User bennoH is stealing shaders and uploading them online with MIT license

Hello,

I’m sorry to post this kind of message but the user “bennoH” is stealing my works and other people artists from website shadertoy.com and uploading it on the vidvox ifs online editor, with a MIT license. This is thievery and should not be allowed. Please remove the shaders and ban the user.

Thanks

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Thank you @neondelice for sharing this information, could you link to a few of these shaders? Also, I believe @bennoH is sharing them with the Resolume community through Wire?

Cornelius, you know me, that’s a blatant lie from this Leon. Look at the ISFs I’ve posted here. Users of the ISF platform rarely document and license as accurately and informatively as I always do.
I emailed Leon at the 06-18-2025 asking if he would be willing to license his work as MIT and not include license notices like he did on shadertoy in the adapted ISF versions of a single one of his shaders. For an ISF that was extremely heavily modified compared to his shadertoy in terms of code, appearance, and functionality, I took the liberty of integrating my newly created “freeVJing License 1.6,” which explicitly allows this essentially new creation of mine to be used commercially only for VJ performances. Anything else is explicitly prohibited. Nevertheless, as soon as Leon to day on 06-27-2025 got back to me, I immediately removed this particular ISF for the sake of peace. For other ISFs verified as MIT or CCO in my account, this licensing comes from the inspiring source code, and I could even protect them with my own copyright according to CCO and MIT licensing regulations. However, I’ve been generously passing this on until now. What I’ve recently changed is that I’m using my new “Free VJing License 1.6” for such sources to prevent excessive commercial use, i.e., exploitation.
https://github.com/bennoH2025/freeVJing-license/
Transferring inputs and new elements to the ISF for creating such sources involves considerable effort. I think I can say with a clear conscience that I’m very, very, very accommodating and generous within the “Realtime Video Community” and always behave in an extremely ethical and morally correct manner.
The German text is binding!

------±+++±-----++++±----+++++±++++^^

Cornelius Du kennst mich, dass ist eine glate Lüge von diesem Leon schau Dir meine ISFs an die ich hineingestellt hab, wohl eher selten dokumentieren und lizenzieren Nutzer der ISF Platform so korrekt und informativ wie ich es stehts mache.
Ich habe diesen Leon per Email am 18.06.2025 angefragt ob er bereit wäre sein Werk als MIT zu lizenzieren und keine Lizenzhinweise wie es bei Ihm auf shadertoy war in den adaptierten ISF versionen von einem einzigen seiner Shader eingetragen. Bei einem ISF welches extrem stark verändert war im Vergleich zu seinem Shadertoy was den Code das Aussehen und die Funktionalität betrift habe ich mir erlaubt meine aktuell neu kreierte “freeVJing License 1.6” zu integrieren welche explizit, diese meine an sich neu Kreation, nur für VJ Performances kommerziel nutzbar macht. Anderes ist explizit untersagt. Trotzdem habe ich sogleich nachdem sich Leon erst jetzt, heute am 27.06.2025 rückgemeldet hat dieses eine ISF sofort entfernt um des lieben Friedens willen. Bei anderen ISFs welche als MIT oder CCO veriviziert sind in meinem Account kommt diese Lizenzierung von den inspirierenden Ursprungscodes und ich könnte solche sogar mit meinem eigenen Copyright schützen gemäss CCO und MIT Litzenzbestimmungen, ich gebe diese bis anhin aber grossherzig weiter. Was ich seit kurzem nun verändere ist dass ich meine neue “free VJing License 1.6” bei solchen einsetze um zu grosse komnerziele Nutzung sprich Ausbeutung zu unterbinden.
https://github.com/bennoH2025/freeVJing-license/
Die Übertragung zum ISF, erstellen von Inputs und neuen Elementen in solchen bringt erheblichen Aufwand mit sich. Ich denke ich kan guten Gewisens sagen dass ich sehr, sehr, sehr zuforkommend und Groszügig bin innerhalb der “Realtime Video Community” und mich stets ethisch und moralisch äusserst korrekt verhalte.
Verbindlich ist der deutschsprachige Text.

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Hello @bennoH

After doing a bit of digging I found this shader from Leon on Shadertoy

Created by leon in 2017-07-12

And you uploaded yours to the online ISF editor and changed the original license to one of your own (6-14-2025):


I can recall having a very long email exchange with you about this very issue in that if you take someone else’s code, and brand it as your own (or in this case, change the license without their permission), that it is not only ethically wrong, but could be cause for other legal concerns.

Whether you profit off of it or not, one can make the case, that by uploading these things and putting them under your name, that you in some way are benefiting from the public perceptions that you created these shaders directly.

I side with Leon @neondelice on this issue, as it is pretty obvious that you converted their shader and changed the license without their permission. I would recommend that you appologize and if they request for you to remove the shader from the editor, then you should follow their wishes.

Just because the ISF Editor and all the LLMs can convert other people’s code doesn’t mean it is right. Instead of ShaderToy and the ISF editor hiding the code, it is open intentially so that others may learn from the hard work that the programmer put into it. While I understand you have put work into converting these shaders, that does not dismiss the fact that Leon was the original creator and you have modified their work without their permission.

Hey, look at the ISF code. There you’ll see that I’ve distributed it as CC BY-NC-SA 3.0, so under the same license and adapted it as the original. As far as I know, the license is the correct way, which is explained as legal in the detailed license terms for CC. And since I’ve also given credits and declared Leon as the author of the shadertoy, everything that needs to be done has been fulfilled. Please explain to me what’s wrong. I haven’t declared myself as the author anywhere. The ISF is on my platform account, as it should be. Take a look at the Shadertoy terms of use: Terms - Shadertoy BETA. Leon hasn’t entered any further license definitions in his work, so it’s automatically CC BY-NC-SA 3.0!

Even if there were no license entry, one would have to conclude that the original author’s license also applies here. Leon was mentioned since my first upload of this ISF, along with a link to Leon’s Shadertoy. What more do you want?
&'Since I was waiting for a response regarding the requested MIT licensing, the explicit license notice only appeared today after I received a response. So please stick to the facts and be accurate. I’m trying my very best, and you, too, and especially Leon?
And what should I apologize for, that Leon got back to me so late, or his directly aggressive manner and the false accusations, because as mentioned, according to the CC license text that is valid here, I assume that I have done nothing wrong.

He schau in den code von ISF dort siehst Du dass ich es als CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 also unter der selben lizenz weitergebe und adaptiert habe wie es im original war und soweit mir geläufig, ist dass bei der Lizenz der korrekte Weg der in den detailierten Lizenzbestimmungen bei CC als legal erläutert wird und da ich auch Credits vergeben habe und Leon als Urheber des Shadertoys deklariert habe ist alles erfüllt was sein muss. Erklär mir bitte einmal was nicht gut sein sollte. Niergends habe ich mich als Urheber deklariert. Das ISF ist auf meinem Platformaccount wie es sein darf schau dir die Nutzungsbedingungen von Shadertoy mal an Terms - Shadertoy BETA. Leon hat keine weitere Lizenzdekkaration in seinem Werk hinterlegt und somit ist es automatisch CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 !

CC BY-NC-SA 3.0
This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. If you remix, adapt, or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms.

Just a gentle reminder to everyone: shaders converted from shader toy are exclusively covered under Creative Commons licence, by default, unless explicitly modified by the license holder.

  • License modifications without an explicit permission of the artist are not allowed.
  • Original author of the shader has exclusive rights to set license terms, as well as modify or change the license terms.

Interactive arts community is very small and word gets around. Treat everyone with respect, especially artists who created shaders

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Can we just remove @bennoH from this forum.

He seems to be appearing each week and just causing various issues but seems to be benefiting the community very little.
Most his work seems aimed at Resolume users anyway.

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@ProjectileObjects I have an idea, is it possible to add two fields into ISF JSON header for license info.

Maybe License Type and License Description in the future releases of ISF Standard. It would remove ANY ambiguity regarding use cases

At any point someone could write // in their ISF and add a license, or put it into the description. As @neondelice mentioned, this is more of an issue with someone taking code from Shadertoy and converting it. At that point there’s not much that can be done other than respecting the original author’s wishes. It also seems like they’ve had a similar conversation on Shadertoy.com

Yeh, I hear you. For this particular reason any code I work with is explicitly marked with license info.

My bigger concern is this

UserA converts shader from shader toy. UserB forks the shader without knowledge that is covered under CC license. UserC does even more tweaking and includes the shader in their performance. There by chance a friend of original shader artist sees the shader, and UserC is labeled as a thief.

I know that this is an extreme case, but it may happen