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

I've Just Liberated My Modules

medium.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

481–490 of 827 posts

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#481

Post by esailija »

ubernostrum wrote: post #468
esailija wrote: post #424

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand the standard library argument at all. Standard library is always limited, there is always something that's not included - then what? This has nothing to do with the JavaScript standard library but the insanity of NPM. There are modules that have even more dependents than `pad-left` despite being included in the standard library (e.g. https://www.npmjs.com/package/date-now , https://www.npmjs.com/pa…

The argument is that things like formatting a string -- including padding it -- should not be add-ons, they should be built into the core distribution you get as part of the language.

I didn't say it shouldn't be part of standard library, I am saying that there is always something that isn't part of the standard library. My point is: if this module was something that shouldn't be part of standard library, what argument would you then use?

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#482

Post by _ZeD_ »

fiatjaf wrote: post #288

Why isn't GitHub the source of all node packages? npm supports it very nicely. I mean: why don't people write `npm install user/repo --save` instead of `npm install package --save` every time already?

because it does not make sense: I don't want the sources, I want a usable package...

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#484

Post by galistoca »

hills wrote: post #101
galistoca wrote: post #36

Reading the article I thought it was some massive popular framework. But when I visited the library's github page, it seems to have only 8 favorites. Am I missing something?

left-pad is used in babel. And a lot of ppl use babel

I guess I need to clarify. If it is indeed the case that he's doing this for a repo with 8 favorites, this guy is essentially using everyone who uses his other libraries as hostage just for vanity. It would be a different story if he had 100+ favorites on that project because then he would be standing up for the entire group who's working hard on it, but I can't think of any reason for doing this other than being selfish

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#485

Post by amadeusw »

_nfin wrote: post #130
callmevlad wrote: post #43

The fact that this is possible with NPM seems really dangerous. The author unpublished (erm, "liberated") over 250 NPM modules, making those global names (e.g. "map", "alert", "iframe", "subscription", etc) available for anyone to register and replace with any code they wish. Since these libs are now baked into various package.json configuration files (some with 10s of thousands of installs per month, "left-pad" with…

So we need gpg signed packages :> And... all packages should be namespaced under the author who published them. And... I kind of want to say "once it's published, it's forever".

That's a good idea, but what if Kik lawyers come knocking on your door saying that you're breaking the law and this package cannot stay there forever, or for any moment longer?

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#487

Post by karmelapple »

wolfgke wrote: post #231
felixrieseberg wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You bake deprecation notices into npm, to be displayed during install. He has more than 3m installs a month, if he really wanted to, he could have easily display a giant "npm sucks" banner during every single install. Same message, but it wouldn't immediately hurt people who trusted his modules.

> Same message, but it wouldn't immediately hurt people who trusted his modules. Perhaps he wanted (because of his rage on npm) to hurt people that trust(ed) npm?

I'd be very curious to know if this was true, because the actions taken certainly seem like that's the possible intent.

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#489

Post by brazzledazzle »

sorenjan wrote: post #346
dwg wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having a multitude of small utilities like this is a great thing with many advantages. It may seem simple to write leftpad, but if 1000 projects that need it all write their own version, there will be at least 2000 more software bugs out there in the wild because of it. If you think that's rediculous, you're not being realistic about the huge disparity in skill levels of industry programmers as well as the considerab…

I've never used npm, but doesn't it take at least as long to find, evaluate, and install a package like left-pad as it would to just write the function yourself when you find you need it?

Would simply copying something into your project as small as 17 lines make for a good compromise?

Re: I've Just Liberated My Modules

#490

Post by brazzledazzle »

raquo wrote: post #467
smt88 wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's not necessarily true if Kik were planning to open up some kind of API. Also, the way the law works in the US encourages corporations to overreach. If you don't try to protect your trademark from every possible angle, it can lead to your loss of it in a court battle. A lot of times, lawyers will send out letters without caring how the recipient responds -- they only need to have sent the letter at all to have c…

> A lot of times, lawyers will send out letters without caring how the recipient responds -- they only need to have sent the letter at all to have covered their bases. That is not what happened here though.

Any chance someone at Kik the company wanted to create an npm module and decided the escalation to lawyers was the right way to resolve things? Seems like the lawyer was more interested in getting possession of the name on npm then actually fighting for a trademark. It doesn't even sound like they bothered with a formal cease and desist.
Post reply on HN