Lamesville plagiarizers

reina__ · January 2010

This is my story. November 2008 I rejoined VP after taking a one year break from it, due to going into Grade 12 and being very busy with Biology (had usually 2-5 hours AFTER school homework in that one class). I rejoined with 3eagles, my best friend on VP, and was so excited to finally start doing it again! On the forums, I'd seen Karissa's work several times in General Services and in the Contests topic, and wanted to be able to compete with that level of graphic design. I had a small amount of HTML and crappy Paint MS graphic making background, before I found out about copyright infringement taking pictures off of Google. My Dad recently bought PSP 9 which was like taking on a whole new world for me. Going from a simple pre-installed program like MS Paint to a high quality professional design program was like exercising once a week to running every day. I kept in mind the artwork I kept seeing by Karissa, and although I had no idea how to work the PSP program, I kept her as my role model basically, in the back of my mind. A few months later I opened up "Kennel Banners" and "Name Tags." Both were literally ideas I scratched up by myself with absolutely no inspiration from any outside source. They became really popular and I saw other people begin their own threads, in which they named Name Tags and Kennel Banners as well. Now, plagiarism is taking someone's idea without permission. I think those count for plagiarism. I joined another game and did the same, and people did the same. Now, a year and a bit later, I've been noticing a few particular people copying pretty much every art piece I submit onto the Internet. Not even kidding. Some have even followed me from VP to TWO other sites and done the same. I'm not forward enough to address them or to report them. They aren't EXACT copies but sure as hell NOTICEABLY similar, and not just on one occasion, on MOST. I've addressed one and they apologized but have continued to do it and make excuses like, "You inspire me and make me want to be better," when really, Karissa inspired me but I did not COPY every single thing she did. I came up with my own style and applied my own desires into all of my graphics. I spend 1-2 hours on each graphic, more if they're bigger, so when I see someone upload pretty much the exact same thing, same idea, I flip!!!! If I saw these people in real life I would strangle them. AND! On the other game that I go on, a girl literally messaged me asking, "Hey Reina, I luv your banners and I'm wondering can you write down step by step exactly how you make your banners I'll pay you $100." No joke. I plainly but politely said, "I learned on my own to do what I do, and you can do the same." Like.. VP and graphic making is more enjoyable when you challenge yourself to come up with your own ideas. If you like someone's idea, politely ASK them if you can do the same. If you don't, it is plagiarism regardless of how much you copied them!!! If you are who I'm talking about, you don't have to bother posting. People will see that.. believe me. I have shut down ALL of my graphic commissions on EVERY website I go on. If I can't protect myself from people like this, then it's not worth the time.

RoyalRaccoon · January 2010

As an artist you should be familiar with copyright laws, and I feel this website is one of the most helpful to any type of artist. <a href="http://rightsforartists.com/"; target="_blank" class="bb-url">http://rightsforartists.com/</a> From the above website: "Plagiarism - To take the works of another person and attempt to pass them off as one's own. A plagiarist poses as the original creator of words or images that were originally created by someone else. [A plagiarist can also be a copyright violator by taking credit for work that is copyrighted] "

A few months later I opened up "Kennel Banners" and "Name Tags." Both were literally ideas I scratched up by myself with absolutely no inspiration from any outside source. They became really popular and I saw other people begin their own threads, in which they named Name Tags and Kennel Banners as well. Now, plagiarism is taking someone's idea without permission. I think those count for plagiarism.

You suggest you started this "a year and a bit later" ago, but I believe it's been on VP longer than that, and the simple idea of banners and name tags has been floating around the internet(and real life) far longer than VP has been around. Personally I created banners for people to use in kennels and in signatures 3-4 years ago under the name LeopardKitty, and it was popular before I joined. There's not much you can do to stop people from creating them, because they are a form of artistic expression(ex. digital art, water color, pixel art, avatars, etc), and you can't copyright that. You can copyright individual pieces though.

Like.. VP and graphic making is more enjoyable when you challenge yourself to come up with your own ideas. If you like someone's idea, politely ASK them if you can do the same. If you don't, it is plagiarism regardless of how much you copied them!!!

This not necessarily true. Someone can pick out the smallest detail from a banner you created, such as fonts, brushes, or gradation patterns, etc. and then use them on their own banners as long as they have permission from the person(s) who created the fonts,brushes, or gradation patterns.

They aren't EXACT copies but sure as hell NOTICEABLY similar, and not just on one occasion, on MOST

Reproductions can fall under copyright infringement. Recreations with modifications can fall under derivitive works which is defined in the U.S. Copyright Law as "A â€œderivative workâ€

Alabama · January 2010

I have to agree with PrinceSushi here. I played an internet game about 10 or 12 years ago that literally had hundreds of people every day logging onto their forums and for a while "Name tags" were all the rage, so if you wish to claim people are plagiarizing that idea, you may need to put yourself in that list. You may think the idea was original with you, but it is not. Banners have been around forever. Every forum that has ever allowed BBCode has had banners. VHR has had ranch banners since before VP was created, so it could be said that "kennel" banners could be considered plagiarizing since they are both simply "account" banners and the ranch banners were first. Here's the deal with others' banners looking so similar to yours. When a style is in demand, many people provide that style to make the most money. Think about skinny jeans. You can't tell me that one company alone came up with that idea and that no other company should have made them. Skinny jeans are basically a remake of jeans from the 60's and 70's. While the exact style you have should not be stolen, and would be plagiarizing if it was, a similar style is not.

reina__ · January 2010

I'm not talking about that, Alabama. Literal copying, not just trendiness. If a person in Sweden came up with underground doggy doo storing machines and a person in Georgia did too without any contact with the Swedish guy, would either of them be plagiarizing each other? No. I came up with name tags without any outside source, not that I INVENTED the idea, but I did in my own mind at least. I did before I saw any "name tag" threads ever on VP. And the kennel banners weren't just banners to put on the kennel. They were long, round rectangles, with a bit of dust around the edges, big text, big dogs as the focus of the banner, in specific fonts that I really liked. Those that adapted this idea also adapted these tiny details. I don't care if people making banners for your kennel, obviously, because that has been around way before VHR and before Sim games. But basically copying and pasting with minor changes, just enough so that I can't report them, is irritating. What counts is that I will not further address the particular people that I am having problems with currently. But stopping public banner making for a while will perhaps make them better than me because they now have my style and ideas down and are only going to grow after that, and I'm okay with that. But thanks for all the copyright tips. I'm not really an artist and I don't want to get into all the legal stuff regarding the manips I put together (except obviously keep in mind cc and rf photos).

iluvdogs111 · January 2010

I have to agree with most everything that's been said here. It can be frustrating when people make banners similar to yours, but it only means they admire your ideas/work and want to do something similar. I really don't think this is "copying" anything, it's simply using an idea from someone else to make something of your own. If they are not taking your graphics and claiming that they made them, or using your pictures or exact words, it is technicly not breaking copyright rules. I understand how you are frustrated by people useing your ideas, but try looking at it in a different way and feeling honered that someone loves your graphics/ideas so much. Making graphics is hard work. When people copy, steal, or take credit for your work you have every right to be angry. (Who wouldn't be?) However, in this case it is simply using one of your ideas. It's not exactly the most polite thing to do. It would be nice if someone could ask first, but it's not really plagerizing. As for the name tag making, name tags have been around for a while and I doubt you were the first person to come up with the idea. Please don't feel offended by this post, I'm very sorry if I sounded rude, this is just my opinion.

RoyalRaccoon · January 2010

If a person in Sweden came up with underground doggy doo storing machines and a person in Georgia did too without any contact with the Swedish guy, would either of them be plagiarizing each other? No.

Wrong. There are literary stories and real life cases of this happening(I believe one story is â€œA Lady in a Machine-Shopâ€

reina__ · January 2010

Right, well, I'm not really worried about protection and rights. Just idea copying like I've said before.

Kerry · January 2010

I agree with PrinceSushi. People are always going to copy others' ideas when they see something they like. This is something that you'll see everywhere. For example, Converse shoes have had their style copied by a few different shoe manufactures for one reason - they sell. I understand that you are upset about people "copying" your idea, but getting agitated about it isn't going to help any. Remember - your name tags do have a very unique style, but they were not the first to ever appear on virtualPups or the internet in general.

Hibachi · January 2010

I have to agree with what Alabama and everyone else said, because I see ideas copied in photography all the time - but everyone has their own unique way of taking pictures that makes it theirs, weather it be location, or yes even photographers have different styles. Now, if the person where taking coding from your layouts and selling it as their own I could understand.

reina__ · January 2010

Okay.. thanks.

Faeriegirl83 · January 2010

Bwahh, I'm gonna miss your pretties. XD I think everyone has their own point respectively. Stuff like this is one of the worst things about being an artist. That thar person stole my stuff! Or maybe not? Art theft and liscenses for heavy ref-ing? Copyrights, plagarism, or just similiar styles? IT'S ENOUGH TO MAKE YOUR HEAD DROP OFF. But I applaud your peaceful solution.

BuffyBoarding · January 2010

I know exactly what Reina is saying. Say you started breeding Danes for instance, and then a player started breeding them, so you switched to Collies, and they then switched as well. So you tried another breed and they just kept breeding the same dogs as you, would you not get upset that they're copying everything you do? Sure, it's not breaking any law, but it's still frustrating. I've seen alot of Reina's work over the years and they style is original, people will take each of her pieces and do something as close as they can to it. I've seen her do a banner with a Great Dane, blue text, and cropped edges and the next day there is a banner with the same font and color, cropped edges and a very similar dog. After this happens a few times, it get's old. So it may not be breaking any laws, but it does make you not want to do art anymore.

CORY · January 2010

Buffy wrote:

I know exactly what Reina is saying. Say you started breeding Danes for instance, and then a player started breeding them, so you switched to Collies, and they then switched as well. So you tried another breed and they just kept breeding the same dogs as you, would you not get upset that they're copying everything you do? Sure, it's not breaking any law, but it's still frustrating. I've seen alot of Reina's work over the years and they style is original, people will take each of her pieces and do something as close as they can to it. I've seen her do a banner with a Great Dane, blue text, and cropped edges and the next day there is a banner with the same font and color, cropped edges and a very similar dog. After this happens a few times, it get's old. So it may not be breaking any laws, but it does make you not want to do art anymore.

Exactly what i would say. but i couldnt put it in word form xD

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Lamesville plagiarizers

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