how do i rip html from ebay?

[FrontlineWarrior]

I'm too lazy to make my own description. how do I rip one from ebay? i looked at the source, but it's got all this html from the page that's not part of the description. btw, this isn't like immoral or illegal right? ©

 

[MillionaireNextDoor]

no way but to take the time to distinguish between the description and the ebay template in the source. the description is in there somewhere in raw html format.

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Copyright violation, I think so yes.

Don't be a jerk, DO IT YOURSELF YOU LAZY BUM:|:|:|

 

[zmatrix]

<< Copyright violation, I think so yes.

Don't be a jerk, DO IT YOURSELF YOU LAZY BUM:|:|:| >>



lol...well said.

I personally don't like people ripping my layouts, stealing my words verbatim and stealing pictures I took myself, which all of it has happened.

 

[ThisIsMatt]

<<

<< Copyright violation, I think so yes.

Don't be a jerk, DO IT YOURSELF YOU LAZY BUM:|:|:| >>



lol...well said.

I personally don't like people ripping my layouts, stealing my words verbatim and stealing pictures I took myself, which all of it has happened. >>

Yes, same thing has happened to me more than once. People are lucky they didn't link directly to my ftp or I would jacked the pictures up.

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

ummm what copyrights do you speak of? ©

 

[ThisIsMatt]

<< § 102. Subject matter of copyright: In general

(a) Copyright protection subsists, in accordance with this title, in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device. Works of authorship include the following categories:

(1) literary works;
>>





<< &quot;Literary works&quot; are works, other than audiovisual works, expressed in words, numbers, or other verbal or numerical symbols or indicia, regardless of the nature of the material objects, such as books, periodicals, manuscripts, phonorecords, film, tapes, disks, or cards, in which they are embodied. >>

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

so I guess if I copy the specs from a manufacturer's website I'm violating copyright law? ©

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

quoting my posts are prohibited unless given prior and explicit permission. ©

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Do a quick read through this...

 

[ThisIsMatt]

<< quoting my posts are prohibited unless given prior and explicit permission. >>

The above is not a &quot;work&quot;, and I'm sure there are plenty of other exceptions that allow me to copy it...

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

&quot;work&quot; is pretty vague to me... where is the line drawn and how? ©

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Geez, you didn't bother to even look at the link, did you?

<< What is Copyright?
Copyright is the right of the owner to reproduce or permit someone else to reproduce copyrighted works. Copyrightable works include:

literary works such as articles, stories, journals, or computer programs
pictures and graphics
blueprints of architecture
music and song lyrics
plays and screenplays
audiovisual recordings such as movies
sound recordings
If you're not sure if an item is copyrighted, it probably is.

Reproduction can include:

printing a Web page
copying the HTML, JavaScript or other code of a page
downloading an image to your hard drive
printing an image

Most copyright owners on the Web will not object to personal use of their Web pages. For example, if you found a Web page that you wanted to print, most developers would not find it a violation of their copyright if you were to print out the page.

Copyright Notice
Even if a document or image on the Web does not have a copyright notice, it is still protected by copyright laws. If you are trying to protect your own work, it is always a good idea to have a copyright notice on your page. For images, you can add watermarks and other copyright information into the image itself using special software, and you should also include your copyright in the alt text. >>

Look, I'm not a copyright expert, but I think if you were to copy my description, and I wanted to sue you, I'd probably have a case. It's pretty unlikely that such a thing would happen, but it pisses people off. Just get off your lazy a$$ and write one yourself.

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

actually I did read that page. it said &quot;can&quot; and does not say &quot;always includes.&quot; Furthermore, what is it about my post and an article in the NY Times that merits a distinction in the term &quot;literary work&quot;? ©

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

maybe you should read this... ©

&quot;So I can't ever reproduce anything?&quot;
Myth #11 (I didn't want to change the now-famous title of this article) is actually one sometimes generated in response to this list of 10 myths. No, copyright isn't an iron-clad lock on what can be published. Indeed, by many arguments, by providing reward to authors, it encourages them to not just allow, but fund the publication and distribution of works so that they reach far more people than they would if they were free or unprotected -- and unpromoted. However, it must be remembered that copyright has two main purposes, namely the protection of the author's right to obtain commercial benefit from valuable work, and more recently the protection of the author's general right to control how a work is used.
While copyright law makes it technically illegal to reproduce almost any new creative work (other than under fair use) without permission, if the work is unregistered and has no real commercial value, it gets very little protection. The author in this case can sue for an injunction against the publication, actual damages from a violation, and possibly court costs. Actual damages means actual money potentially lost by the author due to publication, plus any money gained by the defendant. But if a work has no commercial value, such as a typical E-mail message or conversational USENET posting, the actual damages will be zero. Only the most vindictive (and rich) author would sue when no damages are possible, and the courts don't look kindly on vindictive plaintiffs, unless the defendants are even more vindictive.

The author's right to control what is done with a work, however, has some validity, even if it has no commercial value. If you feel you need to violate a copyright &quot;because you can get away with it because the work has no value&quot; you should ask yourself why you're doing it. In general, respecting the rights of creators to control their creations is a principle many advocate (read: not all, can't enforce) adhering to.

In addition, while more often than not people claim a &quot;fair use&quot; copying incorrectly, fair use is a valid concept necessary to allow the criticism of copyrighted works and their creators through examples. But please read more about it before you do it. ©

This brings up two points
1. My post is considered &quot;work.&quot;
2. You can sue me but you probably don't have a case.

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

by the way, I'm gonna write that html myself. 😀 ©

 

[ThisIsMatt]

k, I'm not gonna spend the time researching it... For one, you're not being paid to do it (you're not profiting from your post). You asked if it was illegal &amp; immoral. I gave you some legal info, and I think it is immoral. That's all I'm gonna say tonight, I'm going to sleep.

🙂

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

thanks ©

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

wow you have a good ebay rating heh ©

 

[ThisIsMatt]

lol, you just answered your own question, that your posts (HERE) have no commercial value and are worthless to copyright. On the other hand, a well written (or even not well written) description on a commercial site (ebay) does have commercial value.

Look at it this way - an ebay description is like a commercial for a product. Good commercials get people to buy, bad ones don't. If I were to steal a commercial, edit it a little to reflect MY product, and then start playing it, would you still not see a problem?

*poof*

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

actually, unless you can sell your descriptions (not the products, the descriptions), your &quot;work&quot; has no commercial value in itself. ©

 

[ApacheXMD]

Without a description, you ain't selling jack.
That gives the description value.

-patchy

 

[FrontlineWarrior]

I suppose. By posting here, I enhance page views for this bulletin board and I give it value. ©

 

[rewap]

I know you are a golden member and I'm just a lowly regular member, but if you are smart enough to write your own html, you can easily find the source description in the source from ebay.

 

[MrBond]

On people using your pictures...

If you find they did link to it from your FTP, go in, remove the old picture, and replace it with something nasty, but with the same file name.

I did that on amihotornot.com. Someone asked me to host a couple pictures of people for them, so I did...for about two weeks. Then I replaced them with Goatse.cx guy, scaled appropriatly to the same dimensions of the old pictures. I have no idea if they're still there or not, as he never gave me their urls.