They were contracted to design the (edit: low-level coin op hardware, etc) API for our new Internet-enabled touchscreen gaming network kiosks (world first at the time) and they were fucking useless. And then had the gall to present the piece of shit at the CGDG 1997, as a half-finished completely non-functional, but presented it like it was their own product and not a massive NDA violation. Presented like their own product which could be generically extended to other platforms. Fuck you Matt. Fuck you Monolith you fucking cunts.

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

It sounds like your company could have sued them into oblivion. It's a violated a non-disclosure agreement that should be the end of their company.

[–] Krudler@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

Such naïvety Sorry bro

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world -1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm still not getting why the level of hate here?

[–] msage@programming.dev 17 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

You pay someone to do X with a contract; they

take your money
not do X
instead show the idea of X, which is yours, as THEIR product, which doesn't even work
- voliating non-disclosure agreements in your contract
- doing untold damage to your business plans

Yeah, I don't know about anything else, but fuck Matt with a cactus.

[–] CosmoNova@lemmy.world 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Stories like these sound wild to most people but sadly they happen all the time. It‘s literally how Google got this big. Still makes me mad how they robbed and trolled Terravision out of their code now known as Google Earth. Not like it‘s a flagship for Google or money maker but they still literally stole the code via hard drive like they stole from so many others. The tech world is full of absolute asshats leeching off of the most talented. It‘s very evident in today‘s tech culture full of crypto, AI and whatnot.

[–] Krudler@lemmy.world 12 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I'll tell you a secret. And this is coming from somebody that was at the top-top Top of the gaming world for 2 decades... 95% of tech people are complete frauds and charlatans. Its a miracle anything ever gets made. Look at today's coders... they don't even know what a computer does, they just download other people's modules, cobble them together and pray. The vast majority of people who self-identify as being in "comp sci" don't even understand the very basics.

[–] msage@programming.dev 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Can I subscribe to more of your experiences and insights?

[–] Krudler@lemmy.world 2 points 3 hours ago (1 children)

Nobody wants to hear them. Because I disabuse people of their cherished views and it doesn't end well. Thanks though.

[–] msage@programming.dev 1 points 8 minutes ago

Oh I feel like I'm well over any optimistic views on anything. I've seen mountains of dollars go to absolute waste more than once, I've seen projects succeed despite the absurd negligence of everyone involved, and lies above lies above lies.

So I will find your stories amusing at the very least.

Hit me up in DMs if you don't want to go public.

[–] Lesrid@lemm.ee 1 points 1 day ago

If you have a blog or memoir, I would love to peruse it