The Facts Of The Tektek Fiasco - Includes a speculative FAQ!

[Honesty Kruse]

As of 25 March 2015, Tektek is closed.

"So long, and thanks for all the fish!"
-- Honesty Kruse, quoting a book by Douglas Adams.

gaia_star May 19 2015: gaia_star
The new Gaia Avatar Builder (beta) is here! Please check out this post for some info about the builder and for links to provide feedback.

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Preface

Around 10 March 2015, there appeared a message and links to a C&D letter by Gaia on the main page of Tektek--a site full of free, useful resources for the Gaia Online community that had been around for almost a decade--requesting the removal of Gaia's intellectual property from the site, and for Tekton (site owner) to send back a written reply as to his compliance in the matter.

Many threads were started up in response to this as users openly voiced their dissatisfaction with Gaia on top of other frustrations, such as the closing of the zOMG MMO game, incessent Cash Shop announcements, etc. The majority talked about leaving the site, declared Gaia a corporate monster, or demanded that Tektek be saved.

I created this topic to compile official word on the matter, and tried to crunch up all the implications into bite sized pieces.

I hope I did an okay job of it.

25/Mar/2015

With all the name calling and hate speeches going around, it's tough to find the info about the situation that actually matters.
Here's some of the stuff I've come across, but if you guys can show me more things, I might add them here too. I recommend going straight down to the FAQ if all you want are answers.

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gaia_crown THE FACTS_ gaia_crown

Tektek's side of the story:

Tektek.org Front Page Message

-- Source (as of 10 March 2015)

Letter (part 1) *Note that I censored Tekton's name and address myself beause privacy.

Letter (part 2) *Note that I censored the General Manager's name myself beause privacy.

Gaia's side of the story:

Past Records: Oldest at the top; Newest at the bottom.

bluealaris

TekTek Update

Hello Gaians,

We wanted to take a moment to provide some transparency in our recent letter sent to TekTek, what it means for the site, and why we sent it. As you may know, we are currently contacting TekTek over its usage of our intellectual property (IP). Let's outline the basic reasons: for a very long time, TekTek has benefited from the traffic generated by users travelling to their site from Gaia Online, and users have been able to utilize TekTek to craft dream Gaia Online avatars. In fact, many users aren’t even aware that it is an entirely separate site from Gaia, and one we have no input on. In general, there has been a healthy relationship between TekTek and Gaia Online as we have allowed this. Many, many months ago, TekTek launched a competitor site that directly began featuring ads on services carrying our intellectual property. As a business practice, this is not okay and we would like to resolve the matter with TekTek in a way that allows their site to remain up, and our property to stay protected. We are waiting for them to reply to our initial letter, taking the site down is our final resort if we are unable to come to a mutually beneficial decision.

We would like to thank Gaians for their understanding as we continue to work through this. We will update you all when we have a resolution to this.

-- Source

Memphis118

I've been reading through a lot of the site feedback as well as GDC, and it just seems interesting. Tektek was given two options:

1. Remove banners / ads re-directing traffic to his other site (and he can keep TekTek up and running)

or

2. Shut down completely

Tektek simply chose to shut down. I know that bluealaris is trying to work something out with the owner of Tektek, but if he simply decides to shut down, it's his choice, not ours.

-- Source

Memphis118

AleNeko

Thank you, but I've read it clearly even before and there are still many reasons why he may have not received it the same day: one for example, is that he may not have checked his mail (if you all check your mail daily good for you, I personally keep forgetting about it).
And I'm going to stop here, besides any reason, I just hate when people assume without having any knowledge of facts.

We understand smile Not everyone checks their emails each day. Bottom line is, he decided to shut down without any discussion at all. Bluealaris is still open to a discussion I believe. The balls in his court to respond to us.

-- Source

(NPC) Gaia Staff

That being said, we are still waiting to hear back from TekTek about reaching a compromise that is mutual beneficial. This would mean finding a way to keep the site up and accessible for users. We understand that there are users that find features of TekTek, such as the dream avatar creator and account worth calculator, very valuable and useful. As a result, should the worst come to worst and the site get shut down, then we will start exploring the possibilities of creating these features for Gaia Online. Should this happen, we will not be able to deliver an exact replica of them, however, their function will be comparable.

-- Source

bluealaris

X_Gokai-Okuzuko_X

events
who in the company signed the tektek c&d? why was it filed now and not when recolor ads launched?

I signed the C & D. We sent it now because it is obviously not okay to be hosting a site that receives direct traffic (and substantial ad revenue as a consequence of this) and then posts imbedded advertising for a competitor site that they own. Our previous GMs were addressing other legal and internal issues, but this was going to happen eventually. Its not my or Gaia Online's intention to deprive our users of a feature that they use and love. We're very open to negotiating an agreement or compromise where Tektek continues to exist in harmony with Gaia.

-- Source

Latest: 24 March 2015

(NPC) Gaia Staff

TekTek Update
Currently we still have not made any resolution to the TekTek website going down. As it is, we are planning to create an avatar worth calculator and a Dream Avatar Dress up system, multiple poses and a direct link to the marketplace to wishlist with. These are hesitantly scheduled for release in early May. We have re-opened the SCAS guild to test this feature along with a number of other released that are planned for late spring and early summer.

-- Source

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gaia_spoons FAQ (Speculative)_ gaia_spoons

gaia_nitemareleft Disclaimer: Note that from here on out, it's a lot of guesswork with some helpful info by other people mixed in._ gaia_nitemareright

gaia_star Bring Tektek back! / Just hire Tekton!


According to what I've seen some people say, *Tekton had made comments in the past years that indicate his growing distaste of Gaia. And now that Tekton has his own site to manage, his involvement had gradually trickled to a halt the more time he spent on his site. *His volunteers' attempts to contact him when the site went down is an example of this.

Add on the fact that Tektek is a lot of work with no personal benefits that only bettered his own competitor, it's not surprising that Tekton would want to clean his hands of Tektek entirely.


gaia_star Gaia's only doing this because they're not getting money!


Staff have clarified that they could have left Tektek alone had Tekton removed the ads for his site. (See Gaia's side of the story > Past Records above)

The way I see it:


1. Gaia had tried to contact Tekton about the recolor ads to let him know he shouldn't be doing that.
   
   
2. Tekton didn't respond. Ads stayed up while people kept on using Tektek, which had taken steps to make the link back to Gaia as obscure as possible in favor of making the recolor ads almost unavoidable. (See answer about ads further below)
   
   
3. Gaia's only option to get his attention at this point is legal action. They chose to use terms that would disallow him from using their images if he doesn't get in touch with them, which I think is what they really wanted.
   
   
4. Not only was Tekton still refusing to contact them, he also posted the letter alongside a lukewarm message on the front page of Tektek. According to word from the staff during the 24 March ATS, there's still no word from him, making it very likely that he has no intention of negotiating at all.


For more information on the letter itself, please refer to II O P A L II's post about the legal language of the letter and claims of infringement.

For further reference on the laws referred to in the letter:


• Title 17 of the United States Code (Copyright Law of the United States of America)
  
• Section 43 of the Lanham Act (False designations of origin, false descriptions, and dilution forbidden)


As a follow up on that second law about misleading representation (i.e. people mistaking Tektek for Gaia), the following links (source) serve to prove that such a thing is possible. Please also note that intelligence alone doesn't save people from making mistakes.


• TEK TEK IS NOT WORKING FIX PLEASE
  
• TekTek question, can't find item.
  
• Issues with TekTek IMG posting code
  
• Tektek worth calculator/dream avatar maker question
  


gaia_star But Gaia infringes on copyrights too! Like with their Pokemon stuff.


We can have our opinions, but ultimately the ones to decide that are the companies of the inspiration source and their lawyers.


gaia_star Then why didn't Gaia tell Tektek to shutdown when it had ads to other avatar sites?


BucketHead1693 informs us about the difference between ads on Tektek that were advertising places like Ernya or Solia (ad packages), and the one for recolor.me (controlled ad):




BucketHead1693

Ad packages can only be controlled so far and even then, they are usually heavily based on a member's search history and things of that sort. The only time they're really controlled by a site owner is if there's a malicious ad that has to be removed. Otherwise, ad packages are not controlled.

The recolor.me ads, HOWEVER, were not part of any ad package or what usually is defined as an ad. Tekton purposely coded the recolor.me ad as an image with a link to the website that was directly integrated into TekTek's website layout in order to completely bypass things like adblock and whatnot. The only way to block recolor.me's ads would be by manually adblocking that element on the page via adblock. THAT is having direct control over an ad.
The fact Tekton purposely did this while having no other ads or ad packages on the site is WHY the ads became a problem. That's directly trying to aim and outsource to a competitor. That was him directly using someone's IP as a resource to gain members.

I just think people really need to be aware of this since there is a huge difference between ad packages and controlled ads.
I guess the best way I could put it would be by comparing it to TV. Most TV channels have ad packages playing and sometimes they have their own ads integrated in. Nonetheless, it's still randomized. However, on other channels like premium channels and whatnot, they do not have ad packages. The only ads they have are ads for their own channel/series/movies.

While it's fine for premium channels to have their own ads on TV since they OWN the content, it's not okay for Tekton to try and do the same since he does not possess ownership over Gaia's content. I'm sure Gaia wouldn't have made a big deal had his ad been in an ad package but it wasn't. It was directly controlled and placed on the site outside of ad packages.



gaia_star None of this will stand in court!


TenderNothings has brought up some reasons for why Gaia would not be able to win this case if Tekton takes them to court:


• What staff has been saying does not add up to what's written in the C&D; neither the recolor.me site nor its ads were directy mentioned in the letter as the cause of the C&D, although they're what staff claims to be why the letter was sent. A C&D apparently needs to contain all its reasons for being sent, or else it can be contested in court.
  
  
• Gaia would need proof that recolor is a competitor, that Tektek had been diverting users to recolor, and that recolor had gained revenue through that.


I acknowledge that everything here amounts to just "guestimations and generalities and assumptions". But this is all we have until this case really does go to court, if that ever happens. I also wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the case just because of those two points, especially the latter. As far as I know, even circumstantial evidence in a civil court is still evidence until the judge says it isn't. At least, that's the impression Ace Attorney gave me. sweatdrop

In any case, if that's all it takes for Gaia to lose its case against Tektek, then that's all on their legal team really. confused


gaia_star Why hasn't Gaia made Dress Up/Inventory as good as Tektek's yet?


While we don't know why it hasn't been implemented in the past, here's what Gaia has to say about it's future:


(NPC) Gaia Staff

TekTek Update
Currently we still have not made any resolution to the TekTek website going down. As it is, we are planning to create an avatar worth calculator and a Dream Avatar Dress up system, multiple poses and a direct link to the marketplace to wishlist with. These are hesitantly scheduled for release in early May. We have re-opened the SCAS guild to test this feature along with a number of other released that are planned for late spring and early summer.


-- Source

We've already got the Inventory Worth function going, so here's to hoping that progress on the rest goes well.



gaia_star What can we do in the meantime?


Inventory worth is already here and still being worked on, but what about Tektek's other functions?


Dream Avatar Creator:

The only substitute atm seems to be the Dress Up function here on Gaia itself. It does have its limitations:


• Can't use multiple poses from the same item if equipping from Search All;
  
• No Skin Tyte/Potion previews;
  
• May not find certain items due to problems with tags.


If you turn animations off, you can right click on the preview, and save a bigger version of your avi.

For the standard avi size, you have two options:

If you own all the items:


Save your avatar, then use the Gaia Avatar Export. You can access it by following the Export Avatar Link under your dressing room preview, and then choosing Export an Avatar in the following page.


If you're using items from the Search All function:


Save the outfit to a free Outfit Slot, then right click and save the preview of the outfit.






Gradient Text

Ridley Starsmore recommended http://www.stuffbydavid.com/textcolorizer.

I also found http://patorjk.com/text-color-fader/.

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Profiles

There's Gaia Tools profiles, this cool guild, or try looking through Art Freebies. Here's one I found.

You can also use your gold to pay for profile coding services or learn to make one yourself.


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Quest Bars

You can make cool questbars at Go-Gaia now! They come in really cool colours and shapes. If you have more ideas for styles, drop them off at the feedback thread:


http://www.go-gaia.tk/


You can also commission quest bars from the people at the Personalized Graphics forum or learn to make your own with a graphic software.

If anyone is savvy with Javascript/jQuery and knows how to work with Imgur API, then it's possible to make a quest bar maker just like Tektek's, though you'd have get people to link to the pics of the items to replace Tektek's ability to pull those out from its own database. Here's cached code of Tektek's Questbar Generator page for reference, but it lacks the actual .js files.

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Item Lookups

Item Guides~

Also the What's That Item thread.

*Tags are also going be organized better by volunteers at some point.

Still being worked on, but Go-Gaia will have this feature.

http://www.go-gaia.tk/


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Toolbars

I'm personally using BetterGaia atm, and not only includes handy post formatting features, draw all daily chance function, and multiple announcement loading so you can see them all on one page, it makes the site look damn good to boot!

Tektek's Toolbar (link is to Firefox version) still works, but more as a catalog of handy links and a post formatter. The links to Tektek's features (including the extra emotes) are obviously all dead links though.

Gaia Arch for Firefox, successor to Gaia Tools, packs quite a few features to keep track of threads, as well as coming with it'sown post formatter and search bars. There seems to be an issue that causes errors to pop up, but it's possible to hide those and continue on as usual.

Gaia Plus for Chrome is a simple post formatter tool that does exactly what it says on the tin.

More recommendations are welcome!

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* = Sources/links needed to fully verify.

[snow danger]

tbh I don't really care that much about the whole thing. On one hand, I think Gaia did the right thing and acted perfectly reasonably. I also understand that the reason it happened now is that the new GM is dealing with a lot of things that should have been dealt with earlier in their new position - slowly cleaning things up if you will. That being said, I also understand the general anger about the situation. People despise change, and loosing something the community had access to for 10+ years or whatever it was will of course ruffle a few feathers. And of course people are so hyped up about some other legitimately bad decisions gaia has made in the past a lot of them are just looking for any excuse to go off.

that all being said, what is making me roll my eyes to the point where I think I've strained the muscles is the amount of people crying that the letter/decision to send it was mean. they remind me of people who call the insurance company that I work for to complain that the letters we are legally required to send out reminding them that if they don't pay for their insurance then the policy will be null and void are mean. these letters (and the letter gaia sent) are worded legally and fairly, and the reason they're sent are to protect our/gaia's interests while opening the door to communication.

We're willing to make allowances/changes if people need extra time to pay their insurance, and gaia was willing to work with tektek to find a solution. If we do not send a letter that follows a certain legal format, people can go to court if they become involved in an uninsured accident and sue us for a lot of money for not advising them properly that their policy was cancelled due to non-payment. If gaia did not send a letter that followed this legal format, tektek could have continued to operate in this way that infringes upon them and claimed legally that gaia obviously wasn't taking the situation seriously.

companies aren't required to hold your hand and gently set you down in a pile of pillows and rainbows and stroke your face while explaining to you in a soothing voice that you must follow the law, whether it be paying for the services you use or not infringing on their intellectual property. if you expect the world to coddle you and everyone else and find legal wording mean then tbh I worry for your ability to function in the adult world.

[Trekkette]

I had wondered if Tekton had just taken this opportunity to throw in the towel without it looking too much like his fault... crap.

Well, I'll miss tektek, I used to spend a lot of time on the dream avi creator, making avis and characters and just exploring... It was so nicely organized compared to Gaia's tagging.

On one final note, I don't think people being morons unable to read is a decent reason to be bringing up. As I recall, almost every page had a "not a Gaia Interactive product" warning. Fairly obvious, too.

[Honesty Kruse]

Trekkette

On one final note, I don't think people being morons unable to read is a decent reason to be bringing up. As I recall, almost every page had a "not a Gaia Interactive product" warning. Fairly obvious, too.

If you're referring to the links to the Tektek help threads, the reason they're there is because there are people who believe that confusing the two sites is absolutely impossible.

I also don't have any screenshots of how Tektek used to look like, but atm there are no 'not Gaia' warnings, and instead there's this at the bottom of every page:

Quote:

GaiaOnline.com content © Copyright 2003 - 2015 Gaia Interactive, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Which really isn't helpful if you didn't know it's not a part of Gaia Online in the first place.

[The Emwo]

Thank you for the informative thread! It's a shame what happened but if tektek goes down for good I hope a substitute goes out or the creator sells the domain or the source code to Gaia. A lot of.handy features will be missed and more of a pain to do.

[The Real Aaronjrbot]

Seems like Gaia is a sinking ship, with almost every single new announcement being some shitty advertisement to spend your real life money on their pixel items. Now it seems that after smashing more holes into their vessel by removing zOMG and not offering an alternative to replace it they start burning their sails by threatening Tektek. I've used TekTek over the many years for when I am creating a backstory for my characters i cosplay as irl so that I have at least a base of how I want my costume to look like, but now it seems I will be losing the tool i've cherished for so long over a dispute that all boils down to the root of all evil. MONEY.
RIP Gaia
I miss the old you, but I think it's about time I make like a soured old relationship with an ex girlfriend and GET OVER YOU.

[Knight of Britannia]

The Real Aaronjrbot

Seems like Gaia is a sinking ship, with almost every single new announcement being some shitty advertisement to spend your real life money on their pixel items. Now it seems that after smashing more holes into their vessel by removing zOMG and not offering an alternative to replace it they start burning their sails by threatening Tektek. I've used TekTek over the many years for when I am creating a backstory for my characters i cosplay as irl so that I have at least a base of how I want my costume to look like, but now it seems I will be losing the tool i've cherished for so long over a dispute that all boils down to the root of all evil. MONEY.
RIP Gaia
I miss the old you, but I think it's about time I make like a soured old relationship with an ex girlfriend and GET OVER YOU.

I'm not trying to be rude here, but... did you read the OP's post? sweatdrop

[Honesty Kruse]

The Real Aaronjrbot

Those are plenty of good reasons to leave Gaia, and I'm sad about Tektek closing too. ):

But with Tekton establishing himself as a competitor, it probably wouldn't have been long before he just closed it down himself.

I wish you good luck in finding a new site.

[The Real Aaronjrbot]

Honesty Kruse

The Real Aaronjrbot

Those are plenty of good reasons to leave Gaia, and I'm sad about Tektek closing too. ):

But with Tekton establishing himself as a competitor, it probably wouldn't have been long before he just closed it down himself.

I wish you good luck in finding a new site.

Thank you. Maybe one day I will flock back to Gaia...

[Twisted Lady]

I feel like if Gaia actually ever had an issue with Tektek being confused for their official product, then it's at least partially their fault for outright encouraging its use in various staff messages over the years. Hell, the Welcoming Fairy has a whole spiel about using Tektek in one of her dingbat messages.

[Honesty Kruse]

Twisted Lady

I feel like if Gaia actually ever had an issue with Tektek being confused for their official product, then it's at least partially their fault for outright encouraging its use in various staff messages over the years. Hell, the Welcoming Fairy has a whole spiel about using Tektek in one of her dingbat messages.

I guess it wasn't so bad before because there wasn't really any other avatar sites to confuse it with, and Tektek really was a cool thing for Gaians to use. But then Tekton has his own avatar site now so that sours things.

I wonder if it'd have been alright if Tekton had put on a much clearer banner that directs people to Gaia. But with how sparse he's made Tektek's recent layout look and making the recolor.me ad the most flashy thing on there... guess he doesn't want to do that. :/

[The Belletrist]

Honesty Kruse

Examples of people mistaking Tektek for Gaia

I've had students in my class mistake John Lennon for Elvis.
That only means that there are some less than intelligent or
insightful people...not that there is a precedent for legality.

[h0ujun]

ninja