Is GShade allowed?

[Klytania]

They made a public statement explicitly saying that it's ok. Also, the way Gshade works hasn't changed, so why would their policy?

Until they come out and explicitly say NO (even then what are they going to do about it?) You can use it.

[GaiusDrakon]

They made a public statement explicitly saying that it's ok. Also, the way Gshade works hasn't changed, so why would their policy?

Until they come out and explicitly say NO (even then what are they going to do about it?) You can use it.

Ok, but what does the GM response mean then? Why would they say that the 7 year old post is no longer applicable?

[Klytania]

Ok, but what does the GM response mean then? Why would they say that the 7 year old post is no longer applicable?

GMs get things wrong all the time. A private response to someone's inquiry doesn't constitute a policy change.

What they're doing right now is performative, so obviously they aren't going to contradict the latest thing YoshiP says. They got embarrassed by the heavy mod use and worst kept secret about XIV getting so much negative public attention, so they are playing whack-a-mole while overreacting like crazy.

It's stupid and makes them look incompetent, but it's what they're doing.

The correct move is to keep your head down and don't worry about it.

[Packetdancer]

Ok, but what does the GM response mean then? Why would they say that the 7 year old post is no longer applicable?

Because the ToS has changed -- more than once -- in the past nine years since that post was made. What was true in 2013 may not be true in 2022.

Obviously I would prefer if they'd say outright that ReShade/GShade is still permitted, given that I have done a lot of artistic screenshot work in the past using GShade. (And I write shaders that are included in GShade.) But I am not surprised that they won't; explicitly stating exceptions at this point is just asking for headaches on their part.

[Larirawiel]

You think that ff14 saves your entire combat log in some secret files?

No Gshade for you sorry se whiteknight^^.

I am not a whiteknight for SE or Gshade. But i know how Gshade works.

So does a virus scan tho.
ACT can do a lot of things so it depends, but using it to parse is tolerated so long as you don't make a huge spectacle about it or harass people with it.
I mean people are openly advertising it in PF and don't get in trouble.

This is true. Antivirus software scans and analyses the game data too and would technically violate the TOS. And this is a reason why i mentioned it in another thread, that the "new" TOS created 30 light years² of new grey area.

It seems to me, that the creators of the new TOS have absolutely no clue what they are talking about and what the consequences are of it. I can grasp the intention of it. But the road to hell is paved with good intentions.



Cheers

[Welsper59]

I can grasp the intention of it. But the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

What exactly do you think the intention of it is? I can tell you that it has literally nothing to do with protecting players, if that's what you meant by good intentions.

[Larirawiel]

What exactly do you think the intention of it is? I can tell you that it has literally nothing to do with protecting players, if that's what you meant by good intentions.

They do not want game modifications and parsers. This is the intention. With game modifications you can easily create cheats. But if you do not want to white-/blacklist software explicitely then you have to formulate some unsharp rules in a TOS. But if you formulate the TOS relatively unsharp then it will happen, that other software falls also into that category, although the software has nothing to do with FF14 like antivirus scanners or Discord etc.



Cheers

[Welsper59]

But if you formulate the TOS relatively unsharp then it will happen, that other software falls also into that category, which has nothing to do with FF14 like antivirus scanners or Discord etc.

Why is this a problem for people though? Are people that unreasonably afraid of even the very idea that they could be violating ToS? I would say this whole ordeal should be a learning experience for people. That context factually matters.

Yoshi-P himself has addressed why things like Discord and other unrelated programs are not of concern, even if they do, under technical circumstances, fall under 3rd party programs. They are not directly intended to affect FFXIV. They are not designed to do that. They can't prove you're using these things in a way that proves the programs use is to undermine the rules (e.g. it's on your computer because its for non-FFXIV reasons).

I don't think people fully realize how often many of us violate a services ToS or even real world laws themselves and may not truly know it. Ever used someone else's Netflix or shared yours with another? What about downloaded something from an unofficial source simply out of convenience, even if you otherwise paid for it? You'd be (generally) breaking some ToS. What about driving even 1 over a speed limit? You're literally breaking the law.

SE turning a blind eye in many cases for minor infractions is basically a reflection of reasonableness, akin to why a cop typically will not pull you over for just going slightly over the speed limit... in most areas. Basically they're trying to be nice about it because it's not a big deal in most cases... though it's primarily to do with the fact they can't reasonably prove it without applying some sort of tracker onto your computer. It becomes a big deal when people start abusing that blatantly and abundantly, which is unfortunately why this is being addressed again and seemingly acted upon. The bottom line is to just understand what you're doing and don't be stupid about it.

The kicker about that though? It's business as usual for everyone that isn't streaming addons/plugins that don't give yourself away. Go ahead and use Gshade, ACT, etc. Your risk has not changed for the time being. If you were using it responsibly before, there's no reason you should rethink it now... unless you stream lol. Though Gshade is still probably gonna be given some leeway.