In Computer Science, most professors and colleagues would reprimand you for taking an already-seen code as well as most likely making sure you never get a job for these actions. However, in certain cases it is feasible to do this taboo. Design patterns are a common example of this. Creating a template that others can use and modify to create derivations of higher quality are essential ways of learning. Although this might seem contradictory to the norm, most software developers use other works as a reference to their own piece. In other words, people must see other types of work to base their own work off of. In this modern day, most pieces are taken from an origin of some sort.
After taking this course, I realized how often we used derivatives of the codes shown in class to create something of our own. For example, we used the Semantic UI template to create a stylized website page during the WOD. In homework assignments, I used the work the professor showed us to recreate or make my assignment similar to his. I realized many people do this to make sure their code works (if the template works for one, it should work for all others; make it your own by minor changes to properties in the code). We also used the same template in Bowfolios by having it run on each page in the complete site. If a style on one page was effected, all the other pages would conform to the same style; this way the website would run with the same theme throughout. However, you must be careful not to completely copy with the same exact names and functions. Although you can use already-created work, you must be sure to give credit to the original owner and not use the code exactly as it is. Developers still need to have their sense of imagination, and be able to put their own twist on the code being used.
In conclusion, copying other people’s work covers more of a grey area than just black-and-white. Depending on how you implement your thoughts and integrations of peers, original duplications aren’t always “wrong” and “unethical” in the modern world. No developer wants a recruiter to think that their work is the same as someone else’s, but they are impressed by strategic use of resources. Therefore, they use templates just to establish formatting, but make sure to have an original spin on the code to have their work stand out, to show they have much more to offer than the person who originally created the code. Everyone can start from the same base, but it is the mind of the person that pushes them to the top of the pyramid.