"Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching."
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"Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching." |
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Observation: Why would anyone brag about stealing - in front of a group of people? It happens all the time as students in class tell me about stealing music, movies, software and other intellectual property1 protected by law. The irony is that many of them aspire to create the very things they now steal. I fear that this attitude about copying intellectual property has affected attitudes towards the copying of code. Remedy: Laws are not made primarily to punish, but to instruct and motivate behavior. That being said, the law in my class is this:
Copying code is forbidden.
Allowing others to copy your code is forbidden. You must protect your
intellectual property as you protect your personal property - with all reasonable measures.
You must respect the property of others and recognize that
copying code is stealing and is wrong.
1. In the American tradition, intellectual property law is largely motivated by utilitarian concerns. It is not designed to give property rights solely as a reward for hard work [...]. It is about setting up conditions under which creators can and will produce new works. Source: Intellectual Property Policy Online: a Young Person's Guide at Duke Law 2. Obviously there are exceptions in classes that require group work. This will be clearly specified when that is the case. |
