User blog:BrianXP7/Development Blog: PetiTouch (10-31-2013)

Well, it's been a while, but I'm finally back. (A little rusty but, still.) So, here's a little update on that thing I've been working on that most of you probably have already forgotten.

If you guys saw the updated PetiTouch page, it annouced that it will have the license verification system that I've posted as the second demo of POSP (or PTC Open-Source Project, alluding to the Android Open Source Project). (Audience: "Boo!!!") Yes, I know. I'm evil for bring DRM to Petit Computer so pirates won't be able to steal our free and open-source programs. (Props to TwinArmageddonz for the original joke via live chat.) Actually, I'm thinking of using it as a closed beta controller as explained in the POSP page. It could actually be useful for limiting the amount of bug complaints and actually hearing back from trusted members. However, I never really tested that scenario yet and I'm not sure about the community reception. A lot of people reacted negatively towards GoalieSave25's attempted Minecraft recreation because of the private distribution method, exposing your email to spam bots that might be lurking around. You might not even be picked anyway or even get a response. (I admit I was one of the attackers. I accused him of progress fraud because of the shady distribution method and absurd assumptions on Petit Computer's limitations.) But then I thought private access control might work well in some situations. That's when I thought that it wasn't the idea of private distribution that receive negative reception, it was how he executed it that upset many people. So, I've did some research on what people want and here's is my concept so far.

Instead of the entire program being distributed privately, I could use a license verification check instead. Just note, I have no intentions of selling this. (It goes against the MIT license on "freely available". This also applies to commercial use...for whatever reason you want to use this in a productivity environment. Basically, you can do whatever you want with it as long as proper credit is given because it still counts as copyrighted content. It's not currently in public domain and probably never will be.) So, you don't buy a license key but you obtain one through an email request. (Yes, I know what you're think. Just hear me out.) Instead exposing your email in the comments section, you'll be directed to a form where you enter your email securely only to me. (I plan to use Google Drive for the forms.) Just to make you feel a bit more comfortable with this, I'll have to agree some legal stuff that "I will not but not limited to selling, distributing, etc." your email address. It is (partially) your property. (The partial part isn't me, it's you email host.)

Also, getting the license key is completely optional for the intended use of PetiTouch. Yes, you don't need at all unless you want the bleeding edge features that might be very unstable, untested, experimental, "not ready for public production yet", etcetera. Everything stable and ready to be used without major issues can be used publicly.

I'm thinking a'gate merging PetiTouch as part of the PTC Open-Source Project as it's sort of associated to it in some way. I don't know, it could be a base operating system for anyone who want to improve it or summat. (Ay, the Yorkshire version of me is taking over...)

Finally, help is welcome but only for the demo repository as of now. Randomouscrap98 declined to contribute directly due to the lack of free time and other various reasons. However, he gave me permission to use pieces of his work. Anyone is still welcome to push a Git commit on the repository if you'd like.