[TonicX57]

People who use the internet are content hungry. They get really bored if they don't have new content coming at them constantly. This is why a lot of sites today are going down hill. This demand for content is growing exponentially, and webmasters just don't have enough content to spew out that quickly.

A solution that many webmasters are resorting to is article rewriting. This is taking an article written by someone else, and changing the wording a bit so that it becomes yours. Then they use copyscape.com to see if they rewrote the article enough that it doesn't match any other pages on the entirety of the internet.

What are your thoughts on the issue?

My thoughts:
To be honest, I do this myself. I'm not a very creative person, so I can never think of things to write about, but I am a very skilled writer. This really helps me to keep up-to-date with content on my site, as well as helping my writing skills to advance. I did some research on the matter, and I found that there are no laws prohibiting this act. So I think it's fine to do this.

-TonicX57

[Tom9729]

You just defined plagiarism.

[badjava]

Tom9729, on 30 Nov, 2008 - 11:39 PM, said:

You just defined plagiarism.

Guess how much content on the web is original or falls inside the bounds of what could be considered plagiarism?

[Tom9729]

badjava, on 1 Dec, 2008 - 04:32 AM, said:

Tom9729, on 30 Nov, 2008 - 11:39 PM, said:

You just defined plagiarism.

Guess how much content on the web is original or falls inside the bounds of what could be considered plagiarism?

There is a difference between original content and plagiarism. The fact that it happens doesn't mean it's right.

[KYA]

There is nothing new under the sun, but don't plagiarize, give people credit for their work.

[TonicX57]

I've done some research, as I've mentioned, and it's not considered plagiarism. Check out this article: http://aaronfalloon....ad-thing-to-do/

[Tom9729]

TonicX57, on 1 Dec, 2008 - 08:22 PM, said:

I've done some research, as I've mentioned, and it's not considered plagiarism. Check out this article: http://aaronfalloon....ad-thing-to-do/

Ignoring the fact that you can't cite a blog post like that as a credible source, the author is in no way agreeing with you unless you're strictly speaking of content that is in the public domain.

You can do anything you want with something that is in the public domain, but something is not in the public domain unless the author explicitly states that it is.

[KYA]

Yay time to get into intellectual property debates!

[Tom9729]

KYA, on 1 Dec, 2008 - 11:04 PM, said:

Yay time to get into intellectual property debates!

Perhaps, but this thread seems to be more of a rationalization than a debate.

[KYA]

It's black and white. Do not take from others' works without giving them full and proper credit.

[cfoley]

I think the real issue here is: Why would you do such a thing?

Seriously, why do you have a website/blog/whatever if you have nothing to say? Why do you want to keep it endlessly updated if you have nothing to say?

What do you get out of it? I don't accept the improving your English thing. Surely, writing fewer, original pieces (in a variety of styles and genres) is the way to do that. If you really want to do tech articles, writing an original one every month must help you learn better than tweaking one every week.

[TonicX57]

cfoley, on 2 Dec, 2008 - 06:12 PM, said:

I think the real issue here is: Why would you do such a thing?

Seriously, why do you have a website/blog/whatever if you have nothing to say? Why do you want to keep it endlessly updated if you have nothing to say?

What do you get out of it? I don't accept the improving your English thing. Surely, writing fewer, original pieces (in a variety of styles and genres) is the way to do that. If you really want to do tech articles, writing an original one every month must help you learn better than tweaking one every week.

One article a month = practically no views. If you want to have a successful website, you have to throw content at your viewers at least once a day, if not multiple times per day.

And maybe you know what to say, but just don't know what to do with that idea. So you take an existing article written about what you want to write about, and you write it in your own words.

So no, that's not the real issue here. The real issue is more of "What do you think of it?"

[cfoley]

Quote

And maybe you know what to say, but just don't know what to do with that idea. So you take an existing article written about what you want to write about, and you write it in your own words.

You've lost me a little bit here. That person knows what to say so he does have something to write about, and he's able to rewrite somebody else's article so doesn't lack writing skill.

So, if he knows what to say and knows how to write it then I don't see why someone else's article comes into it at all.

I do think my original point was valid. Someone who doesn't have anything to say has no need for a website. By copying someone else's ideas (because that's what it amounts to) such a person is pretending they're something they're not. I can't help but feel their creative energies would be better spent on something they are good at or on developing a skill they would like to have.

To directly answer your question: "What do you think of it?" I think it's silly and dishonest, for the reasons outlined above.

[josiahb]

I'm with cfoley here, if I use the work of others its only to help me refine my ideas and give me a starting point (and sources are referenced properly etc).

Theres no point just rewriting their work because its adding nothing to the conversation. It doesn't help you improve your writing either, it just fills space, your unlikely to produce decent articles without first working on finding your voice as a writer and that doesn't come from changing a few words in someone elses work.

If your having difficulty coming up with something original everyday, don't, so your pageviews go down for a bit, so what? When you've spent some time really working on improving your writing, finding your voice, the visitors your site will get will benefit far more from what they see and will stick around longer.

[josiahb]

oh and by the by, the article you linked to agrees with me and cfoley

Quote

Not only can it be against the law, but it’s also unethical. Stealing someone else’s work is wrong, and could give you a very bad name.

Quote

However, if you want a successful site you’re going to have to put the work in to create some top-notch content. It’s the only way to create a good user experience which is optimised for SEO and void of any copyright infringements.