I was also disappointed when I first took a little time to look at what was going on inside the KVS black box. That was back in 2011, when I was still a subscriber.
KVS got sufficiently rattled by criticism/questions from people who'd understood what was going on for some time (some of whom have contributed to this thread) to make a rather unwise move (from his point of view): he started a discussion on milepoint. The key points were summarised in
this post.) The thread was quite enlightening until Randy Petersen stamped on it.
I wasn't planning to post any more to this thread, but wanted to thank you for posting that link. Just confirms that many other people also feel almost exactly the same way I do about this individual. Not only that, but that thread is almost four years old, and seems this has been going on for a long time, possibly back to day one, and the owner has not modified his behavior one single bit. Being I'm not really familiar with KVS, I thought maybe it was just something more recent. Well, I already made my decision (to never even think about paying monthly to rent this "web browser", as he calls it, tool), and this just makes me absolutely certain that I made the right decision.
A couple of interesting threads I read on that website, and thoroughly recommend anyone thinking about KVS to give it a read if you have any concerns about what you're reading here. It becomes perfectly clear what the man is all about once you read all that, but of course everyone needs to make up their own minds, and maybe some will have no problem doing business with KVS.
While I'm here, guess I'll just go ahead and respond to a couple items...
The KVS Tool contains as many as 50+ different Methods, features and functions, so the discontinuation of 1 or 2 Methods in question, while unfortunate, is hardly "massive".
If I recall seeing a few posts just prior to this whole ordeal, there were three methods for searching general (not award) availability. The first method disappeared, and you recommended that users change to the method which used the flightstats.com website. Very soon after that, flightstats.com withdrew their availability option, which suspiciously sounds like they were quite sick of your shenanigans and didn't feel like paying for all the increased traffic you directed to their website, without asking for permission. Well, thanks a lot, KVS, that was what I was using (the way it was intended via a normal browser) for searching my availability. Now you have a third method (via telling users to create unauthorized accounts at FAU), and sounds like they've at least plugged that whole for new users, and wouldn't be surprised if all these new accounts get deleted soon. So that's three methods in just the past couple weeks as I count it, at least for those who don't know of any other dishonest way of using someone else's account, and aren't paying extra just to get their legal GTC feed.
Now isn't that ALL the methods you have for searching general availability? And all three of them have disappeared (if you're considering people who haven't yet signed up for an unauthorized account with FAU). Then take a look at the title of this thread. It's titled, "KVS
Availability Tool"! Suddenly all general availability has disappeared, and you call that "hardly "massive""? Shaking my head in disbelief, though guess I shouldn't knowing who's speaking. Just more of the usual in your attempt to deflect what is the real issue.
Originally Posted by
JIMCHI
I wish everyone would stop complaining about how KVS gets it's data. It's none of my concern. It's between KVS and the data provider. If you have serious qualms about it, you always have the option of discontinuing use of KVS.
Guess you haven't been following along very well, and just assumed wrongly, like so many, that KVS is supplying this data. They're not, at least according to KVS. According to KVS the tool is just a glorified web browser (screen scraper though is a much more accurate description). So it is very much important to you where and under what circumstances this data is being obtained. And if being obtained illegally, you could potentially be legally liable. THAT is YOUR concern, and whether KVS can be located and whether they can also be held accountable, isn't so sure, being it seems KVS tries his best to remain out of the public eye and identified.
But regardless of the legal/moral issue of accessing data you're not authorized to, probably a much bigger reason to be concerned for most now using it is the search methods disappearing, and perhaps won't come back. Forking out money for a tool, only to realize you bought something worthless because no more data is available is most definitely the concern of the customer (or I guess as KVS views it, not a customer at all, but merely a contributor, donating funds to him).