Comment to 'Free modules to everyone'
  • Hodor Hodor, I thought the same thing while looking through the marketplace. Yes, Jerome Mingo has made many modules that could be made by repurposing others. But, I have never once thought to be disrespectful to Jerome Mingo. Why? Because, his modules provide a simple way to implement features you want. And, in case you haven't realized this, UNA has a huge learning curve. I've spent more a decade of my life developing websites, with several awards and degrees to show for it, but I still get stuck and run into issues. This leads me to reach out to the UNA team. At the end of the day, most of the staff and many of the developers are happy to help.

    Just because, you and I have the experience to make things happen, it doesn't mean everyone does. It doesn't mean that there isn't a place for a quick solution to something you'd want to develop. But, I think more than that, it's a simple fact that not all of Jerome Mingo's modules are just renamed apps. They often include additional features, that much is obvious just by reading the descriptions. Some of them are actually unique! Logo Switcher and Celebration come to mind. They are modules that let you recognize events that happen throughout the year and provide a more personal touch to your visitors. And Petitions allows you to set up something akin to Change.org for example. There are others as well. 

    I think the bottom line is this... if you don't need his services, don't use them. But disparaging his name and reputation isn't cool or acceptable. He's obviously spent a lot of his time developing answers for members of this community and sharing his work. Some of it is simple, yes. But there are UNA users who need simple solutions and don't have the time, knowledge, or willpower to create the solutions themselves. Even for those who do have that experience, the mods can serve as a starting point and framework to do what they are trying to accomplish. That's the beauty of open source, you can take something and modify it to your liking. Either way, Hodor Hodor, you'd benefit by the old adage "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."