A thought for the day.

The is a concept in western culture we hold most dear to us, and indeed many people go to enourmous lengths to not only protect this concept but to instill it in all places on the globe. This concept is unique to this culture, at least to the level in which this is believed. It is this:

Ideas, like objects, can belong to a person.

In Academic circles this concept is paramount. All ideas come from other iedas - even those that seem to revolutionise the world or those that seem to be the antithesis of everything that has come before. Even in their denial of previous ideas they are built on those ideas. These ideas that new ideas are built on belong to the person who first recorded this idea. This is taken very seriously, to the extend that using their ideas in your own work without acnowledging that you have used their idea can get you fined and destroy your academic career.

Corporations too will go to great (some might say ridiculous) lengths to protect not simply the products they supply, but the ideas surrounding their products. Take for example the instance in which Apple Corp (Or Apple recording studios) took Apple computers to court, simply because of the idea of an apple. The Apple records logo looks nothing like the Apple computer logo, but that wasn't the point - the point was that both thought they had a right to the idea of apples. Seems such a strange thing, but these people take this very seriously. Stealing, even inadvertantly, an idea that another corporation conciders to be theirs can result in a large fine needing to be paid to the company and the possibility of losing your company for good.

So what then of artworks? If there were ever an idea given form, then these are it. These images and characters are people's ideas - some people's livelyhoods are these ideas. Taking them and claiming their work as your own is Plagarism or Missappropriation and is a case of direct theft of property. The notion of intelectual property IS real, and people who live by (or hope to live by) their work are severely damaged by impersonators.

Credit where credit is due. If you did not draw an image, say that you did not draw it. If you know where the image came from, link back or state where it came from - if you don't know, say you don't know. If you have traced an image, then say that it was traced - we all practiced that way, most people will understand as long as you give credit to the original creator (on a side note, photographic reference is completely encouraged for anatomy practice - and if you can, linking back to the reference is a good idea too ^_^). If you made alterations to someone else's image (Examples include colouring, colour alterations and altering an image into a desktop background, etc.), then those alterations are your work (like a scholar building on a previous idea), but the original image still belongs to the original creator. ALWAYS leave the creators signature intact if it's present. People have the fundamental right to have their name on their work.

Take full credit for what you have done, and none for what you haven't. That is your right.