We have all seen discussions about stealing routines, styles, shows and tricks...
What about websites?
Is it ok to use the text from someone else's website on your own?
What if it is something generic, like Pony Rides?
Just curious...
Gwyd

Using text from someone else's website without permission would be a violation of copyright.

That is what I always thought. I have always been very careful with my website, as I do my best to have only original content. I cringe that I use the word Unique on my site, as I feel it is overused.
The reason I brought it up is that I was just checking out some other entertainers sites, specifically pony ride sites. I copied the text from the webpage into my search function and found upwards of 10 websites with the exact same verbiage (one or two words different at most).
I am not talking about a single sentence, but entire paragraphs.
Try this one out- Put the entire paragraph into your search.
"Our well-groomed ponies will bring smiles to the faces of the children at your party. Pony rides at your event will provide the children with memories of happiness and enjoyment, laughter and fun."
Seems generic enough, but when I pull up three pages of sites with the exact same paragraph? Something is not right.
How many people do this same thing with their magic descriptions?
It scares me a little.
Gwyd

Not only that, Gwyd, BUT search engines look for duplicate content, and the search engines KNOW which site had the content first, and they can end up BLACKLISTING all the other sites with the stolen text.

Now that is something I did not know!
I feel a little better knowing that there is something in place to handle this, at least to keep the original content on top.
I still don't understand why some feel they need to duplicate content on their own promotional site.
For me as a consumer, cookie cutter website content most likely leads to cookie cutter shows. I don't want anything generic to entertain my family.
Gwyd

Blacklisting, huh? I would certainly not want to be on any blacklist. That seems like the worst sort of list you can be on.

All in all, it is just flat out wrong to copy things like that.

This is a growing problem in the online world.

Here is an article in the Wall Street Journal (of all places!) about it...

A fascinating exploration into the depth of the banality of our culture. A Google search will find many, many more examples of this in social network sites, online dating sites, and even eBay and Amazon profiles...

What is wrong with these people?

Copyscape, a Google service I believe, allows us to search the Internet for unauthorized copies of our personal & business websites.

http://www.copyscape.com/

Insert your website address and Copyscape searches for duplicates. One regular Café patron from Las Vegas found a fellow who had pirated his entire website, photos, logo and all, and simply changed the performer's name. Talk about blatant.

If you're a bit on the paranoid side, you can sign up for Copysentry, a $4.95 a month service that routinely scans for unauthorized copies of your website and sends it to you.

Gwyd -

When I have discovered text and photos from my site that "have wandered away from home" (I'm being polite here), I was quick to send an email or make a call. My website has a copyright notice on it, and the thieves did not ask my permission.

- Donald

I think by definition a thief does not ask permission.

There are HTML scripts that can be used to protect photos on your site that will block the user's ability to right click and subsequently copy images.

Unfortunately, I do not know of any that will also protect text because it can be copied without using the right click option.

The net is wonderful, but it has made plagiarism a real problem. My wife teaches at both the undergrad and grad level at several Universities, and entire programs have had to be set up to battle this .... vice. One school even has its own plagiarism checker system! Submit a block of text, and they come back with answer, etc.

It's the same for web sites. It's really just laziness. It's just not that difficult to come up with copy for your site that is unique to you and only you. Of course, you then, being the 'creative' one, have to worry about who is now going to using YOUR unique and excellent text!

It's much the same with everyone using performer X's unique and clever patter. The excuses for this I've heard over the years are virtual travelogues for an ethics class.

Best,

Hmmm... It seems that no one has stolen any content at all from my web site dedicated to atomic airships. Should I be concerned? I mean, I thought it was a pretty good site, but if no one is stealing content from it, well...

http://www.atomicairship.com

Not only have I had text and photos taken from my site, but also customer testimonials. The other performer swiped my testimonials word for word and changed the customers' names for his own site.

Unbelievable!

- Donald

I think people should have stolen from your site.

Placing there O'Gilvy On Advertising would certainly be useful for magicians to read, especially as your site links it to "Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind" by Al Ries and "The One to One Future: Building Relationships One Customer at a Time" by Don Peppers. Maybe the "Purple Cow" by Seth Godin is missing there to prevent others to steal the title from your site and keeping it for yourself, unless you wanted to hide "Word of Mouth Marketing" by Andy Sernovitz...

"Parallel Universe" by is also a great source of meaningful scripts especially when your site links it to Dr. Quantum's "Little Book Of Big Ideas: Where Science Meets Spirit" by Fred Alan Wolf and "A Brief History of Time" by Stephen W. Hawking and from there...

If plagiarism is a form of compliment, lack of it may just reveal a widely spread mediocrity.

So don't despair!