It’s all about the mighty blog, today.
Would you not agree, as a blogger, that your blog is your home on the internet? It’s who you are. The words you say, the way you say them, the contents you choose to display within your posts, within your sidebar. Those things make you identifiable in the blogosphere. When you go out for a bloghop, you don’t just read the blog and get to know the blogger – but if someone were to come up to you and introduce themselves, wouldn’t it be helpful if they added “you know, I’m the tan blog with the shiny satin ribbon and swirly floral pattern across the top.” Wouldn’t that be the clincher for a lot of people? “OH! Yes! You! I know you! You’re the one with the quaint little house tucked back behind the white picket fence and flowers for the summer! I love your boulders!” (can you guess who I’m talking about?)
It’s not just what you say, folks, it’s your face. Your design is your skin in the blogosphere. Your words are still your words, but how you say them combined with how you look is what makes people remember where they are as well as who you are.
I’m not saying you have to look great. God knows that a freebie template goes a long way for a lot of people. I’m saying that you are where you blog. What your blog looks like is part of your identity, just as the words you type are the voice that goes with your “face”.
When you pay someone oodles of your hard earned cash to make you more you, then, it’s like getting a facelift. You’ve gone out and bought a new outfit, and that instantly becomes the way that people see you in their minds. When you pay for something like that, it’s tailored to suit just you. When you give yourself your own facelift, it’s even more personal – because you’ve done all of the hard work yourself in your spare time. You’ve hand sewn your new outfit in very special fabrics from your own mind.
Having said all of that, say someone comes along and likes how you look. A little technical knowledge will guide a person to view the stylesheet (because unfortunately, there’s no CSS scrambler out there yet), and snag your code for their own personal use. This is where you get a smidge offended, because it’s sortof like your little sister going into your closet and taking a pair of your favorite shoes without asking.
It’s one thing if your sister asks you where you got your shoes, and then goes to the same store and gets the same pair in a different color, you know? It’s another thing when she just takes yours. Isn’t it?
I’m full of analogies this morning. Bear with me. I swear there’s a point in here somewhere – I’ll find it. Gimme a minute.
I don’t understand how some people could not understand that looking at code and learning from it is much different from copying and pasting code. Going so far as to “learn” and implement so much from another stylesheet that you do a double take on the URL is just like identity theft. It is personal. I know I am not the only one who sees it this way, but what I’d really love to wrap my brain around is how the person who doesn’t see it this way thinks. When you right-click “copy” on content from the internet that you didn’t put there, you are taking something from someone else. So for the person who does this, I would ask you two things:
- Did the source give you permission to do that?
- Are you following their guidelines for using their content?
Obviously the internet is a cool place to learn and see stuff we wouldn’t otherwise experience, or many of us wouldn’t even be here. I just wish more people would understand that just because you pay your ISP, it doesn’t mean that all of the information you are connected to is included in your monthly rates. I also wish that people would get out of the “if you don’t want someone to take it, don’t put it out there” mentality – because if more people would respect others belongings and whether or not they want to share it, then words like “copyright” wouldn’t exist.
Yeah, I know, you want to know the source of the drama. Inquiring minds and all that, right? I’m just going to say that (as far as I know) it’s not me or my code, nor is it one of my designs.
Sometimes? It sucks to be pretty. And good at what you do.
Shelly at 
