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Leaving aside for a moment all the ridiculous Drahma that led to the informational search in question to begin with, I have an Imponderable with which to "task" the hive mind.
I was contacted lately by a friend/acquaintance. She'd picked my brain earlier on an SCA textile based "everybody knows" subject, looking for hard facts. I passed on what I could find, but (not having my own knickers in a twist on the subject) let the matter slide afterwards. She did not. Apparently, goaded by some rather nasty commentary she went on and did some pretty extensive research both book-based and via contact with various museums. Several translations and communications later and she turned up evidence of slubby silk in period, and one fragment of said silk with extensive goldwork.
Now, never having been anti-dupioni to start with, I sort of said "well, that's cool." And went back to what I was doing. Until she came back and asked me "How do I share this, while avoiding having it stolen[sic]?" Given my current constant state of baby-induced low level sleep deprivation, my initial response was to suggest she write it up and post it on the Guild's website as an article, put it on her own website, or start her own LJ or other blog and post it there.
Hours later my brain kicked in. First, I was vaguely horrified that we should reach a point where we're so afraid of our work being pirated that we hesitate to share it. Which rather negates the purpose of finding out something. I mean, what good is it if you can't tell somebody else? Now, some of this fear is due to the whole "cookie" system of awards in the SCA. What could be more galling than someone else being Laureled on your research, stolen en masse from your article or website, or whatever? And here we come back to the whole moral code issue and whether or not you even see it as wrong. Now, I have no copyright on any of the paintings I've found, or other articles or materials I've collected. Only on my own writings on my thoughts and conclusions. So if somebody lifts the sources, and writes up my thoughts and conclusions in their own words, well, it's legal, I suppose. But against the spirit of the thing. How bent can you get about something like this? The perpetrator could well argue that the found the same sources and came to the same conclusions independently. And how could you prove otherwise?
Days later, the rest of my brain caught up. This is not a phenomenon unique to the SCA. I remember, as a senior at University, going on a tour of Parke Davis. Wherein the research associates locked up their notes to prevent their colleagues from snitching patentable ideas. There's a good method for rapid development of important new drugs, eh? Which was about the point at which I bailed out of biotechnology and genetic engineering, and went into veterinary medicine instead (What in the @*$& was I thinking?). Still, most of this behavior is related to the promotions/pay raises/bonuses connected.
I'm not against the award system, per se. (Though I do think the Midrealm's is way overdeveloped. All of the Grant level awards other than a straight GoA coiuld be pruned out. And the AoA level Orders turned to Awards that could be given more than once. But I'll leave that soapbox for another time.) But I wonder if it contributes extensively to this very unchivalric behavior. Too many people see their chose craft or endeavor as if it had check boxes to be completed. And that stealing somebody's research and passing it off as original might speed them to completion of that list.
Not sure how to combat that problem. But I'm wondering if combatting the other end might be as simple as taking a leaf from the US Marine Corps PR strategy - Maximum exposure, Minimum time frame. In other words, if you want to be known for a new discovery, you broadcast it as widely as possible as quickly as possible. The more quickly your name is associated with something, the more likely it will stick, and theives be called out.
Which brings me to another of my own moral failings, of a sort. I'm never confident enough in my own conclusions to do this. I sit on things, because I want just that much more research to confirm that I'm right before I take it to the wider world. (Of course, now I get to do some serious data recovery. *sigh* Anybody remember the url for Coffee Cup's free HTML editor?) I'm not hoarding info because I'm all that worried about it being lifted. I worry more about being flat out wrong. AND I'd like to have it all polished up and pretty for publication. Heck, I wish I could get more examples cranked out. Whenever my hands are relatively free of baby again, I suppose.
Some of you are so well known, at least by Society standards, that I can't see anybody (at this point, anyway) having the audacity to lift your work and try to pass it off as their own. But what about those of us who labor in relative obscurity? How do we share the information while still being credited with the discoveries and work? Cause let's face it, those unscrupulous folks are going to always be with us. So how best to foil them, without hindering the honest learner? Or do we just turn the other cheek, in the interest of spreading knowledge, however it happens?
I was contacted lately by a friend/acquaintance. She'd picked my brain earlier on an SCA textile based "everybody knows" subject, looking for hard facts. I passed on what I could find, but (not having my own knickers in a twist on the subject) let the matter slide afterwards. She did not. Apparently, goaded by some rather nasty commentary she went on and did some pretty extensive research both book-based and via contact with various museums. Several translations and communications later and she turned up evidence of slubby silk in period, and one fragment of said silk with extensive goldwork.
Now, never having been anti-dupioni to start with, I sort of said "well, that's cool." And went back to what I was doing. Until she came back and asked me "How do I share this, while avoiding having it stolen[sic]?" Given my current constant state of baby-induced low level sleep deprivation, my initial response was to suggest she write it up and post it on the Guild's website as an article, put it on her own website, or start her own LJ or other blog and post it there.
Hours later my brain kicked in. First, I was vaguely horrified that we should reach a point where we're so afraid of our work being pirated that we hesitate to share it. Which rather negates the purpose of finding out something. I mean, what good is it if you can't tell somebody else? Now, some of this fear is due to the whole "cookie" system of awards in the SCA. What could be more galling than someone else being Laureled on your research, stolen en masse from your article or website, or whatever? And here we come back to the whole moral code issue and whether or not you even see it as wrong. Now, I have no copyright on any of the paintings I've found, or other articles or materials I've collected. Only on my own writings on my thoughts and conclusions. So if somebody lifts the sources, and writes up my thoughts and conclusions in their own words, well, it's legal, I suppose. But against the spirit of the thing. How bent can you get about something like this? The perpetrator could well argue that the found the same sources and came to the same conclusions independently. And how could you prove otherwise?
Days later, the rest of my brain caught up. This is not a phenomenon unique to the SCA. I remember, as a senior at University, going on a tour of Parke Davis. Wherein the research associates locked up their notes to prevent their colleagues from snitching patentable ideas. There's a good method for rapid development of important new drugs, eh? Which was about the point at which I bailed out of biotechnology and genetic engineering, and went into veterinary medicine instead (What in the @*$& was I thinking?). Still, most of this behavior is related to the promotions/pay raises/bonuses connected.
I'm not against the award system, per se. (Though I do think the Midrealm's is way overdeveloped. All of the Grant level awards other than a straight GoA coiuld be pruned out. And the AoA level Orders turned to Awards that could be given more than once. But I'll leave that soapbox for another time.) But I wonder if it contributes extensively to this very unchivalric behavior. Too many people see their chose craft or endeavor as if it had check boxes to be completed. And that stealing somebody's research and passing it off as original might speed them to completion of that list.
Not sure how to combat that problem. But I'm wondering if combatting the other end might be as simple as taking a leaf from the US Marine Corps PR strategy - Maximum exposure, Minimum time frame. In other words, if you want to be known for a new discovery, you broadcast it as widely as possible as quickly as possible. The more quickly your name is associated with something, the more likely it will stick, and theives be called out.
Which brings me to another of my own moral failings, of a sort. I'm never confident enough in my own conclusions to do this. I sit on things, because I want just that much more research to confirm that I'm right before I take it to the wider world. (Of course, now I get to do some serious data recovery. *sigh* Anybody remember the url for Coffee Cup's free HTML editor?) I'm not hoarding info because I'm all that worried about it being lifted. I worry more about being flat out wrong. AND I'd like to have it all polished up and pretty for publication. Heck, I wish I could get more examples cranked out. Whenever my hands are relatively free of baby again, I suppose.
Some of you are so well known, at least by Society standards, that I can't see anybody (at this point, anyway) having the audacity to lift your work and try to pass it off as their own. But what about those of us who labor in relative obscurity? How do we share the information while still being credited with the discoveries and work? Cause let's face it, those unscrupulous folks are going to always be with us. So how best to foil them, without hindering the honest learner? Or do we just turn the other cheek, in the interest of spreading knowledge, however it happens?
