[development] Back to Curl-based content generation

[M. Fioretti]

On Thu, Feb 19, 2009 08:57:17 AM -0500, Jamie Holly wrote:

> Request the node/add/{node-type}page. Grep out all the input
> elements along with their default values...

OK, thanks.

> If you are doing this for other sites, then I can only assume it's
> because they are asking you to (if not then that opens up a whole
> new debate on ethics).

Ethics? Are you serious? I have several **real** accounts on several,
independent Drupal-based websites. **real** meaning "I'm a real,
honest, regularly registered and approved user on all those websites".

I must or want add content to all those websites more or less
regularly, say several times a week.  And in at least one case I also
need to put online as nodes (without, I repeat, any possibility to
modify the server setup) lots of already existing text files. And I
just happen to find a much smarter and more efficient use of my time
to type in my full-screen, favourite, heavily customized text-editor
and then launch some "publish-to-drupal-website" script than log in to
cut-and-paste stuff or click drop-down menus every time.  Period.

What's wrong with such a wish? Above all, what's ethic got to do with
this? The only issue may be, in general, if this lessened the income
from web ads of a site. Rest assured this is not an issue for any of
the websites where I need to do this. I perfectly know how bad it is
for websites, I even publicly wrote about it 7 years ago
(http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/5623). So don't worry, ethics is
perfectly safe here.

Incidentally, this is not the first, more or less explicit "why are
you asking us help on how to spam drupal websites" kind of answer I've
got in this thread, and it's starting to be offensive, both for me and
for you Drupal developers. I write online for a living: would I be so
idiot to mess my reputation in such a way? Even if I didn't write, if
I were a spammer, would I be so idiot to come here with my real name
to ask? If I were a spammer I would have already made all of this work
without ****ever**** asking in public, because I'd have had a much
more powerful incentive to spend days and nights making spambots work
without letting everybody know about it.

> If that's the case then can't you simple ask them to install a
> module for this, even if it's as simple as activating the BlogAPI
> module?

because some of those websites don't give a damn if I add content via
browser, voodoo spells or anything in between, but simply won't change
their default configuration for me. Sure, this is my problem only, it's just that it's tiring to repeat it many times. No problem, however.

Marco

-- 
Your own civil rights and the quality of your life heavily depend on how
software is used *around* you:            http://digifreedom.net/node/84