As a budding web designer, I am often faced with a dilemma.
I am working on a few websites at the moment: my own, which will be my professional and monetary portal to the universe, and two commissions of the wedding and nonprofit varieties, respectively.
The issue arises when a client inevitably asks, “What can you do to make it unique?”
Of course, I respond by going through my client’s wish list, requirements and personal profile to continue designing the site to his or her tastes until the final product reflects their identity.
But, at the back of my mind, I consider the actual components of the website. The code, content, links, photos, logos, and layout – all of it has been done before. And, this is where I encounter the dilemma of designing for the worldwide web.
Do I knowingly look at websites the clients like and try to emulate those traits (because the components are spread throughout most websites)? Or, do I try to reinvent a widget that someone has already coded faster and better than I could while building a web presence for my client?
Usually, I would rather receive the permission of the coder to use a widget I do not have the time or expertise to create on my own, whether with a fee or without. And, given my knowledge, I choose to either find a legal method of use or make my own. However, I know many designers who do not bother.
The reasoning behind their choice is understandable: Why pay when this tiny widget is just a copy of someone else’s nine times out of 10?
A professor I had this semester told me at the beginning of the year that the Internet consists roughly of 99 percent copied code and one percent original content.
Given these conditions, I find it difficult to apply my ethical standards and legal knowledge to the Internet. However, this is exactly what many entities and individuals are attempting to do.
Social media sites are an infamous example over a battle of online property. But, from the perspective of an Internet user and content creator, I have to wonder why.
From my observations we as a generation view the Internet as a place of sharing, communication and information. We see it as a community supported and funded by a system of paid advertising and subscriptions.
What we never consider is the user agreements and contracts we digitally sign are evidence of property law that are all supporting the ongoing battle over said property.
My dilemma is a symptom of a changing culture –a culture that has not been addressed by the current system of law.
So, I pose this question to all of you fellow users, designers, and developers.
What do you think? Is it property? A network of information? A community? What laws should be adopted to that culture?
About Serena Smith
