Geek news warning: sane people and anybody for whom such acronyms as PHP or GPL merely evocate some brand new drugs the kids might be into these days: you are probably better off skipping this one.
I’ll try to keep it short.
Spam Karma 2 is now released as GPL v.2. This essentially means you can do anything you want to it, except claim you made it (copyright and attribution notice must remain there). You should also note that any attempt at deriving some ill-deserved profit from it through harebrained web marketing schemes will earn you both my long-standing scorn and a nut-shriveling decrease to your actual karma.
I suppose another angle to that post’s title could be:
Officially discontinuing Spam Karma’s development: so long and thanks for all the fish
as this is what this truly is about.
But, such a title would be slightly misleading (and no doubt heavily quoted out of context): Indeed, I am hereby officially announcing that I will no longer support, maintain or further develop Spam Karma (beside some very occasional, very limited poking, until the transition to a self-maintained project is completed). However, thanks to the magic of free software, all the unsung heroes of the Open Source world will soon rise to take over and bring you a stronger, better, more closely supported version of Spam Karma!
Okay, what’s more likely to happen is that nobody will really bother taking over, except perhaps a handful well-intentioned but utterly clueless beginner coders who will quickly find themselves overwhelmed by the task and next be seen running away screaming at the top of their lungs. Hey, I’m not blaming anybody: I wouldn’t waste my time on a non-paying, open-source community project either…
But on the off-chance that you would (and trust me it won’t do anything to help you get laid either), I have set up a Google Code repository, which could become the jumping point to some magnificent community-based development effort (or not). If you are interested in participating in any way, contact me (mail or contact form) with a *brief* description of who you are, what you can do and what you wanna do. I don’t need a resume (I am not hiring), just a very quick idea of what level of responsibility you’d be willing to take on the project. I’ll put in the first couple people that seem to know what they are doing (and do not sound like they’ll be selling everything to Russian mafia-owned spam sites) as administrators of the project, and hopefully from there on, things will work by themselves…
If you think you’d like to tackle any aspect of SK2 development (including possibly porting it to other platforms), here is your chance. Speak now or go back to more fruitful and life-rewarding endeavours forever.
Oh, and as for the “reasons”, well, here they are:
1) Life.
Much as I love the challenge and excitement of coding an anti-spam filter and thinking up new tricks to defeat parasitic life-forms of the web, I just don’t have the time anymore. And to be honest, if I did have the time, I probably would have other challenging, exciting new projects I’d rather tackle. I’m fickle like that.
2) WordPress
I will really try to keep that one short, because I could probably write a novel of that. And it wouldn’t be a very interesting read.
In a word: WordPress kinda sucks nowadays. Its retarded upgrade rate makes it nearly impossible to keep up, in turn making it a constant security threat on my servers. And each time I finally cave in and install one of those “mandatory security upgrade”, it also installs 600 Ko of other theme compatibility-breaking fluffy crap that I never asked for in the first place. Usually setting the ground for the next cycle of security-exploit-rushed-upgrade. To sum up, it’s become incredibly bloated and tedious to support. Replacing it on my own servers is very high on my list of things to do (which means somewhat in the first 1000 items).
Having no interest for WordPress anymore, I have thus very little interest for WordPress-related development.
As for WP coming bundled with its own anti-spam plugin, I could also go on for hours on that. The fact that a community-based open-source project is used to distribute a commercially licensed piece of software doesn’t make me particularly happy. But frankly I haven’t cared and still don’t care enough to even raise a stint. At any rate I know lots of people (me included, obviously), aren’t convinced by the way Akismet works and are happier doing the filtering on our own servers, so there is definitely room for SK2-like plugins out there.
Anyway, thanks everybody for your support all these years and let’s gather a round of applause for our brand new Spam Karma GPL Edition!
Update: in addition to the Google Code-hosted project, there is now a dev mailing list set up on Google Groups, go check it out and feel free to sign up if you are interested in SK2’s future development!
What a pity, although i can fully understand your views on WordPress development. It just sucks, seems to follow Apple’s wrong decisions concerning their long-term user base, that starts to get annoyed by being fed a lot of bling bling while the product quality suffers. If only once fame didn’t follow the same old patterns…
I thought good when first saw the title, but I’m not sure after reading the post. 😀 I hope some good programmers want to keep developing Spam Karma, otherwise it will die. I don’t want such a project to die.
Thanks for all the work you’ve done on this, Dr. D. I’ve used Spam karma for years, and it’s been a great.
If I thought I were a good enough coder I would pick this up. I know enough to make some changes that I think would be improvements, but it’s mainly polish. I’m probably not capable of keeping up with the security end of it, which is the heart of the application.
first of all: a big THANK YOU for this great plugin … good work I enjoy very much!
Super plagin! I’m not spam 🙂 Big Thank, guys!
I know what you mean – it’s bad enough trying to keep up as a user with all the patches – I keep meaning to get round to 2.5 but then 2.6 is now on the horizon – so it must be 10 times worse as a developer.
The only thing missing from Spam Karma is certain PB styles that get through 95% of the time – the ones where the end of the URL runs into a word from the next post, which I now must give up hope of seeing fixed 🙁
Thanks anyway for all your time and effort; you save me at least 10 minutes and a lot of frustration every day!
As I wrote around here earlier, even though it hasn’t been supported as of late, SK2 remains the only anti-spam plugin enabled on my dozen of running weblogs (some of them professionnal), and even if the project sadly dies in the water, I plan on keep it this way. Granted, I added the Akismet plugin to most installs, but still 😉
I actually thought about asking to help you on SK2 dev a few weeks ago, but backed out quickly, knowing that I hardly have the time for personal projects these days, and that I haven’t used my m4d PHP skillz for quite some time… I guess I’ll have a regular look at the new code repository, hoping that some knowledgeable coders will take over, and lead the way.
So, again, thanks a lot for such a fine piece of software, and long live to SK!
Despite not having been updated since March of 2007, Spam Karma continues to perform exactly like it should even on the latest version of WordPress. I really don’t see how Spam Karma could be improved too much as I haven’t had a false negative or false positive in many, many months. I suppose some genius will find a way to do it (perhaps integrating http:BL or some functions of Bad Behavior), but I’m very pleased with it.
Still, good call on making it a GPL project. It will inevitably need some code maintenance and clarifying that you won’t be the one to do it is very helpful.
I share some of your complaints about the vicious and often painful upgrade process of WP, a reason why I’m still on 2.1.3 and have been putting off upgrades for so long. Still, I don’t see that there are a lot of better alternatives in the marketplace right now. Typepad is a bit arcane for my tastes, Habari is still in its infancy and I don’t trust hosting my data on Blogger. Every platform has its weaknesses and I don’t consider WordPress’ to outweigh what is has going for it.
SK has been the silent backbone of my website for years and will continue to be until WP messes up so bad as to make it non-functional.
Thanks for a great product and the work that went into it.
Just want to say: thanks very much !
Like Jesse said even though spam karma 2 hasn’t been updated since early 2007 it continues to function. Thank God for that. And like Paula said SK2 has been the silent backbone of my website for years and will continue to be until WP messes up so bad as to make it non-functional. I hope some great coders take it over and keep it running. I can understand your not having time to work on it, though. Just know this, it is the best spam plugin out there, and nothing could ever beat it. Akismet is crap, and doesn’t work. I guess the guys at wordpress must be making a fortune of it, to keep a useless plugin bundled with it all these years. Too bad I don’t know much php or I would offer to code it. Good luck with all your your future projects, and thanks for all the time you put into SK2. You will be sorely missed. God bless and have a great day.
Dave,
I completely agree with Jesse Harris, Paula and staticbrain – SpamKarma is life-saver plugin! (I even wrote a post with a similar title a month or two ago 🙂 )
During almost two years of SK2’s hard work, I had only one false-positive. It’s *perfect* performance.
I would like to thank you personally for all the thousands of saved hours we – the users of self-hosted WordPress – saved thanks to your SpamKarma!
If you ever happen to be in/near Kyiv, Ukraine – I’ll gladly be your volunteer guide 🙂 (there’s a contact page on my blog, which also has my cellphone number)
(Looks like my comment has just become the second false-positive over almost two years of using SK2…)
Thanks for the great plugin, Dave!
Thanks with all love! Come on! 🙂
I, too, would like to express thanks for your plugin which I have used for years. I have never tried askimet and don’t plan to start now.
I would have given up on WP due to their upgrade hassles if I hadn’t found a plugin that does all the busy-work for me. However, the plugin may only work in certain hosting environments, as my friends haven’t been as fortunate.
Thanks again.
Hello everybody and thanks a lot for your kind words and support: hopefully this is not the end of SK2 by any mean, merely a new life in the hands of a loving and dedicated community!
Now come on guys! Send me your Google account ID (via email: zedrdave @ gmail — seems my Contact Form plugin is acting up) and join in on the fun. Also: don’t let my rant above deter you, I’m sure this project can use absolutely all levels of code proficiency, especially at this point. Practically half the work right now revolves around packaging, organising and editing text, in order to create a fully standalone open-source project. No talent too small for that.
PS: sorry for anybody whose comment might have been held back (and notify me if it doesn’t appear after a while). This blog being under a constant barrage of automated *and* manual spam, the filter settings are set quite high.
Sorry to see you go, but thanks for all the work you put into this. I used to suffer countless spam assaults. Your plugin has made my life noticeably better.
Cheers!
Thanks a lot for your great work, which made my life a bit easier 😉
Thanks for all your help in fighting spam so far. You have doubtless saved me dozens of hours worth of manually removing it from my blog.
I just wanted to add my own thanks for such a wonderful product. SK2 works incredibly well, and I will continue using it for as long as I can. Akismet can go die a sad and lonely death.
Domo arigato gozaimashta Dave for sharing your talent and skills with the WordPress community. Just an awesome plugin! I second the above commenters, hoping that WP developers won’t screw up the hooks or what-nots so that we can continue using SK2. If you’re ever in L.A., CA – sushi, kaiyaki and sake on me. Cheers.
It’s too bad auttomattic can’t take some of the millions in VC money and get you laid- and keep us in a great spam filter.
Seriously- I totally agree with you that it seems stupid to not have an open source spam filter- and that the upgrade cycle is insane. The best thing would for them to fold SK2 into the core- and get it over with. But, that will never happen.
Thanks for all the hard work- you’ve saved us many hours of headaches- and for that, you should have an abundance of good karma.
I’d like to add my own thanks for your years of work on this. The combination of SK2 and Bad Behavior has been my spam protection of choice for a long time.
I don’t know if I’ll have the time to explore the code and help out with the new project — I do know I won’t have time to run it — but I’ll try to at least keep an eye on it and help out here and there, if nothing else with testing.
Great post dude. Thanks for all your hard work to initially create this plugin. It has made my life a lot easier and I thank you for that. And I totally agree with your words on wordpress.
Peace,
Jeff
You’re so right. WP is screwing up too many plugins. I wonder if their upgrades really fill our needs. Also I wonder what they are up to. Selling their stuff and get away? Anyway, thanks a lot for your work, keeping the spammers away from us.
Just wanted to add my voice to the chorus. SpamKarma has been an absolutely marvelous bit of code and a total lifesaver for me. I’m sorry that WP is making things so difficult, because the community is losing a real and irreplaceable hero. Best of luck wherever life takes you next.
Thanks for your coding cleverness, skill and dedication, not to mention hard work. You created something badly needed and exceptionally effective and useful.
I share your lack of appreciation for WordPress’ too-rapid update schedule. Some time back, I commented on the WP Web site that I was in no hurry to make the just breathlessly announced MUST-DO-NOW upgrade. It was one I’m fairly sure would’ve caused serious template/theme headaches. I respectfully pointed out that, for me at least, the point of using WP was blogging, not upgrading or replacing every few months an install of WP that meets my needs nicely and works well.
Best of luck. I hope people capable and worthy of carrying on your SK2 work will step up.
Many many thanks for this great plugin, i like it so much better than akismet!
So i really hope that there will be someone to keep things going.
And i wish you, Dave, all the best for your future and i have to say that i regulary read your writings. I once came for sk2 and now i’m coming for your thoughts.
Kanpai!
What a shame…but I can understand the reasons.
WP today is nothing but upgrades and it turned into the same hassle with bug fixes’n’stuff that you get from Microsoft and their OS. Always something needs fixing.
Whatever you dive into next – good luck, and thanks for a great piece of security 😀
SK2 is without a doubt the best thing to have come to WP. I completely agree that WP has become too easy a target for attack. I dread each upgrade because I know it’ll break something but if I hold off too long, I am prone for attack. What the heck?
Hey everybody, just a quick word regarding WP upgrades:
As we all agree, they are *way* too numerous, and tedious… *but*… you shouldn’t, nay, must not skip them! As long as you use WP, and if you don’t keep up with every new damn security upgrade, your server is a sitting duck waiting for the next script-kiddie to take over (chances are, you might not even realize it for months after your entire website has been filled with invisible spam links). Trust me: I have cleaned up enough friend’s installs to know…
So really, upgrades aren’t optional. Unfortunately, your only option is to write and whine to WP devs and demand that:
1) They make *extremely* clear which security features/exploit plugging (if any) are present in each new upgrade… something more than “PLEEEEEAZE UPGRADE KTHX”, that will let you take a decision, based on whether you want to spend two hours fixing your broken theme and plugins or are happy with the way they look.
2) They release security upgrades as *separate* upgrades (or at least provide patches for those who want them). As any sane software project does. Not to mention the fact that, while they may be working on the finishing touch for some brand new
bloatass-kicking feature to release along that next security upgrade, your servers are just waiting to get hacked…Anyway, not really my fight anymore, but feel free to take it upon your name…
Thanks for all your hard work, Dave. I’ll take a look at the code and see what I can do to help.
Thank you for the plugin. 🙂
I’m also thinking of ditching WordPress after 4+ years.
I just wanted to say thanks for the plugin. I was being overwhelmed with spam, and now only see one or two a day of the little beasties creeping through, thanks to SK2.
I’ve gone to Bad Bahaviour on other blogs rather than Aksimet, which never wanted to work for me.
Best of luck with your next big project, whatever that is.
bruce
Anyway, thanks for your work. Good luck.
A genuine and heartfelt thanks to you for all the hard work you’ve done on SK. I hated, and still do, Akismet and nearly gave up on WordPress until I found your plugin. Now it’s the first one I install (at the same time as removing Akismet and Hello Dolly) and it doesn’t matter to me that it’s not been updated for so long – it works and that’s all that matters.
Hope your future projects work out well for you and hope you get laid soon 😉
Thank you for helping my blog stop nearly 600,000 spams the past year or two. My blog would be dead without your help Dave and for that it owes you its life.
Without SK2, my life would be nothing more than a never ending stream of incoming spam that WordPress forces me to “moderate.” I cannot thank you enough for this life-altering plugin.
Sad to see you go. Spam Karma is still the best.
Did you have to choose GPL? I want Spam Karma for Habari, and to exist in Habari’s “extras” repo it must be ASL compatible 🙂
Cannot blame you for moving on either. Getting weary of the tedious and continuous WP upgrade process. Please let us know what platform you decide to move to, if you’re not writing your own.
And thank you for the best spam plugin evah.