Excuse me while I beat a dead horse, but I just recently took a few moments to peruse some audio on Mixergy — check it out — regarding Matt Mullenwag, Chris Pearson, WordPress and the GPL. The argument being portrayed is that should a theme built ‘on top’ of WordPress have to adhere to the very license that WordPress is distributed under, e.g. the GPL. Though slightly murky territory considering the specific details regarding wordpress themes, past situations with Joomla & other content management systems alone would shout a resounding ‘Yes!’. All arguments aside, I’d actually like to discuss another aspect of the situation altogether.
During the course of the audio there’s discussion in regards to Matt Mullenwag (co-founder of WordPress) siphoning away users of Thesis using the GPL issue as a lure. I’ve personally seen similar issues (GPL related, in fact) tear communities / userbases in half, spit them up and leave nothing behind. During the course of my younger years I was involved in a few MUDs or two that were in direct violation of the very license the software was developed on. In one particular case (Ahem, Medievia) there was such an undercurrent from the community that several derivatives spawned off, servers were exploited, users quit left & right and the project itself lost multiple developers and thousands of active users as a result of the backlash.
The GPL is an extremely well backed license whether it applies to Diku, WordPress or Linux itself & touts and extremely strong following. I believe that Chris Pearson is treading very thing ice when he states that WordPress needs to “back up their statements”, through force or otherwise. I do suspect Mullenwag’s own twitter remarks alone lead me to believe he’s generating an uprising of his own against Pearson and GPL-naysayers, something I see as somewhat belated but necessary to ensure future derivatives and themes stay in line with the license.
I do hope the situation gets prettier before ugly, and Pearson decides to switch his themes over to the license. The license itself wouldn’t inhibit or detract from any of his offerings, business or personal, but I suppose that’s for him to decide. Several other wordpress theme developers have swapped over to releasing their themes with the GPL intact and from what I garner through their public commentary, “Success” is all they’ve experienced since.
Any thoughts of your own?
Check out this ingenious use of space for a 330 sq. foot apartment in Hong Kong — rather impressive, eco-friendly and wildly delicious looking apartment for it’s size.
The room itself transforms into 24 ‘other’ configurations — a must watch:
05 May 2010 UPDATE: about 1.5 hours ago the following reply was received via the Installatron helpdesk:
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“The latest edge build of Installatron has been updated with
fixes for all issues. We’re just finishing up testing and aim to
issue a new relase build this week.”
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For the past several weeks we’ve had Installatron disabled on all of our servers. Customers that have attempted to access Installatron from within cPanel have found themselves staring at a paragraph of text which states that it has been temporarily disabled while the vendor works to address some issues.
Some customers have asked if we knew when it would be reenabled. We, too, have wondered the same thing. One week ago I updated my ticket with the vendor, asking them to provide us with the status of the fixes, along with an ETA of the next release. The vendor has gone silent on us.
Below you will find the timeline of our communication with the Installatron team:
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11 Apr 2010, 7:07 pm – Day 0
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The ticket was opened with Installatron, asking if they would be interested in learning about vulnerabilities in their software.
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12 Apr 2010, 7:05 am – Day 1
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Phil from the Installatron team replies stating that they’re “definitely interested in discussing any vulnerabilities”.
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12 Apr 2010, 8:02 am – Day 1
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I replied to the ticket, stating I would need some time to put all of the information together in an acceptable format (my notes were a little sloppy up to that point).
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12 Apr 2010, 8:11 am – Day 1
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Phil replies stating that Installatron version 6 may actually address these issues, but that they would wait for my reply (the bugs are for version 6).
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12 Apr 2010, 12:20 pm – Day 1
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I sent complete details on how to reproduce 4 of the 8 issues, stating that if they felt that the issues would be obsoleted by the next version of Installatron, that I wouldn’t feel it necessary to send information on the remaining 4, and that I needed to know when Installtron 6 was going to be released.
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13 Apr 2010, 4:45 pm – Day 2
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Phil’s response: “We’re going through and verifying/creating fixes for each of these.”
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13 Apr 2010, 7:45 pm – Day 2
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I updated the ticket with the remaining 4 bugs.
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19 Apr 2010, 11:14 pm – Day 8
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Phil replies: “We’re still considering our reply and working on fixes.”
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27 Apr 2010, 2:40 pm – Day 16
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I asked for an update on the status of the fixes and an ETA on the next release that addresses all of the issues.
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05 May 2010 – Day 24
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No response has been received to our request for an update. However, according to the twitter.com/installatron account, on 1:23 PM Apr 22nd, Zen Cart 1.3.9a was added to Installatron. On 3:15 AM Apr 29th Joomla 1.5.17 was added to Installatron. In the past day or so, Zen Cart 1.3.9b was added to Installatron.
These are the bugs that were reported to Installatron:
BUG #1 – cPanel users can overwrite any file on the box
BUG #2 – cPanel users can execute commands as root
BUG #3 – cPanel users can view /etc/shadow
BUG #4 – cPanel users can obtain a directory listing
BUG #5 – resellers can execute commands as root
BUG #6 – resellers can execute commands as root
BUG #7 – resellers can execute commands as root
BUG #8 – resellers can execute commands as root
None of those bugs have been fixed, but the latest version of Zen Cart has been added to Installatron since they were reported. Twice.
As a paying customer, I think it’s a fair question to ask where Installatron’s priorities are. If you have Installatron installed on your server(s), these are the risks that you face:
Installatron 6.0.9, 6.0.7, and possibly prior view /etc/shadow (BUG #3)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNI-V0Y3Aa8
Installatron 6.0.9, 6.0.7, and possibly prior view any directory (BUG #4)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92B2lW5UCn0
Installatron 6.0.9, 6.0.7, and possibly prior local root exploit (BUG #8)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5MMacCFhfM
Note that while the videos listed above demonstrate the action of taking advantage of the vulnerabilities, they do not provide the level of detail necessary for anyone viewing the video to take advantage of the bugs. The goal here is to raise awareness, and to motivate Installatron to fix these problems.
If you’re an Installatron customer and want root exploits fixed NOW instead of Zen Cart updates next week, then please let your voice be heard:
Installatron helpdesk: https://secure.installatron.com/tickets?user=Guest
Installatron forums: http://installatron.com/forum/
Installatron twitter: http://twitter.com/installatron
Installatron sales: sales@installatron.com
The holidays are fast approaching, and with it, the hype surrounding the 2nd annual HoHoTO event in support of the Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank. Borne out of Twitter conversations from a small group of Torontonians who strive to make a difference, word (and tweet) quickly spread to create one of the most unique and fun-filled fundraisers to hit the streets of Toronto. This is social media at one of its most cathartic moments, sparking city-wide awareness and motivation.
In what is sure to be a memorable way to end the year off with a bang, Fused Network has stepped up to the plate once more, coming in as both reindeer and elves. In fact, Fused Network clients have contributed to roughly 80% of the fundraising! And why not?! After continued successes and an ever-growing client base, giving back to those in need does wonders for the morale. It is absolutely imperative we do more than our best to keep this cycle going – we receive, we give back, and the act of receiving comes back in the form of good vibes. Lather, rinse, repeat – with emphasis on repeat.
The Fused Network team will be hitting the Mod Club dance floors on the 16th in support of a most wonderful cause. Surface level engagements aside, it all boils down to the roots of this event; HoHoTO is about community, camaraderie, and generosity of spirit, all of which should be exercised daily. In a blog post aptly titled Blessed, David writes:
“We will go home feeling incredible knowing we, among many others, have helped foster such widespread generosity. As those feelings of elation start to settle, however, we must never forget that the needs of those who are less fortunate than us have no end. A daily effort on our parts must be observed to ensure that they too, get their daily bread.
When the music stops, the giving shouldn’t.”
Heartily noted – mind, body, soul. In a culture so very defined by excess, no one should have to wander the streets hungry.
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The Toronto Daily Bread Food Bank is the largest provider of emergency food relief in the Greater Toronta Area. There are several ways to donate to the Daily Bread; visit their donations page for more information. For HoHoTO event details and statistics, click here.
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If you find yourself in the city, come on out to the most happening Christmas party to ever hit Toronto! HoHoTO is the ultimate mixer; techies, creatives and good, fun-loving people gathering together for a wonderful cause… What could be better?! E-mail me directly at isshamarie[at]fusednetwork[dot]com for a chance at acquiring tickets.
On October 17, Fused Network participated in a Charity Challenge event hosted by Kontent Creative. Three teams of the mid-October Vancouver Innovation Camp jointly raised $5000 for the Vancouver Food Bank. After an astounding amount of success, I was asked to profile Fresh Choice Kitchens, one of the many prominent programs operating under the illustrious Vancouver Food Bank. Their goal? To fuse together the art of community with the lost art of creating affordable and soul-satisfying meals.
Their warmth struck me first, and I was immediately drawn to Diane and Shona’s energy. They welcomed me with the widest of smiles and the firmest of handshakes, their warm reception a striking (and most refreshing) contrast to yet another cold and rainy Vancouver afternoon. Formalities naturally evolved into friendly banter back and forth. They are such a delight to speak with from the very beginning.
Diane and Shona’s enthusiasm, passion, and infectious energy are a testament to the working environment behind the doors of Fresh Choice Kitchens. Its humble beginnings stem from the concept of community kitchens, combining the simple pleasures of communal gatherings with wholesome and nutritious food. The frequency of communal, sit-down dinners have significantly decreased with the onslaught of technology, the exponential growth of social networking systems, the odd working hours, and the many other innumerable factors that have infiltrated and therefore defined the “norm” of the 21st century. Good, nutritious, healthful meals are catalysts to long-lasting community ties. The sautéing, the chopping, and the overall process behind food preparation – these activities become vehicles for conversation, for banter, for witty repartee, for emotional unloading. What better way to return to the good old days of communal dinners than to partake in community kitchens?
In 1996, the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project was launched, catching the attention and support of Vancouver Coastal Health, BC Gas (now Terasen Gas), and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society. By 1998, 25 community kitchens have been organized, self-directed and fully operational with help from the various workshops and [kitchen] equipment drives organized by those involved in the Vancouver Community Kitchen Project. The focus of the project eventually shifted to providing a resource centre for small groups and communities interested in starting various CKs all across Vancouver and eventually, the entire province. The Vancouver Community Kitchen Project changed their name to Fresh Choice Kitchens in 2008 to reflect this evolution. Diane Collis, Fresh Choice Kitchens manager, helps organize seasonal workshops, Level I courses on Food Safe, and equipment drives to help jumpstart any group looking into developing a CK program in their community. Shona Lam’s organizational and newfound social networking skills have helped brought awareness of this long-standing concept to the online demographic. The people at Kontent Creative, for instance, have worked closely with Fresh Choice Kitchens and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society to raise funds for these projects through Innovation Camps. The amalgamation of the social media realm and this highly-evolved CK project made for a natural, super-charged pairing, one that will most certainly bloom with time, dedication, and perseverance.
The emphasis, really, is on the most basic of human needs. We need to be sated both physically and mentally. We need food to survive. Camaraderie and human companionship, abstract and intangible concepts, is food for our souls. Combine healthful, seasonal, nutritious (yet affordable!) food with human interaction and you have before you the recipe for success. Diane and Shona, in their warm reception, allowed me to glimpse but a minute fraction of what goes behind these open doors. I can hardly wait to participate in the cooking session that is to occur on the 10th of December. This post is merely a prelude to the fun that awaits my person over the next few weeks.
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For an in-depth article on the concept behind Community Kitchens, Diane Collis, manager of Fresh Choice Kitchens, has written a wonderful article for SPARC BC here.
For more information on Fresh Choice Kitchens, visit CommunityKitchens.ca
Fresh Choice Kitchens has also released a cookbook titled Many Hands, available in all Vancouver Capers Community Markets, or online. You can find more information on this wonderful cookbook here. The cookbook places emphasis on cooking as a community; the recipes in this book are tailored to accommodate communal cooking sessions and feeding large groups of people!
For information on how to donate to this wonderful project, click here.
"Fused Network really lives up to their ratings.. their support level is near perfect. Bottom line, I recommend this web hosting service if you are running a small business."
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