They sent me a legal document accusing me of publicly posting their company secrets and proprietary technology, which is untrue...
The Software development team:
Bilal Malik
Serge Tsayuk
Christian Van Horn
Brian Fahey
Jeff Smith
interesting story,
Wish you strength and wisdom,
sbright33:
They sent me a legal document accusing me of publicly posting their company secrets and proprietary technology, which is untrue. We were designing a small Flying Toy Robot made out of plastic. It is
Untrue or not, this may not be the best way to air your grievances - especially if they do have a legitimate case; it could come back to haunt you...
sbright33:
scheduled to be in Production and in stores by June, next month. Millions of dollars have been spent on this design so far. PM me if you're curious about the exact figure. You'll get a big laugh out of it! Unfortunately they have failed to achieve stable flight. The project is a complete failure, I heard from my source last month. Even if/when they achieve basic flight, the more advanced features will not be complete until December. By then many other Flying Toys will be released that are far more advanced, and functional, for
Again, you may want to re-think your plan of action, unless your lawyer has cleared you to do so (you have spoke with a lawyer about this, right?)...
sbright33:
1/3 the price. Including my own Quadcopter design in July. Total design cost? About 200 hours of my time.I will be using a Patent Attorney to protect my ideas. My cost? Free since we're married!
Note that a patent attorney may or may not be fully qualified in regards to all issues surrounding corporate IP issues, etc; also note that there is a conflict of interest as well here. You would do well to speak with an outside attorney regarding this issue.
sbright33:
They are planning to use Open Source code, due to their failure to debug 20,000 lines+, and make it fly. It would take 5 employees at least 9 months to write something this size. And another few months to debug it, in theory. Not that I'm keeping track or giving away any proprietary information here. Because they are using Open Source code, specifically GPLv3, doesn't this mean they have to release and make public all their proprietary code in this project when it is sold?
Are you sure they aren't using LGPL'd code? Big difference, of course. If they are using GPL'd code in the final product, then yes, they would have to release that code, and any code that was linked to it (that is, any code that relies upon it for compilation or similar needs). I am not well versed in this whole area, though; again, consulting with an independent attorney would be best on this matter.
sbright33:
My guess is their retail price will be about $1500, based on their development costs, not that I've heard anything about retail price while I was an employee.
When was this? When did you last work for WM Robots? Did you have to sign any confidentiality agreements, NDA's or non-competes? I know I have worked for plenty of companies (as a software developer) that have made me sign similar documents regarding any and all work I do for them (sometimes even including "off-the-clock" work) as being their intellectual property; how enforceable that is could only be decided in the court system, of course - but that process could easily bankrupt an individual if the company bringing the lawsuit has moderately deep pockets...
sbright33:
It's simple math. Total development cost / number of units in production. I assume they want to make a profit? Anyone can add up the costs for parts and materials.
WM Robots seems to be a military (or para-military) robotics supplier - and not in the "retail market". Also, isn't there more to pricing than a simple "development cost / units" calc? I'm pretty certain there is - or should be...
sbright33:
http://www.wmrobots.com/WMROBOTSSITE2/products/knight-robot/They haven't had any new products, defense contracts, or sales since 2010, 4 years ago. Without any insider knowledge at all, I'm guessing they will soon be Bankrupt. Their overhead is tremendous, you can see from looking at their facilities.
Again - from that link - they don't seem to be in the retail sector; that doesn't mean they won't be bankrupt - who knows...
sbright33:
This forum will give WM Robots a chance to publicly state why they are harassing me. Their false accusations are ridiculous. Their failure to respond here would only prove their bad behavior.
Not necessarily - their failure to respond could simply mean they are using legitimate channels (ie - the court system), as well as the fact that they might not even read these or other forums you have posted this issue on.
sbright33:
I will post some short code snippits to show how idiotic the kiddie programmers at WM Robots are. Just an example of the bugs I found in the 20,000 lines of "production" code. Any respectable software developer would be embarrassed to have written this garbage! It's high school level programming. They are slowly learning to write software, having just graduated from school. It makes me wonder what they're teaching in Universities these days. Let me clear it with my lawyer first, before I continue to post. I will also post this on all the hobbyist Quadcopter forums. Along with the legal documents they have sent me. It's entertaining reading at least.The Software development team (Will this show up when they Google their own names?)
Bilal Malik
Serge Tsayuk
Christian Van Horn
Brian Fahey
Jeff Smith
You are potentially bordering on slander here, perhaps...?
sbright33:
How is this relevant to you dear reader and software developer? You can learn from my experience, and how to protect yourself from the abuses of Corporate culture, and our profit driven society.
Good luck with your quest.
There's much more to this story coming soon. I'll be hearing from their lawyers again. I wish I could post all the code for you to read. Maybe if you PM me I can share some of the funniest details. It will be available soon enough if they follow the rules regarding GPLv3. It will be very interesting to see how it flies when it's released to the stores next month or so. The version I heard about recently does OK for about a minute, then it flips upside down, and goes full throttle into the ground. Would love to be a Beta tester of that version! My copter flies along a bike rider or skier, taking HD video as they move in a straight line. The next version that I will finish in about a month uses RTK GPS to follow a subject along a curved path. Staying within 30ft or any distance you choose. I have developed a stick that you point like a mouse to show the flying robot where to go. They told me I am not allowed to call it a Magic Wand, so I won't. I'm looking forward to being served, and giving my deposition soon! How will they find me in CA?
This will give you an idea of what we're making. WM Robots can only dream of implementing these features this year. First they have to learn to fly, like a baby bird leaving the nest for the first time.
Does anyone with Marketing experience want to join our new team?
cr0sh- They WERE working for the military. Now they appear to be attempting to move into the Retail Market. I am not allowed to specifically list their new products, because I did sign an NDA. I am being careful not to disclose any proprietary technical information. I guess I'm allowed to talk about marketing, because my role at the company did not give me access to any of that type of inside information. Is there any sentence that specifically concerns you for my legal safety? If so I will delete it.
I should clarify my pricing formula. The retail cost should be AT LEAST development costs / units sold in the end. If you can estimate the materials and labor costs, assuming 0 profit, you can calculate the minimum sales price. Of course it would be much higher to make a profit. This is not my area, but it's common sense?
I've been down this road, in my lunch hours at work i designed a card game, i used company cards, company equipment, in the companies facilities.
In the end i lost, i assumed my free time was mine, alas the reality was, could have i conceived or been able to produce such a game without being at said company with said facilities.
I lost & i won :~
Be bashful not boastful.
Be rigid not aggressive.
Be polite & courteous, but never rude.
Be mature, diplomatic & only answer what you wish to divulge.
sbright33:
There's much more to this story coming soon. I'll be hearing from their lawyers again. I wish I could post all the code for you to read. Maybe if you PM me I can share some of the funniest details.
Hey I'm nobody here, but I don't see any wisdom in that at all... I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish with this thread. Maybe you're just frustrated and venting. But if you think there's any chance you're going to end up in court over this whole debacle, it would probably be in your best interest to keep all this bottled up until the dust settles. Sorry man, but you're giving their legal team some opportunity here. Not only against you, but potentially anyone who takes you up on the offer to spread juicy gossip.
Be careful, eh?
cr0sh:
You are potentially bordering on slander here, perhaps...?
Slander is spoken. In print it's libel.
I got all my legal knowledge from Spiderman (2002).
That's the funny thing about all this! There is nothing useful or functional to steal! Just in case I will not post the code, of course. I really can't since I deleted it from my laptop. Did I say something technical? I was ordered not to post any technical details. Please tell me if I slipped, and I will delete it. The dates, price, bankruptcy are all guesses, not based on any software knowledge obtained during my employment. My inside source will not be named, and his knowledge is purposely limited. Any one of 100's of employees could see it fly in the warehouse. Or should I say NOT fly!
Litigation is the new innovation.