Creative Labs to sue a driver modder (Daniel_K)

[end3rkid]

Daniel_K:

We are aware that you have been assisting owners of our Creative sound cards for some time now, by providing unofficial driver packages for Vista that deliver more of the original functionality that was found in the equivalent XP packages for those sound cards. In principle we don't have a problem with you helping users in this way, so long as they understand that any driver packages you supply are not supported by Creative. Where we do have a problem is when technology and IP owned by Creative or other companies that Creative has licensed from, are made to run on other products for which they are not intended. We took action to remove your thread because, like you, Creative and its technology partners think it is only fair to be compensated for goods and services. The difference in this case is that we own the rights to the materials that you are distributing. By enabling our technology and IP to run on sound cards for which it was not originally offered or intended, you are in effect, stealing our goods. When you solicit donations for providing packages like this, you are profiting from something that you do not own. If we choose to develop and provide host-based processing features with certain sound cards and not others, that is a business decision that only we have the right to make.

Although you say you have discontinued your practice of distributing unauthorized software packages for Creative sound cards we have seen evidence of them elsewhere along with donation requests from you. We also note in a recent post of yours on these forums, that you appear to be contemplating the release of further packages. To be clear, we are asking you to respect our legal rights in this matter and cease all further unauthorized distribution of our technology and IP. In addition we request that you observe our forum rules and respect our right to enforce those rules. If you are in any doubt as to what we would consider unacceptable then please request clarification through one of our forum moderators before posting.

Phil O'Shaughnessy
VP Corporate Communications
Creative Labs Inc.

Source
http://forums.creative.com/creativel...read.id=116332

Digg
http://digg.com/hardware/Creative_th...mmunity_modder

[One_Hertz]

I am with creative on this one... He went too far.

[iadstudio]

Doesnt seem right he is asking for donations.

Case closed. Pretty clear laws on this.

[Nelly]

They should employ the guy, he's obviously got more talent than the rubbish Creative software writers - 1 guy making improvements in which a company like Creative seem to struggle.

I dont think I'll buy products from Creative anymore, they just cannot deliver in terms of software support / compatability.

[ThunderChunky]

They aren't suing him.

[frupert]

I agree Creative should tackle this issue in a lot more friendlier way and at least attempt to hire him... Who knows, maybe they have tried... But yeah accepting donations aint right...

[aiya_au]

They aren't suing him.

exactly what I was thinking..

[003]

What did he do exactly?

[rusty]

donations are optional in most cases so if you don't wanna pay just don't pay, creative sucks I had several cards including the expensive ones their support sucks a... they should stop outsourcing those lame "programmers"

[Nelly]

exactly what I was thinking..

Modified Creative software so it was compatable in Vista for one so it was fully fuctional just like it was in XP.

[munim]

That's a pretty decent e-mail or letter, props.

[TRF-Inferno]

This is more like a Cease & Desist letter.

[Brother Esau]

They should employ the guy, he's obviously got more talent than the rubbish Creative software writers - 1 guy making improvements in which a company like Creative seem to struggle.

I dont think I'll buy products from Creative anymore, they just cannot deliver in terms of software support / compatability.

I agree with you whole heartedly on this one Nelly! Obviously if CREATIVE Driver team did not suck so bad at coding software for their Hardware people such as this fella wouldn't need to do such things to provide people with decent drivers for their Hardware products from CREATIVE

Personally I went Auzentech about 9 months ago and I have not looked back since! Auzentech just makes a superior product PERIOD and no Bull Sh**t CREATIVE software to plague my system any longer.

[imapwnu]

WTF Creative?

Hire him to do QA or development on your drivers

I thought you guys would know better?

[fart_plume]

There is a creative labs facility about 30 miles from where I'm at in Stillwater, Ok. Knew a couple of guys who worked there and from them I could tell how lame they were years ago. The first indication was when i talked to one of these guys and He started bragging on their new video card(serval years ago). When I told him that it had already been reveiwed by Maximum PC and the the Nvidia and Amd cards at the time that it was compared to blew it out of the water, he wouldn't believe me. About a month later He comes up to me and tells me they stoppedallthe research on it and shut down their video card unit..........

[bluehaze]

Seems like a typical politically correct letter from Creative. don't know all the details of the incident but if as was stated the guy was enabling full functionality in Vista that was previously available to owners of Creative sound cards using XP then Creative should rot in hell...if not and the guy is doing something illegal here and asking for donations in the process well then go Creative shut him down

[Zytek_Fan]

Maybe Creative shouldn't make such rubbish drivers

[Omastar]

Uh oh, Joe Blow is making us look bad. Shut him down!

[fart_plume]

I bought one of there sound blaster live cards, had to rma it and i have never had one of their live cards work right.

[Brother Esau]

AUZENTECH......FTW!!!!!!!!

[zanzabar]

if it wasnt for that guy i know atleast 10 people personally who wouldent have gotten creative cards

AUZENTECH......FTW!!!!!!!!

their cards even do better with his drivers (atleast the xfi based one)

[003]

There is a creative labs facility about 30 miles from where I'm at in Stillwater, Ok. Knew a couple of guys who worked there and from them I could tell how lame they were years ago. The first indication was when i talked to one of these guys and He started bragging on their new video card(serval years ago). When I told him that it had already been reveiwed by Maximum PC and the the Nvidia and Amd cards at the time that it was compared to blew it out of the water, he wouldn't believe me. About a month later He comes up to me and tells me they stoppedallthe research on it and shut down their video card unit..........

ROFL!!

[Nelly]

I think this about sums up the real truth behind it.

Where we do have a problem is when technology and IP owned by Creative or other companies that Creative has licensed from, are made to run on other products for which they are not intended.

We purchased your products in good faith with said technology and intellectual property in a working state. It is Creative who chose of their own free will to use Vista as an excuse to purposefuly disable that technology and intellectual property effectively bricking hardware that people paid good money to Creative for. You have absolutely no moral right to complain becuase people are getting what they actualy paid for, albeit from a non Creative source. If you lot had pulled your finger out a year ago, this would not be a problem. Your statement only further proves that this was no more than a financial decision on Creatives part, and nothing to do with wether or not the hardware was capable, becuase it obviously was. I feel Creative saw this as an opertunity to con the consumer into believing that by adopting the Windows Vista operating system, they would be required the purchase new Creative hardware to once again be in a position to take advantage of Creatives technology and intellectual property, a blatent missuse of Creatives market position and extremely bad business practice. Creative has taken their customer base for idiots plain and simple, unfortunately for you, we're not, and incase you were any doubt of that, take a look at your finances. Its only going to get worse.

[Brother Esau]

if it wasnt for that guy i know atleast 10 people personally who wouldent have gotten creative cards





their cards even do better with his drivers (atleast the xfi based one)

Worst choice they ever made was to get wrapped up with CREATIVE because EAX does Jack all Many have brought that argument to the table with gaming and my card runs flawlessly with superb clarity in gaming without EAX and I had a XFI Platinum before this card and hands down CREATIVE Sucks next to Auzentech across the board and I was one of the lucky XFI owners that never had issue one with the card .

[WeaponX]

Well, you're not forced install the software package that Creative provides, you can just install the drivers. Not defending Creative, just saying, if you don't like the software, don't install it.