A few months before I got my laser cutter, I had seen a pair of glasses for sale that had mimicked the infamous Look of Disapproval. ಠ_ಠ
I loved them so much, that I had decided to buy the set from the seller, Tim Saylor. After I had my laser set up, I wanted to try my hand at designing my own pair. I opened up Inkscape and just started drawing out what I could.
While I still think that Tim did a much better job on his than I did on mine, when I put the file on Thingiverse it almost instantly obtained a lot of attention. A few people asked me if then could buy a pair, so I put the glasses up on an Etsy page for users to buy.
This was probably the first time I had a run-in with this issue. I hadn’t thought about it at the time, but what I was effectively doing was stealing business from Tim Saylor. While I may have created the design of the glasses that I was selling, I was taking away business from somebody who had inspired me in the first place.
This may be an effective business model, but it’s not something I agree with, nor is it something I would want to happen to myself. I started redirecting users away from my Etsy shop and back to Mr. Saylor’s.
I will most definitely have to start thinking about things like this in the future when making designs that may end up being sold.
I dunno about this dude. You improved upon a design. If someone doesn’t think so, they can pass and find a different one. It’s the nature of design and branding. If your conscious really is getting the best of you, reference the guy, but I think you’re under no obligation to do more. He should give his money to the first guy who came up with the emoticon then. Nothing is TRULY original any more. Everything is based off a variation of another thing. It’s why brands and brand awareness exists. You’re often pushing a brand more than it’s qualities. Or maybe it’s just because I’m a marketer…
I dunno about this dude. You improved upon a design. If someone doesn’t think so, they can pass and find a different one. It’s the nature of design and branding. If your conscious really is getting the best of you, reference the guy, but I think you’re under no obligation to do more. He should give his money to the first guy who came up with the emoticon then. Nothing is TRULY original any more. Everything is based off a variation of another thing. It’s why brands and brand awareness exists. You’re often pushing a brand more than it’s qualities. Or maybe it’s just because I’m a marketer…
Also, by the same argument we would all be wearing the same shit. Nike wouldn’t exist.
Also, by the same argument we would all be wearing the same shit. Nike wouldn’t exist.