7 ms·

Plagiarizing and stealing content is immoral and unethical. "This is just how we do things in Russia" is not an excuse. We shouldn't be promoting this behavior.

Plagiarizing and stealing content is immoral and unethical. "This is just how we do things in Russia" is not an excuse. We shouldn't be promoting this behavior. Anyone with half a brain can make money stealing stuff and serving it via an API.

mskvsk 10y ago
This is very strong words and you're right. I welcome you to come over and fix this country. And the rest of the developing world, while you at it.
- rayalez 10y ago
  The issue here is not with your country but with your personal behavior. People in this thread are criticising you for actively contributing to the problem (building a tool for stealing stuff), and you're brushing it off, blaming it on your "market". Instead of warping your mind with a set of rationalizations that excuse your behavior, maybe try to accept the responsibility.
  - mskvsk 10y ago
    First, I accept the responsibility to some degree, and I'm open about it. Second, it's not "a tool for stealing stuff". I just somewhat dislike people shouting moral slogans, that's all. Especially people that have little understanding of the ecosystem in general. Sorry.
    - mildbow 10y ago
      You saw a niche and exploited it. That's a good thing. Morality/ethics/blah blah is always based on local customs. As people were fine with doing this anyway, then there is no need to import/impose "American" morality. Don't let any of these high-horse/armchair quarterbacks tell you any different. Thanks for taking the time to write an article. Hope this doesn't introduce a bunch of competitors into your market!
      - mskvsk 10y ago
        Thank you, I wish more people had your mindset.
    - happy-go-lucky 10y ago
      What's wrong with moral slogans? I don't know where the GP got "This is just how we do things in Russia" from, but you don't represent Russia, do you? When you make a Show HN here, it's open for discussion on what's good and what's not about your thing, based on which you may want to improve the thing. By the way, most of us feel concern for other posters.
      - mskvsk 10y ago
        Moral slogans are good per se, indeed. But I have zero patience for black and white conclusions without understanding the context, irrespective of the topic. Especially when the topic is about making a SaaS, not the moral grounds.
happy-go-lucky 10y ago
The other day I was following this thread: Shenzhen: The Silicon Valley of Hardware [video] (2016) (youtube.com) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13605599 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13605599 I'm reproducing a part of a comment from there: > One could say the evolutionary process is based on this principle. > Copy. Paste. Improve. Repeat. What have I just done? In no way am I supporting or suggesting that plagiarism or content theft is a model to follow, but I do believe that people learn from what others do and build on that.
- mskvsk 10y ago
  Very true. Running this SaaS lead me to the idea of launching a service where authors can sell their content for social networks. It's going to be super hard doing this in Russia but it's worth the try. But some people simply can't understand the incremental evolution. They demand turning a desert into a garden at once.

mskvsk 10y ago

This is very strong words and you're right. I welcome you to come over and fix this country. And the rest of the developing world, while you at it.

rayalez 10y ago
The issue here is not with your country but with your personal behavior. People in this thread are criticising you for actively contributing to the problem (building a tool for stealing stuff), and you're brushing it off, blaming it on your "market". Instead of warping your mind with a set of rationalizations that excuse your behavior, maybe try to accept the responsibility.
- mskvsk 10y ago
  First, I accept the responsibility to some degree, and I'm open about it. Second, it's not "a tool for stealing stuff". I just somewhat dislike people shouting moral slogans, that's all. Especially people that have little understanding of the ecosystem in general. Sorry.
  - mildbow 10y ago
    You saw a niche and exploited it. That's a good thing. Morality/ethics/blah blah is always based on local customs. As people were fine with doing this anyway, then there is no need to import/impose "American" morality. Don't let any of these high-horse/armchair quarterbacks tell you any different. Thanks for taking the time to write an article. Hope this doesn't introduce a bunch of competitors into your market!
    - mskvsk 10y ago
      Thank you, I wish more people had your mindset.
  - happy-go-lucky 10y ago
    What's wrong with moral slogans? I don't know where the GP got "This is just how we do things in Russia" from, but you don't represent Russia, do you? When you make a Show HN here, it's open for discussion on what's good and what's not about your thing, based on which you may want to improve the thing. By the way, most of us feel concern for other posters.
    - mskvsk 10y ago
      Moral slogans are good per se, indeed. But I have zero patience for black and white conclusions without understanding the context, irrespective of the topic. Especially when the topic is about making a SaaS, not the moral grounds.

happy-go-lucky 10y ago

The other day I was following this thread: Shenzhen: The Silicon Valley of Hardware [video] (2016) (youtube.com) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13605599 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13605599 I'm reproducing a part of a comment from there: > One could say the evolutionary process is based on this principle. > Copy. Paste. Improve. Repeat. What have I just done? In no way am I supporting or suggesting that plagiarism or content theft is a model to follow, but I do believe that people learn from what others do and build on that.

mskvsk 10y ago
Very true. Running this SaaS lead me to the idea of launching a service where authors can sell their content for social networks. It's going to be super hard doing this in Russia but it's worth the try. But some people simply can't understand the incremental evolution. They demand turning a desert into a garden at once.