> This is getting ridiculous: the Svbtle design is not open source, and I have never given permission for anyone to use it with Wordpress.
Dude. Without trademarks, patents, or copyright, there's not much you can do. There is no permission for you to give or not give, unless your actual code is being ripped off. There is no "open source" license that the Svbtle design could be licensed under even if you wanted to do so. You could probably get a patent on the design. Apple has patents on rounded corners and page turning, for example. Once you publish something or offer it for sale in the US, you have one year to file for a patent. You still have time, but of course, IANAL.
Whether he has legal recourse, he can still call people out on it. These Svbtle clones are way beyond "taking inspiration" the way one phone takes inspiration from another and incrementally improves or differentiates on it.
They're blatantly, outright, misleading. I had no idea it was a clone until now.
Also IANAL but I think it's more likely to be protected by copyright than a patent, which means there's no short-term limit like that.
georgeorwell, they didn't copy the manual and logo (or even the implementations). They just built a compatible interface.
To a human, a blog with a different theme would still be a compatible interface.
It's one thing to clone hardware or software, but another to misrepresent it as being from the same source as the original.
He holds the copyright to the html code, css, etc, the moment he writes it. He holds the sole right to license his work. You (figurative "you") don't see a license? That means it hasn't been licensed to you and your re-use of it constitutes copyright infringement.
That's why I wrote, "unless your actual code is being ripped off." I understand that if it isn't a reimplementation, it is copyright infringement. I strongly doubt that this is what is happening, but if it is, dcurtis should get a lawyer. He should probably get a lawyer anyway if he's serious about protecting his work.
Yup. While part of what makes Svbtle original is the admin panel, the look itself is basically just Clarus, a free Tumblr theme, without the gradient.
I've stood up for Dustin on other matters, but I think he's in the wrong when he tries to call out people for stealing what essentially amounts to border-radiuses and an original, albeit poor UX, like button. That said, there is a brand aesthetic here and a reputation that goes along with it, so I do think it's pretty tacky for people to use the theme and misguide people reading their blogs into thinking they're a part of this internet cool kid's club, whatever your thoughts on invite-only blogging platforms may be.
Then why not sign up for it directly? Hypothetically, if you hadn't discovered it from some other tech blog using it (many of which have been linked here), the steps to find it probably went from trying to fill out the actual form on Svbtle, realizing it's an application not a registration, and then Googling an alternative.
All things said, there are so many better looking minimalist WP themes out there for me to believe most folks chose this one at random. If it trended on lists and blogs, it was because enough people who recognized the potential made it so.
The sentence doesn't parse well. She is referring to the "like button" at the top right that you hover over if you want to give people kudos (on Svbtle) or likes (elsewhere).
Putting a "Design by @DCURTIS" tagline in the footer is really weird, to me it implies some connection (where there is none). If you are going to copy without permission, don't imply that you have permission like this. I know it probably just comes default in the WP theme, but this applies to you and the theme creator.
I know many will argue it shouldn't matter, but it really makes me subconsciously think less of the blog author and the post's content.
No offense Dustin (and of course everyone does exactly that) but I thought this post was one of the best ones I've ever read on your network - then it turns out it's not on your network.
Svbtle is a killer design. A true innovation, and it's impeccable. The writers aren't meeting the same standards though.
