A question about integrity?

Pho3nix

Pho3nix

The Legend
Joined
Jul 31, 2009
Messages
32,829
Reaction score
3,033
Location
On the toilet
So lets say you work in corporate.
You have a list of requirements.
You try dev it normally and fail.

You find a git-hub repository with a 70% feature-set of what you are trying to do.
You download, make your changes and tell management this is all your brilliant work.
Click to expand...

Now the above has just happened and me and some colleagues were in two minds.
A few say you should always give credit where it is due and not oversell your skill-set.. The other camp said this is how you get ahead and they aren't sure they would give credit.

What would you do or rather what have you done?
 
Pho3nix said:
Now the above has just happened and me and some colleagues were in two minds.
A few say you should always give credit where it is due and not oversell your skill-set.. The other camp said this is how you get ahead and they aren't sure they would give credit.

What would you do or rather what have you done?
Click to expand...

Taking credit for someone else's work is not very ethical, I think it shows more character and honesty to admit you found the code on an online repository. I would prefer people work smarter, not harder - if the code been created by someone else already, kudos to that person for finding it and adapting it.

Another problem with claiming it as your own work is the very real possibility that you could be found out down the line.
 
It's a toughie - my guess is that the average corp probably only cares that they get the system by deadline, and that it works as intended. Unless your management team are or were devs themselves (and from my own corporate experience this is very rarely the case), they probably wouldn't know or care where stuff came from.

I'm not sure if there are any legal issues with regards to using someone else's code - I'm sure someone here more clued up than myself would be able to address that with a bit more info.

All that being said - I'd say that if you ever had to present a portfolio (or the developer's equiavalent) be sure to give credit where it is due. I'm not personally a fan of re-inventing the wheel, so if there is something out there - freely available - that does what you need it to do, then use it, but let people know that you did. Ethics and all that.
 
Half the work was finding it in the first place.

If the code is open source and you are allowed to use it by all means credit it.

If it wasn't open to begin with...whole different story.
 
SauRoNZA said:
Half the work was finding it in the first place.

If the code is open source and you are allowed to use it by all means credit it.

If it wasn't open to begin with...whole different story.
Click to expand...

Fair point but that the question is should the dev have divulged that he didn't write all that code himself instead of telling them he did?
 
Pho3nix said:
Fair point but that the question is should the dev have divulged that he didn't write all that code himself instead of telling them he did?
Click to expand...

Yes - he should have said he found a code base that he then adapted. Claiming credit for the code he didn't write shows a lack of integrity.
 
I agree with Cray here.

I just did something similar. I integrated into a bunch of code I found on line. I did go though it all and make sure I understood it all. made a few changes. but I also told my boos I integrated into code found online.
 
Simply tell management what you're doing. I very much appreciate employees who use their initiative to get rapid solutions - they're more valuable than people who grind away unable to build on the work of others. Be open and honest. Shows initiative and flair. NIH syndrome is deadly.
 
Arthur said:
Simply tell management what you're doing. I very much appreciate employees who use their initiative to get rapid solutions - they're more valuable than people who grind away unable to build on the work of others. Be open and honest. Shows initiative and flair. NIH syndrome is deadly.
Click to expand...

+1
 
Pho3nix said:
Fair point but that the question is should the dev have divulged that he didn't write all that code himself instead of telling them he did?
Click to expand...

He most definitely should.

My point is that they should be able to appreciate that he found it in the first place and used resources effectively instead of just burning time to get paid.

The entire Open Source model is after all based on the principles of using what exists and evolving it, instead of starting from scratch every time.
 
Pho3nix said:
Now the above has just happened and me and some colleagues were in two minds.
A few say you should always give credit where it is due and not oversell your skill-set.. The other camp said this is how you get ahead and they aren't sure they would give credit.

What would you do or rather what have you done?
Click to expand...
Be honest and say you've found 70% of the solution online and dev'ed the remaining 30%. Sooner or later you will get caught out...
 
70%? That is alot.I would be embarrassed if i got caught out like this, I find and integrate at most 5% of code online into my projects.Somethings arnt worth taking 3 days to get it right.
 
SauRoNZA said:
He most definitely should.

My point is that they should be able to appreciate that he found it in the first place and used resources effectively instead of just burning time to get paid.

The entire Open Source model is after all based on the principles of using what exists and evolving it, instead of starting from scratch every time.
Click to expand...

He is lying, I think you know the answer to that question.
 
Batista said:
70%? That is alot.I would be embarrassed if i got caught out like this, I find and integrate at most 5% of code online into my projects.Somethings arnt worth taking 3 days to get it right.
Click to expand...
Nothing wrong with finding a mostly-built solution and customising it IMO. It allows you to integrate and get your solution out sooner. Why spend 3x more on dev time for something that might or might not work before a particular deadline?
 
Batista said:
70%? That is alot.I would be embarrassed if i got caught out like this, I find and integrate at most 5% of code online into my projects.Somethings arnt worth taking 3 days to get it right.
Click to expand...

How would you be "caught out" if you played open cards in the first place?
 
Batista said:
He is lying, I think you know the answer to that question.
Click to expand...

What question?

*****

My bad. I was answering the OP's question regarding the issue. Not specifically using the example of the guy we already know to have lied about it.
 
Last edited:
I'm not even a developer but have taken many already available solutions out there and modified them to make them work for a given need/want.

Especially when it's open source and free your management should be highly appreciative of the fact.

I think this is largely a developer mindset problem thinking they need to build everything from scratch.

If I implement a piece of networking equipment into an environment I'm also using 70% of existing technology and making it work for a given purpose with my 30% expertise. It would be ridiculous to expect me to build the solution from scratch...when it's already there in the market.

Somehow though when it comes to development this logic doesn't apply. Why not?

The other camp said this is how you get ahead and they aren't sure they would give credit.
Click to expand...

This logic is also flawed.

In many situations my team "got ahead" at my previous job because we implemented solutions based on already built open source solutions out there, instead of paying third parties to build something from scratch.

Management was all too happy about the thousands we would save them by doing it in house. Transparency is key.

You get ahead by showing initiative. Not by pretending.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X