Comments on: Avast!

By: Tim Murtaugh

Tim Murtaugh — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 21:58:08 +0000

OK, so I just added the “piratedsites” tag to all the screenshots we have in Flickr. Happy?

BTW, I’m looking to re-start a proper Pirated Sites, and I’m looking for bloggers if anyone is interested.

By: CodeHooligans

CodeHooligans — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 01:00:13 +0000

[...] to catch-up on my RSS feeds. One item that caught my eye was posted by Eric Meyer on his blog http://meyerweb.com/eric/thoughts/2007/05/17/avast/. His post was on the topic of Piracy of web site designs. One site specifically that is a blatant [...]

By: Underground Collective Wisdom » Blog Archive

Underground Collective Wisdom » Blog Archive — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 09:45:33 +0000

[...] or whatever social photo sharing web site you use, or post it to your blog, or whever you like, but tag it with "piratedsites" .this way it’s decentralized and can be picked up by Technorati and more. Tag design ripoffs [...]

By: Bradyn

Bradyn — Wed, 30 May 2007 17:27:53 +0000

Hah. While I’m being a smart ass, your RSS 2.0 link (under Feeds, right sidebar) leads to a 404. *hides

By: Bradyn

Bradyn — Tue, 29 May 2007 20:14:54 +0000

Hah, when you linked to Zeldman, you actually linked back to yourself. Sneaky.

[ Actually, just a typo. Fixed now; thanks! --E. ]

By: Pirate Puckles

Pirate Puckles — Tue, 29 May 2007 12:16:04 +0000

Don”t think of it as plagiarism. Think of it as homage.

By: thacker

thacker — Mon, 28 May 2007 19:51:20 +0000

Meyer–

There are some issues that I believe designers/developers need to be aware prior to making to claims of “pirated” designs.

First, I am not an intellectual property attorney .. just thirty plus years of experience in a wide variety of intellectual property issues. So take what I say in that vein.

I emphasize the need for anyone who is making a claim of a “pirated” design to consult with an intellectual property law firm before making those claims and to gather a firm understanding of what constitutes copyright and possible violations of copyright.

I am afraid that well intentioned designers/developers, in the emotional heat, may be leaving themselves vulnerable to liability.

Again, seek counsel from competant intellectual property counsel [not general counsel] before making any such claims or postings to Flickr or any other published source.

The Web site of the US Patent and Trademark Office publishes a list of those attorneys and law firms who are registered to practice before the Patent and Trademark Office. Searchable Database of Attornerys and Agents Registered to Practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Thank you very much.

By: Elliot Jay Stocks

Elliot Jay Stocks — Mon, 28 May 2007 12:23:42 +0000

I just got pirated myself (details here) and have duly tagged this image with 'piratedsites'. Nice one, Eric!

By: Elliot Jay Stocks » Pirated

Elliot Jay Stocks » Pirated — Mon, 28 May 2007 11:12:30 +0000

[...] Meyer has publicly urged Flickr users to tag such images as ‘piratedsites’, and says that although “the [...]

By: thacker

thacker — Sun, 27 May 2007 18:53:45 +0000

john–

You bring up an interesting point in regards to design. The design of the first solar cell, for example, was patented around 1785.

The concept of “piratedsites.com” does smack somewhat of kids fighting over who thought of something first.

I guess the key in a few serious situations is whether a dupe is engaging in unfair business practices as defined by statute.

By: john

john — Thu, 24 May 2007 18:43:19 +0000

Hey, Eric, every single site on the web is pirated. If I dig hard enough I’m sure I can find the site you stole your layout from…

Come on now, kid…

By: wraptinweb

wraptinweb — Tue, 22 May 2007 21:21:15 +0000

The design outcome would have been better if they had pirated the design more accurately. The page header bar design has the contrast line broken and the SEO icon cluster is appalling. The RHS elements with their balancing colours have been dropped, and most intriguing, the header font hue is quite different.

The top and LHS elements are an exact match down to the hue – so where is the line (piracy vs inspired by) drawn? Is it too heretical to wish they had done a better pirating job? I’m only half kidding, because if they don’t even understand the design concepts they are copying, or respect the design process that went into the original, how can they come up with good design themselves.

By: Angelo

Angelo — Mon, 21 May 2007 16:00:12 +0000

argh, matey. thar be a fine idea. i smell a fancy applet in nearby waters.

By: Matt Robin

Matt Robin — Sat, 19 May 2007 23:52:42 +0000

Eric, I’ve now added this to my flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattrobin/505065177/

;)

Does that help?

By: Matt Robin

Matt Robin — Sat, 19 May 2007 19:38:30 +0000

Great idea Eric…simple yet effective – we’ll have them on the ropes yet!!! :o

(Yeah, pity the original pirated-sites.com doesn’t exist the way it used to.)