If I design a template it doesn't mean I endorse the site its used on

Wednesday, January 31. 2007

I've had a disturbing email from some idiot who thinks I'm sending referral spam to his site just because the site in question uses a template I designed for Serendipity. Similarly I regularly receive harassing emails from people who don't agree with the politics of Ralph Nader.

Please understand that I design or port templates for fun, I do not do this to cause any concern on the part of other Internet users. Please understand that my template being used on another blog is not an endorsement of that site, nor does it imply that I own that site.

I'm going to update my contact form with this message, but if any of my regular readers have other suggestions short of contacting the authorities, then please email me.
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  1. YellowLed said,

    Thursday, February 1. 2007 at 03:02 (Reply)

    I'm puzzled: How does one get from s9y templates to Ralph Nader?!?

  2. carl said,

    Thursday, February 1. 2007 at 06:26 (Reply)

    He uses Serendipity as his CMS, and also one of my templates, but he doesn't have any contact details except the 'design by carl' link, so stupid people come to my site and harass me.

    It would be funny except for that whole Iraq war thing and some scary people think I'm fair game.

  3. Andreas said,

    Thursday, February 1. 2007 at 22:16 (Reply)

    Now, if there is anything i know a lot about, it is this problem. Hundreds of thousands of sites use my templates, and even though most people understand the difference between "site owner" and "template designer" there are still people who can click the "Design by Andreas Viklund" link, visit my own website, visit my contact page (which clearly explains very important things) and STILL miss the point.

    I've got a lot of legal threats, angry comments and requests to remove various things. I usually respons by demanding an apology, refering to the "IMPORTANT" text on my contact page (from which people send their e-mails). If I am told that I get "24 hours to take action" under the threat of a lawsuit, then I tell them that they have 24 hours to send their apology...

    I've been kind and friendly for 1,5 years now, and I continue to be kind and friendly to people who misunderstand the facts - but who are still friendly in their contact with me. But when people are aggressive, angry, rude or just stupid, I am very short and very clear back. "Apologize directly, or I will publish your e-mail in my blog to let people see how rude you are". It works.

    My advice would be to write a text that explains things, like I have done on my contact page. Then make sure people see that text before they contact you (put it on your contact page) and then send people who miss it back to read it. Don't waste time explaining things, you will get tired of it soon. Be very clear, short and refuse to get into any discussion - unless it is about the actual design template.

    Good luck!

  4. carl said,

    Friday, February 2. 2007 at 06:34 (Reply)

    Ah yes, I remember some of your entries about this point, and in the world of Serendipity designers I probably get the most abuse due to the default template, ordinarily I don't mind, it can be easy to confuse site owner with template designer, but when I get accused of sending spam or have threats sent to me it kinda takes away all the pleasure you get from releasing the design in the first place.

    Fortunately I have a very good legal team who are quick to serve notice to cease and desist if required, but I really don't like getting law enforcement agencies involved because some idiot doesn't get the difference. I have changed my contact form text, but I might write it up properly, and I think I will follow your advice about referring them back to that exact page with a demand for an apology.

  5. Judy said,

    Friday, February 2. 2007 at 06:57 (Reply)

    With regard to the Nader pages, the RSS feeds seem to have stopped functioning. Updates no longer show up. I use the latest version of Awasu and it works for all my other feeds (about 90 or so) Whatever the problem is it affects all the categories at Nader.org.

    Sorry you get so much flak about politics. I like Nader! I'd rather spend my vote on him than vote for a hawk like Kerry. :)

  6. Carl said,

    Friday, February 2. 2007 at 07:16 (Reply)

    Thanks Judy, unfortunately I have no contact with Ralph and I'm unable to pass on your message, I guess we just have to hope he's a regular but hidden reader of this blog.

    Oh, and for anyone else who reads this, I'm not even based in the USA, I am a European citizen and I have no interest in US domestic politics.

  7. Andreas said,

    Saturday, February 3. 2007 at 03:47 (Reply)

    This proves the point. The entry (and its comments) is all about the fact that you have nothing to do with the site. Yet a visitor completely ignores the text, or atleast misses the point, and comments as if you were personally responsible for the functionality of the site...

    Again, I see this every day. It is a problem that template designers and theme coders have to live with, but it is good that it comes up for discussion every now and then. Feel free to write a follow-up post if you see any improvement or learn any new good tricks.

  8. Carl said,

    Saturday, February 3. 2007 at 07:35 (Reply)

    lol, I thought the same thing when I read it, and frankly I couldn't care less if another person's blog has an error in their RSS feed, as long as mine works!

    I'm waiting for your SEO entry before I write my follow-up, this way I can refer to another site where the techniques work, and then just add my 2 cents for what they're worth.

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