What is Digg?Sponsored by HowLifeWorks
How Much Are You Over-Paying For Your Auto Insurance view!
howlifeworks.com - Car insurance rates have dropped leaving many people paying far more than they need to...
66 Comments
- iNunchuk, on 01/08/2008, -2/+35You know, that David Watanabe needs a good ass kicking. Seriously, who the hell charges $46 to buy a program that can be used to download illegal software?
Sounds like he's capitalizing on the business model of ebaumsworld...bastard. He should get hacked. - MikeDugg, on 01/08/2008, -1/+25dave watanabe is the biggest ass. Don;t pay for his software, steal it!
- drobati, on 01/08/2008, -1/+24Wow, I thought I was the only one who had a bad experience with him! Looks like I'm not alone. This guy was an ***** when I was dealing with him. I had bought Newsfire once before. Then bought a bundle that promised me a 'compensation' for any software already purchased. When I didn't get that compensation I contacted Dave and asked if he could switch the serial over to a different piece of software of equal value or perhaps change the serial linked to a different email for a friend or something. He replied telling me to get lost and that my payment wasn't worth exchanging, despite my having bought previous software.
My experience with him left me bitter. I refuse to purchase software from this ***** and fully support everyone else to avoid giving him money. I was an honest paying customer and I didn't deserve the negative treatment.
Dave, Go ***** yourself. - Eriksson, on 01/08/2008, -1/+22Uninstalled.
- jklikesnews, on 01/08/2008, -1/+19That's not the issue. The issue is that he alters the order of the search results to benefit himself. He places certain items at the top that wouldn't be there if you just went to google. And he does this without telling people. If he simply tacked an affiliate code on the end without jacking up the order, then it'd be no big deal in my book.
- Sangatious, on 01/08/2008, -0/+17Wondering if you meant the title to be clever like that.
- Takuro, on 01/08/2008, -0/+14Watanabe isn't exactly the most popular guy in the world of Apple software. The man has no problem making programs that help people pirate other programmer's work, but when it comes to his own apps, he goes to insane lengths to make sure it's locked down and that people pay exorbitant prices for it.
It's a shame. He makes some of the nicest programs on the block. But still, the guy's a real a-hole. It's no surprise that among the underground scene, there's no lack of people who are willing to help crack his programs and remove any shady back-end code. - AGiantBear, on 01/08/2008, -0/+13No thanks. It's generally a ripoff of other software (xtorrent uses Transmission's base code) and its only distinguishing feature is a nice UI, which isn't exactly rare among Mac apps.
- Kypt, on 01/08/2008, -0/+12Why would he bother answering emails? He already has your money...
- relaxeder, on 04/17/2009, -0/+12I like inquisitor, but I wish he'd answer my emails. I have a paid copy of acquisition that hasn't worked for over a ***** month and I'm getting no help whatsoever.
- hagridore, on 01/08/2008, -0/+8I stopped using Inquisitor ages ago for this very reason. Its just dishonest that he is not upfront about this.
- JuyLe, on 01/08/2008, -3/+10Steal his software, or get the open source one that has been copied with a more eye candy interface (that makes is less usable). He doesn't deserve any penny.
- r00tus3r, on 01/08/2008, -0/+7It really is one of the better puns I've seen on digg.
- Firehed, on 01/08/2008, -1/+8Apple software is dirt cheap for what you're getting.
- littleodie914, on 01/08/2008, -0/+7Dave really is an ass. Not only does he charge up the ass for his software, even the free trials feel hampered by his nagging messages and "time trial speed caps."
Honestly, he makes great programs. NewsFire and Acquisition are really top-notch in terms of polish and quality. But they're not worth as much as he charges, and they certainly aren't work dealing with his pompous attitude. - nostartnoend, on 01/08/2008, -0/+4AcidSearch is 100x better than Inquisitor and the dev is a) nice and b) honest, two qualities that Wantanabe is lacking. Oh, and it's also freeware.
- pixelmatrix, on 01/08/2008, -0/+4That's blowing things out of proportion a little bit i'd say. Making a top link an affiliate is no different then what Google or any other search engine does except it says that it's an affiliate. Why does it matter? You are not paying more for the stuff you buy from Amazon, just paying for his time on the app. There is no way he is making very much off these links.
- GarrettB, on 01/08/2008, -1/+5You guys make it as you guys talk to him on a daily basis, I am surprised how many of you say you've talked to him.
- akatsuki, on 01/08/2008, -0/+4So is there an open source alternative. I have had middling experiences with him, he seemed a bit curt when I had a question about NewsFire, but given other people's experiences, I would like to switch off of Inquisitor because I would rather have search results instead of his doggy food...
And only say Firefox once they add Safari-compatible keychain support. - RedS0x, on 01/08/2008, -1/+5Wait you mean Microsoft right? $400 for a half-broken OS?
- fani, on 01/08/2008, -0/+3*****. I knew this was too good to be true. Sadly I liked Inquisitor but looks like its too inquisitive for its own good
- plasticated, on 01/08/2008, -6/+9He made a useful app and let people download it for free. Would you rather pay for it, or get it for free and let Amazon pay for it? Seems the only thing he did wrong was to not openly disclose the business model.
- Firehed, on 01/08/2008, -2/+5What do you care? If you don't want to buy it, then don't. There are plenty of free torrent clients out there.
It's not as if it damages your search results by having an affiliate link. Amazon search results always come near the top if it's a product (just like Wikipedia results), and it's not like the product costs more if it's got an affiliate link in it. If he makes money because you were using software he gave you for free, what's it to you?
If Amazon links are being artificially boosted in search results, that's a questionable approach. But if it's not the result you were looking for, then don't use it. If you were already looking to purchase the thing from Amazon, why should you care if someone gets a small cut of the sale that doesn't in any way whatsoever influence the price of the product? - YEMandy, on 01/08/2008, -0/+3sounds like you were kinda the dick in that conversation
- Emused, on 01/09/2008, -0/+3Watanabe = What a Knob
- forsgren, on 01/08/2008, -1/+4Wow, David Watanabe does it again. Why am I not chocked? Oh, that's right...
David sure can be really, really rude in email conversations regarding his applications as well. I have stopped using Acquisition and will most likely stop using Inquisitor as well.
Why isn't there a open source clone of it available yet? Oh, clone xTorrent as well.
This guy deserves it. - zacwhite, on 01/08/2008, -2/+5I have had similar problems with him and believe me...these aren't isolated issues.
My mother bought Acquisition by accident because she thought it was another piece of software that she used (yeah, I know...mothers do that apparently). His payment system defaults to his little add ons (free lifetime upgrades and family pack) so she payed way too much. He would not refund her any money because it would be too much trouble and it was her fault anyway. Well, of course it was her fault, but he was still a dick for keeping my mother's money when she hadn't even activated his software.
Although I don't really have a huge problem with people putting affiliate links in software, I really have a problem with Watanabe's practices in general. If you care at all about having support or dealing with a pleasant person, please reconsider buying his software.
Interesting blog post:
http://squidnews.com/2007/04/17/david-watanabe-the ...
Chat with him about my mother's purchase:
http://zacwhite.com/david.txt - jamms, on 01/09/2008, -0/+2why would anyone use Xtorrent when there is transmission?
- caldaean, on 01/08/2008, -1/+3Except that xTorrent is stuck with a really old version of the transmission engine that is, if he isn't breaking the licence terms of that library. The whole XTorrent thing is making money out of someone else's work with the backend, without giving anything back.
- technoredneck, on 01/08/2008, -0/+2Disclosure, bud, disclosure. It's distasteful at best to put an affiliate link in the results without disclosing it's such.
From the article: "It's when those links are directly promoted by the owner and the affiliate urls are masked that it becomes a question of ethics for some." - hoyaman, on 01/09/2008, -0/+2Well, actually he made a share product, and after he didn't sell quite as many as he'd hoed for, he made it free, didn't issue refunds, still request donations, AND doesn't disclose that he's ***** your search results.
So he's done a bit more than just not disclose his affiliate program. - gharding, on 01/08/2008, -1/+3If the developers of Transmission didn't want that happening, then they shouldn't have used the MIT license allowing it to happen. I don't like xtorrent or Watanabe, but he is doing nothing wrong. This is part of the open-source model Transmission and their developers chose to participate in. As far as I know, they don't have a problem with Watanabe using their code.
- jklikesnews, on 01/08/2008, -1/+3No, not like google searches. When you do that on google it clearly states "Sponsored Ads" at the top. With Inquisitor everything appears the same, leading you to believe the results are unbiased.
- Waskonator, on 01/08/2008, -3/+5Dugg for the clever picture. :-D
- jsblechman32, on 01/09/2008, -0/+2Xtorrent sucks anyways because the search aspect of the program doesn't alllow you to view people comments about the torrents and this is a great way to get nasty spyware, viruses, and/or bad files.
- drobati, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1That would be 46 dollars. (As of current prices.)
And hes right, the check boxes are automatically checked. - Angostura, on 01/08/2008, -0/+1Yeh, but presumably you actually want decent search results, as opposed to links that make him money.
- DagMX, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1Actually they have commented on his use(though I believe it was implied, but clearly so)
Which is why they shifted license model afterwards. - coldfusion1970, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1I can tell you honestly that i've never had a problem with it finding what i want "as i type".
Great software which my browser couldnt live without. - werkerb33, on 01/08/2008, -1/+2Agree in principle; everybody needs a paycheck. But silently reordering results for profit is an issue. Now if he had simply disclosed the practice and maybe even noted it in the return results (ala Google sponsored links) then he could make a million a month and I would think all would be well in the world. As it stands now, I am an unwilling participant.
- haydesigner, on 01/08/2008, -1/+2You mean, just like Google search results? Huh.
- pixelmatrix, on 01/08/2008, -2/+3whatever… I couldn't care less. At least it's transparent. I hate adware, at least this is useful!
- Timan, on 01/08/2008, -2/+3Doesn't firefox's search box do the same thing? Don't they earn money on search results?
- KAMiKAZOW, on 01/08/2008, -0/+1Open source clones? He used open source programs and added a custom GUI on top of it. Just get the originals.
Regarding Inquisitor: AFAIK Camino developers work on a similar feature and Camino is Safari-Keychain compatible. - nunofgs, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1Yes but they openly disclosed their business model and MORE IMPORTANTLY, they do not alter the order of the search results or inject fake search results!
- DagMX, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1The difference is that he will modify results to benefit him. Its not just affiliate links for amazon. it's itunes music, it's showing his applications first if you seach for similiar terms.
Whats more is that he isn't upfront about it. It's hidden activity. Think of it this way, it's very hard to trust a guy not to screw around with you more if he already screws peple over so much - badtzmartin, on 01/08/2008, -0/+1How much money are we talking about?
- rebotfc, on 01/08/2008, -0/+1Read the article, it's not that he puts affiliate links in, its that he hides the fact and promotes them to the top result.
- nunofgs, on 01/09/2008, -0/+1Let's clear this up. In Inquisitor, if you search for 'xbox live arcade', the very FIRST result will be an amazon link to buy an xbox with his affiliate code.
He is injecting his own fake results into your searches. - relaxeder, on 04/17/2009, -0/+1Well, he puts his address on the goddamn site.
-
Show 51 - 66 of 66 discussions
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is