Still waiting on answer on Jerome Mingo and why he and his APPS were abruptly removed....

Supposedly he is. I have not verified. VetranBrigades has stated he is?

That's just insane. I completely understand that UNA marketplace should handle disputes between buyers and sellers.. but suspending a main third-party developer like Jerome should be the last resort.

Almost all third-party developers are gone. Jerome was basically the only one left. He has sticked with UNA till today and has contributed a lot for this community. Is that how you thank him?.. by kicking him out just like that? Please think about it. @Andrey Yasko @Alex T⚜️

Despite the nature of the dispute between them, punishing a whole community for one person's mistakes or behaviors is unfair. Some of our websites/projects are completely based on Jerome's modules. We definitely rely on him for support, updates, customizations etc if we want to keep our UNA websites running. Have you even ever thought about us UNA users and Jerome's customers before suspending him?

IMHO, UNA should find a different way to handle this dispute without a collective punishment. Thanks.

@VeteranBrigades @James Zandreiatti Have you found out why was MSolution banned from UNA and why he isn't back yet?

I have no clue why honestly.

Least you all are now aware of these shady tactics being done by UNA, the mistreatment of third party, poisons the well that is UNA.

It was the same reason that was provided in this case. A handful of people (in private it seems) had issues and UNAs kneejerk reaction is to fire away at the ban hammer, thus puzzling everyone as is being done here, round two. This is going to ultimately scare off would-be third party devs.

Can you blame any new dev being scared to come here? One complaint and your account/work is just poof, gone. Meanwhile the devs at UNA can freely ignore you for weeks on end, and act like nothing is even happening.

Good business comes from a collaboration of many. Especially when the payroll is a separated situation. It should have taken more then one, two or even three complaints from users to ban a dev. Before ever thinking of banning, there should have been an opportunity to try to resolve. And then even before that, take a look at contributions made by the Dev's, as well as the impact it will/could have by removing them. This was an issue that seemed to have migrated over from Dolphin. What UNA is not seeing is the impact it places on themselves. Its a habit that seems to have followed them.

I could maybe see this action placed against Jerome Mingo, if he had only contributed an unstable single script/App. But the man contributes about 70-85% of the apps on UNA. And has a very solid and stable support system to back it.

What damages and unstable sites that may be harmed, by actions to a single persons complaint seems to be a high risk. This could be a pivotal point for UNA, and where the future of many sites may be in the future. Its a gamble, and the one losing is the personal site admins and owners....

I haven't personally. I tried reaching out when I was having the issues i had. But he never responded, then shortly after his apps and such came down.

This is a case of to many hands in the cookie jar.

The only way you can get a solid foundation is to contract with the Dev's that come around. UNA needs to place a system to where Dev's must contract with UNA. They must agree to a contract before they can set up an account, and sell apps. In that agreement must be some kind of guarantee of liability and repercussions. The door is to wide open right now. Which creates situations like this.

Not only would this protect UNA and its endeavors, but it would protect us and the Dev's.

I've been aware of the Dev/UNA issue since Dolphin. Hence the reason, I went to other script companies for now. I find a much better safety and stableness when the script writer is also the one writing the addons.

I've been gone from here for over a year to still see the same events and situations still applied here. I periodically pop in with hopes there is change, but....

Very true. There's a sense of security knowing that features being implemented is done by the core maintainers. This is why scripts like Social Engine, phpFox, and a number of others on CodeCanyon thrive. No abuse of power that leaves the community stranded due to outlandish actions.

Yes I love CodeCanyon!! I have Devs on there that I can count on everytime.

I fully expected him to be reinstated by now.

Hey @Andrey Yasko , I pay $100a month to UNA for pro subscription, yet NO ONE answers my emails. Who is going to fix that??????

Unban Jerome Mingo and stop playing games.

And can I start getting answers? I am asking developer questions, yet nothing.

What's the deal with suspending our developers? MSolutions has still been working for me, even after UNA got took their mods down.

Msolutions bailed on me. For close to 6 months I tried to go back and forth with them to get a simple $153 refund after one of their mods locked up my entire file system (File Manager). It f'ed up my server's file permissions I almost lost 6 months of work. I had to use a week-old backup to get everything restored.

2 of their other mods simply caused sitewide glitches and we couldn't use them, I am a fan of many of their other mods and spent a lot of money, out of all of them, there were just 3 that caused problems and I asked for a refund back to my credits, they ignored myself and UNA's staff for several months. All they had to do was give the refund and their account would be restored.

I tried to find them only so I could work things out to get the refund. But there are like 9 other companies using the Msolutions name, none of them programmers. So I had no direct way to contact them.

I understand everybody's frustration in this matter, @Wise has been very helpful in finding solutions, but I also get his frustration. We rely on 2 of Msolution's Mods in Particular. however, none of the bugs in them have been fixed since their suspension. I had even granted them operator access to my site, and admin access to our servers so they could go in and fix bugs. But we were treated like we didn't matter. I put us very much behind schedule and continues to plague us to this day with their bugs. But until somebody else comes up with an alternative to the mods we depend on, we've been using in-house coders to keep the bugs at a tolerable level.

I don't know anything about Jerome except that I did contact him once about a custom mod, and never got a reply after explaining what I needed. So we'll probably end up paying @AQB Soft to custom code the features we need since it's a practical guarantee with them that we won't run into any issues. It's too bad too. At the time we had a lot of money to throw at custom modules for our site... We are currently on a shoestring budget while we wait to generate revenue from our other non-UNA-related projects. That $153 in credits could have helped...

Moving on Though, It has gotten harder to trust anybody on this site. If it's not UNA directly or AQB soft (which I'm aware does include people from the UNA team) It's difficult to find a trusted system when people reach out on here. @Wise has been chatting with me and showing off some pretty good skills. But I've had a few people message me on here who don't identify themselves or are vague about it, even had one guy message me claiming to be from UNA's Core team with no proof or any stags on his profile showing that he was with UNA.

I think the best solution for UNA would be to hold a certain percentage back from cashouts for 30 days so that if there is a dispute here, UNA can issue a refund and help settle the matter without suspending a mod developer. Of course, if The Developer is getting multiple complaints about a modder that's another thing, but there should be some sort of solution and requirement put in place for things like this.

UNA... really? If someone complain and reported. UNA should disable that mod(s) rather than the entire products and a profile. This is rather queer action from UNA. UNA's harshen my mellow. I demanded reformation.

I was dealing with MSolutions for close to 3 months with no answer. Almost same situation. I was having an issue when updates were applied on UNA Script, but could not contact MSolutions to resolve the issues that were created after UNA update. My site was so messed up, it wasn't even funny. Jerome Mingo jumped in to try to help me, but couldn't figure out what was causing the issues, but did find that it was MSolutions apps. I dealt with UNA team support, but weeks would go by before any answer. They refused to get involved, or help in the matter.

I have noticed that when you have issues here, and it becomes an issue for UNA, they tend to ignore you. Therefore, creating further issues for site owners. At one point Jerome Mingo found issues within the script for UNA, so I reached out to get them to address the never fixed issues, and they blamed others and never investigated my issue.

It was a big wakeup call for me at that point...

I have been waiting YEARS for a version from UNA (Dolphin) that I can run publicly without dozens of bugs or answers. @Andrey Yasko - albeit that I consider you a friend of sorts, you need to suspend your account and the other's here that develop, the same as you have done to Jerome! Fair is Fair! Maybe its time for me to sit down and write a CMS. Call me when he is back. I'm outta here until then.

I reckon every module that is being use should be treat same way as Linux.

Developer is:

Dead? Busy? Lost Motivation? Whatever the reason... give to next maintainer(s).

I expected ours to be generations, not short-lived.

I agree with you, but I don't think paid-for mods would fall under the open-source nature of things.

When things like this happen where a mod author is banned, leaves, dies, yes it would benefit others to look into the code and improve on it, but with these being paid mods, I'm sure there's licensing issues preventing that.

I assume this is why UNA can't just consume a mod that should really be apart of the core script. UNA would be the first community script I came across that doesn't have a block feature to block other members of the site from interacting with them.

AQBSoft has one that does 1/3rd of the job in terms of blocking, so that's nearly there despite me having to tweak the code locally to add in full blocking to where members can block others they simply don't want to be interacting with (such as spam adding as friend in its current form).

It would just be nice if UNA could consume that mod and improve on it, but I'm sure there's limitations to this, albeit contract or licensing.

@LeonidS may want to chime in on this for information validation.

If I'm not mistaken, you are free to do with the code as you wish, other then use it elsewhere or on multiple UNA scripts without paying for those in use licenses, and backward engineer it. from what I understand. But not completely sure on that.

He's not reinstated yet? Really?

Nope. He spoke about the issues for Dev's here a while back to me. There is a lot of unnecessary red tape to go through and to much control by UNA, I guess. He had mentioned he was thinking of leaving a while back. Maybe this was the last straw for him?

I know he had mentioned he was waiting to see what https://www.cheetahwsb.com/ was doing and probably going to go there. He is a member there. He is simply waiting to see what happens. Its based on the Dolphin platform and is going under some serious renovations, to better the script. Right now there is a lot of backend recoding going on. Its been slow but moving gradually forward. I am impressed so far. The nice thing is, currently? Most modules purchased for Dolphin work on Cheetah. As long as they are around last 4 version updates. So far its been promising. But once the Cheetah script migrates to PHP8 you might find some new issues. PHP8 is currently one of the major over hauls. Deono (Owner), has already accomplished so much and corrected much.

The more support it gets by users and Dev's the quicker the process will go.

Very true. There's a sense of security knowing that features being implemented is done by the core maintainers. This is why scripts like Social Engine, phpFox, and a number of others on CodeCanyon thrive. No abuse of power that leaves the community stranded due to outlandish actions.

@LoneTreeLeaf Uh... My Site was originally built on Social Engine. So I feel I should inform people here about what really goes on with SocialEngine before anybody here steps into that rabbit hole. SocialEngine is run by a small company based out of India. I paid several thousand dollars for their platform and all of their plugins. Especially the live-streaming one. We had nothing but issues from day one. And trying to get anything resolved with them was like getting a root canal.

1. Their live-streaming option requires an additional subscription to another service that costs several hundred dollars per month. There is no open-source option like with UNA which uses OvenMediaEngine (open-source)
2. If the SE techs set up your streaming server, they will sign you up for both this service and an AWS server without even clearing what the monthly costs will be with you first.
3. After spending months trying to get everything to work, they dragged out the "free 90 days" of tech support and were constantly trying to demand money out of us for things that "weren't covered" by the free 90 days.
4. UNA only has 1 person doing Customer support, because at the time we were using them (early 2023), They had lost so many customers to other platforms, that they couldn't afford to pay anybody else.
5. Just before the 90-day period was up we had made the decision to move to UNA. I Had to fight for several months after to get refunded the $2000.00-ish that we spent with them. During this time I got responses like this: "We're not giving a refund, and since we are in India, there's nothing he can do about it. Our laws are different than in the US. "
6. I had to hire a lawyer in India to walk me through the consumer protection laws over there. (she was awesome).
7. That, along with Paypal and my bank's help, We managed to get back about 95% of the funds. But it took like 3 months of arguing to get the funds back.
8. During all these issues I learned that SocialEngine's framework hasn't been updated since 2010. Which is when I first used it to run a non-profit group I was in charge of.

SocialEngine might have been a great platform at one time, but since their egos and hubris refuse to do what's best for their customers and their platform... It's no longer a solid option.

Also, I've never gone more than 3 days without a response when I have an issue with my UNA site. If there's something big I need, I just use the calendarly thing to schedule a zoom call with them...

Very good Info. I will say that the latter is evolving on UNA though...

Its a common issue with business. Its just whether the business "PRIDES" itself on Customers, or Business.

"SocialEngine might have been a great platform at one time, but since their egos and hubris refuse to do what's best for their customers and their platform... It's no longer a solid option."

I am seeing a losing battle here for sure. Technical help has really become difficult these days on UNA. (Average wait for most between (3 days - No answer), Many promises have fell through the cracks as well as support.

Maybe this was true in the past, but the lead dev from phpFox and his crew have since migrated over to the SocialEngine team and it's been fine ever since.

In regards to UNA getting in touch with you within 3 days, I'm happy for you, I just wish that could be said across the board and not by special cases.

https://unacms.com/i/missing-menu-for-new-role

https://unacms.com/i/album-content-notifications

https://unacms.com/i/content-filter-default-checkboxes (Granted I figured out how to tamper with the database and code to fix it myself, but had this have been someone without the skillset or know how....)

https://unacms.com/d/album-photos-are-not-respecting-content (For context, read the date I created the post versus when someone from UNA finally got it it after I brought it up in another forum post, describing my frustration of non-responses).

Sorry if my post came off as you not being able to modify the code, wasn't my intent to convey that. I meant sharing of the module overall, even if it meant sharing with a new maintainer.

Maybe this was true in the past, but the lead dev from phpFox and his crew have since migrated over to the SocialEngine team and it's been fine ever since.

This was just less than 18 months ago. Their team has been falling apart. They barely have any clientele left. I know this because I was told that one of the reasons I had to fight so hard to get my refunds was because they 'needed' the money. A lead Dev from PhpFox, did nothing to help that company.

@LeonidS - I find that very interesting, since Jerome told me he had no idea why he was suspended and that all he got from here was a vague message his account was suspended.

You're right. But in my case, I'm all for open-source... I refuse to partake proprietary.

For an example, I am the one who suggested and UNA executed Open Street Map.

I tried to get them to change Black Lists to Block Lists. They won't. Still racial, there are facts behind it... not blaming AQBSoft/UNA. The origins of early developers way before BoonEx, even before AOL.

Aboriginals didn't get their voices in Australia? I am very decolonisation... English is still white supremacy language in Americas, Australia and Torres Strait Islands. English belongs to England, period. Stop using racial terms. I don't need dramas. Accept the facts, shut up and change. Linux communities saw that and addresses diversity, equity, and inclusion. Why can't UNA do the same?

We had over 1,000 tribes on Turtle Island and all knew sign language(s). English since took over, oppressed and forced to use English. Naw, time for y'all to start respecting First Nations/First Peoples languages and Deaf/Deaf-Blind/Hard-of-Hearing/Hearing-Loss/Late-Deafened Peoples languages. Another to ponder this, you know money, paper bills... why are they are not printed in braille? Wow, ignored Blind accessibility as well.

My motto is "JUST SHUT UP AND COOPERATE."

Ummm... Well. Before you just go writing stuff as facts, you should research.

And I am a proud American and I am also old school. You just ranted about a bunch of crap that has absolutely nothing to do with UNA or this post, however, to school you..

Black list was never a racial term.

https://didlaw.com/blacklist-is-not-a-racist-term-rules-employment-tribunal#:~:text=The%20term%20'blacklist'%20was%20first,for%20engaging%20in%20union%20activity.

Enjoy. And any person who thinks shut up is a motto, may need to reevaluate their own rants. Telling me to shut up makes me want to tell you all the more, sit down Karen.

And I absolutely take offense to English being referred to white supremacy in America. This is just absurd. We speak English because we were settled by English colonials. You made absolutely no sense. None.

It was more than likely the default email that goes out when a profile/account is suspended. UNA out of the box doesn't have a way for a staff member to add in a message to override suspend messages within the email. Would be nice to have, now that I'm mentioning it, but it sounds like all they did was suspend the profile/account and had the default email serve as the notice.

Could very well be wrong about that last part, but that's just my best guess.

Black list has been a term used in the coding and website administration for many many years. Here is the breakdown, so you understand...

Please see below....,

BLOCKLIST: A term/Feature used to block people within a site, or on admin side. It is only used for this purpose. It is also used in situations where you are "Blocking an individual" only who is a user on the site. Which in most uses, the account is still there (On the site) but they are unable to do certain things or disabled all together.

(Example of a Blocklist or Block: Blocking someone from your profile or an administrator blocking someone on admin side for misbehavior)

BLACKLIST: A term/Feature used to blacklist a spammer, scammer or other phishing sites from even using the site. It is used to prevent hacking from certain IP's as well. Blacklisting keeps an IP/Individual from entering the site all together, by scanning an IP in most cases from a list. The Server usually monitors this list.

(Example of a BLACKLIST: Blocking an IP or individual from even entering the site or total removal of a account, by IP or Username)

There is even a third term called "WHITELIST", which is used in the opposite situation of a "BLACKLIST".

Therefore this is why UNA will not change it for your verbal convenience. They both have a meaning and they are not interchangeable.

Do your research before getting racial and pushy yourself. It has nothing to do with racial slur, or an "AMricans" standpoint.

Again.... Both terms have different meanings.

Addressing the Linux statement: I am a heavy user of "Linux". And it has the same definitions for both. So where you find your information seems to be a bit concerning.

Again I really don't see how you turned a situation into another, lol.

he is not much responsive there. it seems like he lost interest in developing new mods for una.

Then you are lucky :-) In my case he took the money for a custom modification of one of his modules, asked for more time and never delivered. Now he does not even respond to emails anymore. I use quite a few of his modules and am deeply disapointed by his behavior. In my case it's simply fraud as it looks at the moment. I will update if any of this perception changes.

I have the "Games" module.

I had to fix mine to work with PHP 8.2; did you buy that module?