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An apology to open source

chartjs.org

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Re: An apology to open source

#231

Post by lutusp »

DannyBee wrote: post #223
analog wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He built it during University, so before he started working for the employer. They may have a legitimate business concern, but that doesn't change the fact that it's Nick's IP and he can do what he wants with it.

Undergrad or post-doc? If post-doc, humorously, in this day and age, this would likely mean the university owns it, rather than the employer. Undergrad, a number of universities have started having students sign agreements giving them rights, but most don't.

> ... a number of universities have started having students sign agreements giving them rights, but most don't.

Most universities, or most students?

Re: An apology to open source

#233

Post by joeblau »

napoleond wrote: post #226
jessaustin wrote: post #218

Where's the apology? I'm just seeing general info about chartjs. Maybe there has been a change of heart?

Hooray! It would appear so. An hour ago, Nick was apologising for removing the project, as there was apparently an ownership conflict with his employer.

Thank you for clearing that up. I was wondering what the apology was for as well.

Re: An apology to open source

#235

Post by hellerbarde »

chengiz wrote: post #232
jessaustin wrote: post #218

Where's the apology? I'm just seeing general info about chartjs. Maybe there has been a change of heart?

Yeah exactly. Anyone screenshot the apology?

Quote for historical purposes:

An apology to open source

At midnight on the 18th March 2013 I posted Chart.js online. On the morning of the 19th March, I've had to take it down due to IP concerns with my current employer.

It had been my final year university project I had been working on for a couple of months. I had intended it to be an open source project for the web design and development community.

Since posting it online, I've been completely overwhelmed and hugely grateful for all the support and kind words.

Sadly though, due to concerns from my employer regarding intellectual property and similarities in projects I've worked on, I've been asked to take down the site. My job and livelihood have to be my primary concern. With this in mind, I have closed down the site, and removed my master branch from Github.

I'd like to personally apologise for taking this away, I'm just as disappointed as you.

Nick

Re: An apology to open source

#236

Post by DannyBee »

lutusp wrote: post #231
DannyBee wrote: post #223

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Undergrad or post-doc? If post-doc, humorously, in this day and age, this would likely mean the university owns it, rather than the employer. Undergrad, a number of universities have started having students sign agreements giving them rights, but most don't.

> ... a number of universities have started having students sign agreements giving them rights, but most don't. Most universities, or most students?

Sorry, most universities don't.

It's a trickier area. Post-docs are usually paid, so the universities have a clear work-for-hire claim. Because Undergrad students aren't usually paid, it's a much harder claim to make (

I'm aware of post-doc agreements being litigated and upheld, but am not aware of any litigation on the undergrad side.

Re: An apology to open source

#238

Post by eslaught »

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #184
fakeer wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nick's words: It had been my final year university project I had been working on for a couple of months

Often that means that the university claims rights in the IP produced, certainly [way back] when I matriculated it was required of all students to sign a waiver giving rights to the Uni for any works created whilst being a student. The first I heard about it was at the matriculation table when I'd already gone up. Perhaps this sort of thing doesn't happen elsewhere or as been deemed inappropriate.

This is only true for graduate programs where the school is paying for your tuition via a research or teaching assistanceship. For undergraduates, who traditionally pay for their own tuition, or for graduate students under scholarship, they own all of their own work.

Re: An apology to open source

#239

Post by wagnerpinheiro »

grey-area wrote: post #205

Let's not turn into an angry mob please, Internet. - Nick Downie (chart.js author) on twitter just now. This is between Nick and his employer at this point, and trying to enact swift internet revenge on his employer is not going to help Nick, particularly when we've only heard one side of the story, it's hard to draw any meaningful conclusion.

the site is online again.

Re: An apology to open source

#240

Post by hablahaha »

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #184
fakeer wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nick's words: It had been my final year university project I had been working on for a couple of months

Often that means that the university claims rights in the IP produced, certainly [way back] when I matriculated it was required of all students to sign a waiver giving rights to the Uni for any works created whilst being a student. The first I heard about it was at the matriculation table when I'd already gone up. Perhaps this sort of thing doesn't happen elsewhere or as been deemed inappropriate.

My university owns anything you make while you are a student there. The example they used was something along the lines of: if you worked on it only in your dorm room and it had nothing to do with the university and received zero university funding, it was still theirs and you couldn't ever file a patent on it.
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