Comment about website censoring
- Thread starter BeBe
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hockeyfan
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BeBe, you'll find that you can't post competitor's website name on this site.
I've noticed that nearly all the deals listed on Spoofee are plucked from other sites without giving them credit, but everytime I post a message like this my user name gets deleted.
As far as I'm concerned the site's owner needs to own up to stealing. Sure information on the internet is free, but it takes a honorable human to give credit where credit is due.
I challenge the moderator to post this as-is.
I've noticed that nearly all the deals listed on Spoofee are plucked from other sites without giving them credit, but everytime I post a message like this my user name gets deleted.
As far as I'm concerned the site's owner needs to own up to stealing. Sure information on the internet is free, but it takes a honorable human to give credit where credit is due.
I challenge the moderator to post this as-is.
Choochoojr
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hockeyfan said:
I accept your challenge...
I moved this to the off topic section, and am now going to add a few things.
Spoofee.com is not the only website that censors other deal websites. Try posting another deal site at most deal sites, they will be censored the same way. That is just how it is. Actually Spoofee does it because people like to spam other deal sites, they come here and post nothing else, not because Spoofee does not want credit to be given.
As for people just cutting and pasting other deals without giving somekind of credit to where they found it is not right, but who really cares. How do you know the place they got it from did not just cut and paste it? If I find a deal someplace else I will usually reword it and add a few more missing details. If I do decide to just cut and paste, I will post from where and from whom I got it from. If a person wishes to post a deal and not leave credit, that is all on the poster not because Spoofee says we cannot do it.
No one is stealing anything, there are hundreds of deal site out there. I am sure that they all post alot of the same stuff.
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Kage_
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hockeyfan,
Ok I have a question for you. If I worked for CompUSA and I went over to Circuit City to post Flyer's all over advertising CompUSA's amazing deals, what do you think CC would do? They would rip down the advertisements and throw them in the trash. Now if I did this several times what do you think they would do? I would get kicked out of the store and told never to come back. This is basically what the moderators on Spoofee do. We do not not allow advertising for other sites because they are competitors! Like it or not deal websites are a form of a business. Deal sites are here to give the users of that site the best deal, but they are also in it to make a little money. So when a competitor comes over and advertises there site then that's a no no.
Now as for ppl ripping off deals from other sites. Please show me some proof. I'm willing to bet that if you go to all of the deal sites you will see similar deals and you can look at the date/time stamp to see when that deal was posted. Please show me ONE site that has every single deal on the net posted first. You can't because it isn't so. One day site A may find a good deal. Then other sites pick it up. Then the next day site B finds a good deal and then the other sites pick it up. It's the nature of the game.
As for users ripping and pasting deals directly from other sites. I do believe that users should not do that, but how is the owner of this site supposed to know that a user has done that? If the owner of this site spent all of his time look at each deal posted by each user and then searching ever single deal site to verify that the deal wasn't a copy and paste from another site, then he would spend all of his time doing that. I just isn't practical. Now if a user see's a deal, rewords it into his/her own words or better yet goes to the store that has the deal and then posts it. Well so be it... again it's the nature of of this type of site.
So don't start pointing fingers if you can't back up your accusations!
Kage_
Ok I have a question for you. If I worked for CompUSA and I went over to Circuit City to post Flyer's all over advertising CompUSA's amazing deals, what do you think CC would do? They would rip down the advertisements and throw them in the trash. Now if I did this several times what do you think they would do? I would get kicked out of the store and told never to come back. This is basically what the moderators on Spoofee do. We do not not allow advertising for other sites because they are competitors! Like it or not deal websites are a form of a business. Deal sites are here to give the users of that site the best deal, but they are also in it to make a little money. So when a competitor comes over and advertises there site then that's a no no.
Now as for ppl ripping off deals from other sites. Please show me some proof. I'm willing to bet that if you go to all of the deal sites you will see similar deals and you can look at the date/time stamp to see when that deal was posted. Please show me ONE site that has every single deal on the net posted first. You can't because it isn't so. One day site A may find a good deal. Then other sites pick it up. Then the next day site B finds a good deal and then the other sites pick it up. It's the nature of the game.
As for users ripping and pasting deals directly from other sites. I do believe that users should not do that, but how is the owner of this site supposed to know that a user has done that? If the owner of this site spent all of his time look at each deal posted by each user and then searching ever single deal site to verify that the deal wasn't a copy and paste from another site, then he would spend all of his time doing that. I just isn't practical. Now if a user see's a deal, rewords it into his/her own words or better yet goes to the store that has the deal and then posts it. Well so be it... again it's the nature of of this type of site.
So don't start pointing fingers if you can't back up your accusations!
Kage_
I too disagree.
Choo & Kage make great points. If you want to "give credit" just write "swiped" as no one can ever say who the OP was. A regular member here takes post from Spoofee.com and posts them on another site. It's all about sharing not credit.
I made a map post a while ago did all the work myself and while surfing I found my post word for word, no thank you was given to me and I just thought how neat someone liked my post enough to share it. I saw it a week later at another site and it did thank me but I have to say it didn't matter.
Some times you just have to be a grown up and share the wealth.
BEBE instead of complaining (here -http://www.spoofee.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18509 ) and now this why not find constructive criticism and helpful suggestions in a NICE way as we are all on the same team here. We are not here to pick on members.
Choo & Kage make great points. If you want to "give credit" just write "swiped" as no one can ever say who the OP was. A regular member here takes post from Spoofee.com and posts them on another site. It's all about sharing not credit.
I made a map post a while ago did all the work myself and while surfing I found my post word for word, no thank you was given to me and I just thought how neat someone liked my post enough to share it. I saw it a week later at another site and it did thank me but I have to say it didn't matter.
Some times you just have to be a grown up and share the wealth.
BEBE instead of complaining (here -http://www.spoofee.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18509 ) and now this why not find constructive criticism and helpful suggestions in a NICE way as we are all on the same team here. We are not here to pick on members.
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Other than what was said, our goal is to bring the best deals to the visitors of this site. Let me also reiterate that this is a business or a "competition."
Overtime, I have seen many deals being copied and pasted as well from Spoofee.com with no credit.
There is no law of copyrighting deals at this time.
Overtime, I have seen many deals being copied and pasted as well from Spoofee.com with no credit.
There is no law of copyrighting deals at this time.
penpen
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BeBe said:
Choo, Kage_, Cedar & Spoofee have already noted everything i'd want to say, and there isn't much more to mention, but i did want to add my two cents.hockeyfan said:
Deal sites may be "businesses" and involve a degree of "competition", but ultimately, these sites are about sharing information and helping others. To be fixated solely on the issue of "credit" is kind of missing "the bigger picture".
How often do we hear the name "Ted Benna"? He is the man who basically came up with the idea of the 401K. I'm sure that financial advisors mention to their clients on a daily basis that they can save money with 401K's. If those advisors fail to mention that this concept came from Mr. Benna, are they then inappropriately taking his idea as their own? Should we be complaining to them that they aren't giving Mr. Benna his due?
Basically, they're simply sharing information that can help someone else. I believe that this is no different from what Spoofee, the members, & the moderating staff do everyday on this site for each other & for visitors of this site.
To be unwilling to share helpful information & worried only about "getting credit" would simply be selfish.
By the way, deals are taken from this site as well -- we just don't complain about it. Like Cedar, I've found and typed out information on a deal that later, I saw posted verbatim on other deal sites with no mention of my name. i even teased a member of another site once about posting something that i'd written. She noted to me that she's had the same thing happen to her too. We both had just had a good laugh about it and admitted that we realize this is the nature of these sites.
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hockeyfan
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Thanks for accepting my challenge and posting this thread. It’s a good discussion.
Choochoojr said…
Kage_ said…
Kage_ asked for proof.
For those asking at this point, no, I don't have any affiliation with any of the other deal sites. As a matter of fact, I’m a long time proponent of Spoofee. My ID may not reflect my longevity, mainly because I’ve attempted this thread a couple of times in the past and had my ID deleted from the system. I tell all my friends about it mainly because of the hard work that penpen, Spoofee, Choochoojr, Kage_, and others put into the exact activity I’m complaining about. It’s a great one-stop-shop site.
Some may call that hypocritical, but it’s not. I've never condoned stealing. I’ve tried to get the good folks at Spoofee to add some kind of designation to their posts to give proper credit for their posts for awhile.
As penpen mentioned these sites are a business. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of a CompUSA employee walking over to Circuit City and stealing an X box to sell back at CompUSA.
I understand that Spoofee doesn’t sell each deal, but they do sell their reputation in order to gain sponsor support and build their user list. A reputable site would do as Cedar suggested and list the deal as swiped (shared wouldn't be bad either). It’s just a matter of integrity, something that is sorely fading in our society.
Thanks again for posting this discussion. :claps: :claps: :claps:
Choochoojr said…
Actually Spoofee does it because people like to spam other deal sites, they come here and post nothing else, not because Spoofee does not want credit to be given.
I didn’t realize this aspect of the site name blocking. Thanks for clearing this up.Kage_ said…
As for users ripping and pasting deals directly from other sites. I do believe that users should not do that, but how is the owner of this site supposed to know that a user has done that? If the owner of this site spent all of his time look at each deal posted by each user and then searching ever single deal site to verify that the deal wasn't a copy and paste from another site, then he would spend all of his time doing that. I just isn't practical.
I agree it’s not possible for the owner or moderators to go out and try to validate the originality of each post and there are no set rules on this site about such activity. What I find intolerable is a moderator going out to competitors’ sites and pilfering a deal without giving credit.Kage_ asked for proof.
This deal from yesterday (5/3/05)…
HP PSC 1315 Color Flatbed All-In-One Printer for $35 Shipped After Rebates & Coupon
…was originally posted on s****d***s.com at 7:45pm PT on 5/2/05
It’s one thing to post flyers in a competitors store advertising your deals, but it’s another to take their deal and post it at your site as original material. I realize that there were some modifications in this particular case, but you get my point.HP PSC 1315 Color Flatbed All-In-One Printer for $35 Shipped After Rebates & Coupon
…was originally posted on s****d***s.com at 7:45pm PT on 5/2/05
For those asking at this point, no, I don't have any affiliation with any of the other deal sites. As a matter of fact, I’m a long time proponent of Spoofee. My ID may not reflect my longevity, mainly because I’ve attempted this thread a couple of times in the past and had my ID deleted from the system. I tell all my friends about it mainly because of the hard work that penpen, Spoofee, Choochoojr, Kage_, and others put into the exact activity I’m complaining about. It’s a great one-stop-shop site.
Some may call that hypocritical, but it’s not. I've never condoned stealing. I’ve tried to get the good folks at Spoofee to add some kind of designation to their posts to give proper credit for their posts for awhile.
As penpen mentioned these sites are a business. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of a CompUSA employee walking over to Circuit City and stealing an X box to sell back at CompUSA.
I understand that Spoofee doesn’t sell each deal, but they do sell their reputation in order to gain sponsor support and build their user list. A reputable site would do as Cedar suggested and list the deal as swiped (shared wouldn't be bad either). It’s just a matter of integrity, something that is sorely fading in our society.
Thanks again for posting this discussion. :claps: :claps: :claps:
Kage_
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hockeyfan said:
Now... how do you know that is where this deal came from? How do you know that the OP of this deal here didn't find it by look at OfficeDepot? The OP of the deal posted here didn't do a copy and paste from any site. The deal was posted here with orginal wording and in my opinion a better presentation of the deal. There's a link to the item, item numbers listed, rebates linked to and all the specifics to make the deal work. So how was this ripped from another site?
I agree... if a user posts a deal verbadium from another site then there should be some sort of reference, but the deal you referenced would not fall into that catagory.
Kage_
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penpen
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this is a good discussion, perhaps one that could be taking place on other boards as well.hockeyfan said:
as i mentioned, i have seen deals that our members posted, including mine & Cedar's, sometimes posted verbatim, without any alteration on other deal sites without our names receiving any mention.
as a matter of fact, $lickdeals the admin took one of mine (the free coffee pods from amazon, which turned out got cancelled by amazon anyway) http://www.spoofee.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17967 ( 04-15-2005, 02:35 AM)
and placed it right on the front page of the SD site http://$lickdeals.net/?from=2005-04-01&to=2005-05-01#p5974, (Posted: 04/15/05 4:20AM PT) even using the same filler item that i included in my post.
a FW member took the details of the harley-davidson brochure offer that i typed out http://www.spoofee.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17411&highlight=harley-davidson
( 03-29-2005, 10:20 AM) & posted it here: http://[email protected]/t/22/455222 (Mar/29/2005 7:07 PM)
let me know if you see my name in those posts, because i didn't happen to catch it anywhere
Anyway, this happens, and i think there's no point in complaining about it because this is ultimately about sharing of information that you hope will help out others.
it would be interesting, though, to see what their forum members would have to say about this topic you have brought up.
________________________________________
just spotted another post that looks awfully familiar, especially since i typed out the whole thing (& i didn't see my username anywhere on that post either =P )
http://[email protected]/t/22/475188/
May/18/2005 1:26 AM
http://www.spoofee.com/forums/showthread.php?p=67289#post67289
05-17-05, 10:44 PM
...and i'm still wondering what other forums have to say about this
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I don't care much for people swiping deals from other sites but I don't view it's fair that you don't state that it's swiped. You don't have to state the site you stole it from maybe just state it's swiped or thank the OP. The reason why I say this is because some people actually go and find deals then post them. Due to this they deserve credit for it.
I just view that spoofee should have some originality to itself then rather just taking deals from other sites all the time. I'm not saying that spoofee isn't original cuz it is since on the freebie site they have so many free items that members actually go and find then post. I go to spoofee to see different deals from other websites, I don't go there to see the same deal again, but if there is no difference in this site from the others what is the point of going to different deal sites?
I know that all these deal sites make money by people coming onto the site and actually clicking on the html so whats the big deal of saying the deal is swiped? You still get paid don't still don't you?
I just view that spoofee should have some originality to itself then rather just taking deals from other sites all the time. I'm not saying that spoofee isn't original cuz it is since on the freebie site they have so many free items that members actually go and find then post. I go to spoofee to see different deals from other websites, I don't go there to see the same deal again, but if there is no difference in this site from the others what is the point of going to different deal sites?
I know that all these deal sites make money by people coming onto the site and actually clicking on the html so whats the big deal of saying the deal is swiped? You still get paid don't still don't you?
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Cedar said:
Please except my apologies to the OP if it felt like I was picking you on. I agree we are a team but I just believe that we should give credit where it's due. Is posting the deal as swiped considered not sharing? I just believe that we should give credit where its due it's not cool to go to another site and just copy and paste the deal and then go back to check if there were any comments or add on deals then come back onto spoofee to update it. What is the point to come to spoofee then when you can see the same exact deals on another site? Thats my 2 cents. Hopefully I didn't offend anyone but if I did please except my sincere apologies. Thank you for the heads up of how everyone feels on this topic.
Choochoojr
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BeBe said:
I would like to make a comment about this.
Well if we have the same deals posted here, why would you need to go anywhere else. You think that just because you see it elsewhere, it means that site must have been the first to post it. Like Kage said above, there is no one website with all original deals.
BeBe said:
Since every site swipes from other sites by thanking one OP you are never sure if they swiped or they were the OP. In the end I believe it would be worse to see my post word for word being credited to another poster, who swiped it from me. You see there is never ANY real way to tell who the OP was.
As a member who has many many posts I would rather someone swipe my post then bother giving credit.
Spoofee is a great site, I came here and stayed because of the people and site layout. :spoofee:
penpen
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and we don't? BeBe, it would be very wise to check facts before making generalizing statements.BeBe said:
deals have originated from this site that ended up being posted in other sites.BeBe said:
BeBe, please let me know how other forums respond should you inform them that they should be giving us credit for the deals they take from here. thanks
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Thanks Bebe for your input.
As Choochoojr stated. We try to post more info on a similar deal and anything else we can find for that day. If we don't have a deal another site has & if that site "swipes" our deals, who's site would users go to?
We do try to credit the poster of the deal on the front page. Posting that the deal was "swiped" doesn't benefit anyone. It might make some new users confused on what that means or might even take them into go searching where it was "swiped" from. Many deal sites out there do not do the same for probably the same reasons.
As Penpen said, I would like to hear what other site's replies are.
BeBe said:
As Choochoojr stated. We try to post more info on a similar deal and anything else we can find for that day. If we don't have a deal another site has & if that site "swipes" our deals, who's site would users go to?
We do try to credit the poster of the deal on the front page. Posting that the deal was "swiped" doesn't benefit anyone. It might make some new users confused on what that means or might even take them into go searching where it was "swiped" from. Many deal sites out there do not do the same for probably the same reasons.
As Penpen said, I would like to hear what other site's replies are.
After reading your replies to my comments, I noticed that mainly the moderators find my comments to be attacking the people in the spoofee community and some others are just misunderstanding my comments. I just want to let you guys know that this is how I view this topic, you don't necessarily need to agree. As I said before to the OP that posted the deal, I did not mean to offend him/her. I love spoofee because they have great people here. Obviously I wouldn't be here discussing this issue if I don't use spoofee or care. Moderators, Kenjiro, please do not take this personal, remember it's my 2 cents. Please accept my apologies if I have offended anyone in this community.
Thank you
Regarding how other deals work on other sites. There are sites that know when you swipe deals. Usually there is one site that has everything and then you see a domino effect. (hopefully this is the corect term for it). On other websites that I have gone to, half of the time, the deals that are swiped don't get posted due to the fact they would perfer to be the deal finders and have other people swpe it from them. I know moderators in the other forums perfer that credit is given, (it's stated in there forum rules). Due to the fact that I am not allowed to state any websites I can't prove anything to the moderators. There have been posts in the past, regarding how they love the originality of the site. AGAIN, PLEASE DON'T MISUNDERSTAND and take it out of porportion that I'm saying spoofee doesn't have originality in it, cuz it does. Thats my 2 cents. Thank you
Thank you
Regarding how other deals work on other sites. There are sites that know when you swipe deals. Usually there is one site that has everything and then you see a domino effect. (hopefully this is the corect term for it). On other websites that I have gone to, half of the time, the deals that are swiped don't get posted due to the fact they would perfer to be the deal finders and have other people swpe it from them. I know moderators in the other forums perfer that credit is given, (it's stated in there forum rules). Due to the fact that I am not allowed to state any websites I can't prove anything to the moderators. There have been posts in the past, regarding how they love the originality of the site. AGAIN, PLEASE DON'T MISUNDERSTAND and take it out of porportion that I'm saying spoofee doesn't have originality in it, cuz it does. Thats my 2 cents. Thank you
Thank you for understanding it is my input and not getting so offensive about it.Spoofee said:
Choochoojr
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BeBe said:
We have to protect "The Boss", we are his right hand men and women. We don't want to get "The Boss" mad, he will make us disappear quicker than a free DVD player given out on "Black Friday" :clown: LOL
Actually I don't think your comments are attacking anyone. This topic had to be brought up sooner or later, that is why I started it. :bigok: