid no matter who wins a case.
I *knew* there were advantages.. (Score:3, Insightful)
.. to never ever using Facebook. Hurray! :-)
lite.facebook.com (Score:3, Insightful)
Does this script give you anything that lite.facebook.com doesn't already?
Right idea... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:No... (Score:5, Insightful)
Also, if Facebook wins, it will set a precedence. It will mean that potentially, anything that modifies a website from what the website author produces will be illegal.
This means all greasemonkey scripts and AdBlock Plus/other ad blocking technologies as these modify a sites look from what is intended.
It may also be applicable to mashup sites that take content from other sites and combine it, although this is different to the above, so would need to be tested in court.
It could also mean that developers are less likely to innovate in these areas for fear of being sued. There is always the possibility of being sued, but having this as a precedence would increase that chance.
There are some options, though.
If I were the developer, I would seek help from the FSF and/or try to find a lawyer willing to do the case pro-bono.
Re:What threat? (Score:1, Insightful)
What if he changes it to Fucking Bitches Pussies, is THAT still a violation of "Facebook" trademark?
Re:Right idea... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:No... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:No... (Score:5, Insightful)
I disagree. Facebook doesn't really have a claim of infringement, any more than Paramount has a claim against the book "The Science of Star Trek". It refers to the protected name without claiming ownership or competing in the same market. All the site and the script comments need, really, is a disclaimer that it is not in any way associated with Facebook or their related properties.
Facebook already got Streisanded here. By grasping at the only available straw (the name), they've helped the script get noted by the Slashdotters, and it will be impossible to stop now. Even if the original script site is ordered removed, multiple branches will be created, since they can't forbid the underlying code.
Distributed Social Network (Score:3, Insightful)
Maybe its time we start pushing distributed social networking.
Think "HelloWorld" from years ago, but more modern. HelloWorld was great, just ahead of its time.
http://www.cooperatingsystems.com/index.htm [cooperatingsystems.com]
Re:EULA (Score:1, Insightful)
As usual, the "popular" kids ruin it for the rest. They don't care about the negative consequences of their actions, because someone else is going to deal with those. Who cares that the internet is turning into a corporate-controlled crowd-sourcing fest when you can have more than 360 friends and acquaintances?
Freedom takes a little effort. You're pissing away one of the rare chances of truly non-hierarchical communication for just about nothing in return but getting a list of others who are equally complacent. You're building someone else's walled garden.
Re:No... (Score:3, Insightful)
And lynx. And all adblockers.
Re:EULA (Score:3, Insightful)
Ever stop to think maybe he likes it that way?
No one is questioning whether or not he should or shouldn't be on Facebook. It's not for some people. Not everything is (for example, while I use Facebook, I just dont' see as much point to Twitter and have never sent a tweet in my life - doesn't mean I degrade those who do use it though).
The primary concern was over his accusation that if you're on Facebook you should start hanging out with adults - the implication being that adults don't use Facebook. That's absolutely off-base and inaccurate. I'm 28, have good job, and own my own home. I have a Facebook account. All of my friends have Facebook accounts. Virtually every single person I went to school with has a Facebook account. Many of their parents have a Facebook account. Nearly everyone at work has a Facebook account. The 55 year old millionaire that in charge where I work? Facebook account.
Whether or not you identify with it or not, labeling it as something only children or teens mess with is inaccurate. There's either a problem with your data or your definitions. In reality, rather than saying "Start hanging out with adults", he would been more accurate in saying "I don't like Facebook and here's why . . .", in which case I think the world owes him a resounding "WE DON'T CARE!!!!".