Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

trondblog.tumblr.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

181–190 of 250 posts

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#181

Post by coldtea »

davesims wrote: post #134
coldtea wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I use Opera on the desktop and on my mobile devices. So does my wife. OK. We just need to find the other 10. Why do people get out of their way to use some marginal browser when there better both proprietary and open source options available? Just to add to the web another slightly incompatible rendering engine? Or do they really like the gimmicky extras that Opera offers that much?

Everything I like about FireFox (gestures, tabbed browsing, a reasonable bookmark manager), Opera did first. I used Opera for years back when it flat killed Netscape and IE for features and standards compliance. I only left once FireFox implemented all of the same features I had come to rely on in Opera, PLUS developing its growing add-on ecosystem. Gimmicky? Marginal? Not in the least. Sure, Opera, as a foreign, sma…

>Everything I like about FireFox (gestures, tabbed browsing, a reasonable bookmark manager), Opera did first.

So? Do you still use Mosaic because it did first most of the important things Opera does now? How about sticking with IE, because it brought as AJAX first?

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#182

Post by coldtea »

sgift wrote: post #155
coldtea wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I use Opera on the desktop and on my mobile devices. So does my wife. OK. We just need to find the other 10. Why do people get out of their way to use some marginal browser when there better both proprietary and open source options available? Just to add to the web another slightly incompatible rendering engine? Or do they really like the gimmicky extras that Opera offers that much?

> Why do people get out of their way to use some marginal browser when there better both proprietary and open source options available? This is simple: None are available (for me). They are (take your pick for your specific browser): - Slow - Memory-inefficient (i.e. they either use too much memory when I need it for other tasks or they use not enough when I don't need it and they could use it to provide a better exp…

So the public for Opera is bizarro outliers? (100 tabs! Love of mouse gestures!)

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#184

Post by claudius »

coldtea wrote: post #182
sgift wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why do people get out of their way to use some marginal browser when there better both proprietary and open source options available? This is simple: None are available (for me). They are (take your pick for your specific browser): - Slow - Memory-inefficient (i.e. they either use too much memory when I need it for other tasks or they use not enough when I don't need it and they could use it to provide a better exp…

So the public for Opera is bizarro outliers? (100 tabs! Love of mouse gestures!)

At 7 billion people on this planet, there well may be enough ‘bizarro outliers’ who don’t want a Mac OS X-like browsing experience to justify a special browser.

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#185

Post by new299 »

fakeer wrote: post #91
Osiris wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use Opera on the desktop and on my mobile devices. So does my wife. I'm not going to stop using it because of a lawsuit, let alone for one that has not had any facts proven in a court. I really don't understand why people who don't know the facts of cases like this (i.e., you don't have an inside knowledge of the nitty-gritty), jump to conclusions to readily. Aren't we supposed to be a community of rational, though…

Facts? I've recently developed some (parts) of Android framework for my current employer (which is as of now unique to this OEM phones) and I am seriously looking for a job change for various reasons. Now if my new employer hires me for the same role and I am asked to do the same thing again(and I'll mention this work on my resume and interview), I'll do it. Otherwise, what am I gonna do? Make railway engines for the…

Not only that, but aren't the kind of things he's accused of stealing those that would be covered by fairly weak software patents? I don't think we're talking about him really using his insider knowledge of when they're planning to release a feature to beat them to market or scupper their PR.

I mean if it was just someone else copying their browser would they even be confident enough to take them to court?

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#186

Post by Deestan »

stormen wrote: post #129

In Norway, it's usual for employees to sign intellectual copyright waivers for all work done for their employers. If Trond developed parts of the CB browser and/or other intellectual property whilst working for Opera (during office hours), they could easily claim - and probably win - a case that parts and/or all of the CB browser rightfully belonged to Opera Software. I haven't read their lawsuit, I'm just saying tha…

> In Norway, it's usual for employees to sign intellectual copyright waivers for all work done for their employers.

Yes, but that does not seem to be what this is about. On the surface it seems he was re-using good ideas rather than copying over actual work.

The nettby case was about outright copying source code.

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#187

Post by stinos »

coldtea wrote: post #182
sgift wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why do people get out of their way to use some marginal browser when there better both proprietary and open source options available? This is simple: None are available (for me). They are (take your pick for your specific browser): - Slow - Memory-inefficient (i.e. they either use too much memory when I need it for other tasks or they use not enough when I don't need it and they could use it to provide a better exp…

So the public for Opera is bizarro outliers? (100 tabs! Love of mouse gestures!)

I acknowledge your point on the tabs, but not on the gestures. It provides a genius way execute actions, probably faster than anything else. I would almost say that is a fact, and that if you don't agree then it's because you haven't used it.

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#188

Post by kamiel »

3327 wrote: post #95
latj wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are many many many many many people who have stopped using Google products for various political and policy reasons. You know this right?

yes I am one of the many, check out owncloud if you want to download your data and setup your own cloud. Its pretty easy to setup. As for search, If you are not anti MSFT bing does a decent job on most topics, if you are, in that case duckduckgo, and many other engines out there are not too shabby either. I really want an alternative to youtube. Tired of being raped with 30 second ads for every vid I watch.

http://adblockplus.org/en

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#189

Post by hso9791 »

jamesaguilar wrote: post #4

I hope he has checked this with a lawyer and that he is not giving his adversary ammunition. Good luck.

He is obviously concerned to keep his good name.

Assuming he can back up his narrative with facts in court, I cannot imagine Opera has a leg to stand on. If he followed up the conversation with the CEO with a clear email, then there is documentation in place. That the CEO hasn't responded should have no bearing, as an oral agreement is considered as binding as a contract in Norway.

Re: My former employer Opera Software has filed a lawsuit against me

#190

Post by kriro »

Do providers of other browsers that use tabs have some sort of licensing deal with Opera? Seems like they are suing over trade secrets based on Firefox tabs?

Why are they suing the guy and not Mozilla, why are there no lawsuits against other companies that provide browsers?

Feels like a FU-cause-we-can type of deal.

Post reply on HN