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Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by jrockway on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @01:19PM (#4993336)
People actually like the Svbtle theme, and they think that dcurtis is a positive brand?

Huh.

Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by w1ntermute on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @01:33PM (#4993386)
Yeah, I didn't even know who he was before the Svbtle debacle. Now I know that he's some elitist who got pissy when his (not all that special) blog theme got copied.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by jrockway on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @01:38PM (#4993403)
He also got a designer at American Airlines fired when he ranted about their design on his blog. (The designer sent him a polite reply about what he was doing to improve the state of the design, but then AA fired him for no apparent reason.)
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by w1ntermute on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @03:04PM (#4993748)
Wow, what a douchebag. There is no excuse for getting someone fired over something as petty as this. When he got that guy fired, he could have also been affecting that guy's wife and children, who are completely innocent and depend on the guy's salary to live.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by rys on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @03:12PM (#4993785)
He didn't set out to get the guy fired. There's no way you can justify calling him a douchebag for criticising a website's design.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by addandsubtract on Wednesday January 02, 2013 @06:58AM (#4996236)
He did say:

  Fire your entire design team, if you have one.
  Hire an outside design firm ... as quickly as possible.
  Your in-house team is obviously incapable of building a good experience.
  Get outside help. [1]
Then backpedaled [2] after he got a response outlining that he has no idea how large companies operate.

[1] http://www.dustincurtis.com/dear_american_airlines.html

[2] http://www.dustincurtis.com/dear_dustin_curtis.html

Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by homedog on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @04:09PM (#4993990)
I think it is safe to justify calling someone a douchebag when they attempt to claim ownership of a very generic style and concept.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by bdcravens on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @03:46PM (#4993906)
I'm not familiar with this situation - was it a public comment? If so, discussion of the work you do for your employer - their intellectual property - could get you fired.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by trhtrsh on Tuesday January 08, 2013 @01:51PM (#5027700)
OP was confusingly worded. Curtis complained about AA's design, and the designer was fired.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by ryguytilidie on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @02:02PM (#4993491)
You realize how many people in the valley have basically the same personality right? Not that I think this is a good thing, it just explains the love.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by edent on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @02:13PM (#4993532)
I'm very much not in the valley but, yes, I do like the look of the theme. Have no strong opinion of Mr Curtis.
Re:Is It Wrong To Use A Svbtle Theme? by jrajav on Tuesday January 01, 2013 @01:26PM (#4993359)
I think the entire point was that the author was - and is - neutral to the brand, and that the only reason he picked the theme was because he liked it.

Presumably like-minded people, such as myself (I actually love the theme), will be encouraging, while those who endorse the Svbtle club and its prerogative to "own" a simple, minimalist blog theme, will not.