The FAQ:

http://db.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/file/final_fantasy_vi_b.txt


Random scans from the Brady guide:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j254/EmeraldSuzaku/terra-locke.jpg
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j254/EmeraldSuzaku/edgar.jpg
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j254/EmeraldSuzaku/gau-setzer.jpg
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j254/EmeraldSuzaku/leteriver.jpg
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j254/EmeraldSuzaku/ultros.jpg

The entire thing is like this. If anyone else has the brady guide, feel free to take a look. Now, unless I've horribly misread some publishing dates, the Brady guide was first by about a year. Either the same person wrote both guides (which I find a tad unlikely), or there's a lot of copying going on. Thoughts?

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rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

O_O
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Mmm... Coaster...

Again, if you believe someone has plagiarised, submit a problem report.

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Living by chance, loving by choice, killing by profession

I was going to say at first that it wasn't plagiarized, as he does credit Brady Games and some of the descriptions are in-game, but looking at it, yes, it is mostly plagiarism due to his not crediting BradyGames for the walkthrough, and even then, it would be a mass of copy-and-pasting, which is unacceptable.

From his credits section:

-Prima Strategy Guide
Yeah, I admit I took some stuff from them. I am crediting them here, though,
right?

We talking about the same book here, or is this a different one he may've taken from/not credited?

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Devin Morgan | CRP #3579
NES Completion Project: http://faqs.retronintendo.com

Oh this topic is going to blow up, and I for one will not be re-appearing after this post for that very reason.
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66 FAQs for games never covered at www.GameFAQs.com.
Now with a NES FAQ for each letter of the alphabet!

-Brady Games
For some of the lists.

That's what I overlooked before. He credits Brady here (for something unrelated to those scans) at the top of the guide only. Then in the credits section at the bottom of the guide, he credits Prima for "taking some stuff". Seems sorta iffy.

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Devin Morgan | CRP #3579
NES Completion Project: http://faqs.retronintendo.com

*Prepares for more Star Wars comparisons.*
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"And don't go having sex with your PS2 either." -shadowed_fire

I seriously doubt that he called Prima/Brady and asked them for permission to take huge chunks of their guide.
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Mmm... Coaster...

Er...

Ask, he did not.
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Mmm... Coaster...

Star Wars comparisons are MY thing!

Nobody does them without me, so don't ever hint at that again.

I am the creator and master of all that is Star Wars FAQ references.

When 900kb, YOU reach, FAQ as good, YOU will not!
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The killer, karmic©, charismatic, cryptastic©, clever Kirby!
FAQs: 24 (2003KB) | CRP: 43180 | Images: 6

Own Star Wars, you do not.
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Mmm... Coaster...

He credits Brady here (for something unrelated to those scans) at the top of the guide only. Then in the credits section at the bottom of the guide, he credits Prima for "taking some stuff". Seems sorta iffy.

The trick is, he didn't just rip some stuff. He ripped the whole bloody walkthrough. Word for word. I can practically count on one hand the number of original paragraphs in the entire thing. And the character section. That's completely ripped, too. He basically converted the Brady guide into text verbatim, and added a note here and there.

Charts, I can understand. I mean, they're charts, and he credited Brady for them. No big deal. But we're not talking charts here.

And there is no Prima guide, so I assume he meant the Brady guide, but that still doesn't cover what her did....

I've submitted a problem support, so we'll see what happens....
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rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

:sigh: One's faith in the veracity of FAQs appearing on GF begins, in howsever a small way, to waver.
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www.papagamer.com
Own the game

*clicks on the FAQ in the topic post*
*sees the author's name*

...oh boy.
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If your boss ever gets you down, just stare at him through the prongs of a fork and imagine him in jail.
o.O Push button to turn on. Play with button to drive wild...

...O_o


It can't be...
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MKDS Friend Code: 249170-860038

Psycho Penquin...plagiarised? I never thought there would be THREE plagiarists in a week span...
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The world before the fall... Delightful is the light of dawn... Noble is the heart of man...

At last, they will reveal themselves to the FAQers. At last, they shall have their revenge.

Whoa...
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Hi Karpah.

The situation is being resolved by the higher-ups presently. It's all in their hands now...

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Devin Morgan | CRP #3579
NES Completion Project: http://faqs.retronintendo.com

Let's let them handle it. Thanks for informing us!

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I don't do favorites on people and characters.

fadden faqs ftl always.
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FAQs: 21 (1125KB) Reviews: 96 (493KB)

Dude...
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33/49 Full Circle | Y.T.W.S.R. |
The FAQer Profiles and History - http://homepages.tesco.net/vicky.reynolds1

now check all his reviews haha, well, that's sad, I hope it's the only... uhm case
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I don't care who your dad is! While I'm fishing here nobody walks over the water!
->bohrt gleich fünfhundertachtundsechzigtausendelf

...

No way...
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Your Final Fantasy VII hatemail makes me stronger.
They also make me giggle.

The FAQ should be taken down, and frankly that's such a blatant rip off of the guide you scanned that all of his FAQs should be removed. That to me is completely unacceptable, especially when there are FAQs for FFVI that people obviously put real, actual time into.

That pisses me off. You can't copy something verbatim and then say you credited them for "taking some stuff." You sat there with the guide on your lap and typed it into MS Word. Congratulations.

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Colin Moriarty IGN Freelance Guide Writer/Big Dork.
Current IGN Guide Project: Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams (PS2)

The ironic part is that at least some, if not all of his FF5 guide is legit. Obviously he used the Brady guide for that one as a "source of inspiration" or however you want to put it, as he follows the Brady guide pretty exactly, but the wording at least sems to be his own.

Still, though. My jaw hit the floor when I saw what he pulled on the FF6 one. That's freaking ridiculous.
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rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

Know what I find funny? I read this whole topic, then look at the guide and what do I see first? This:

Legal Disclaimer: You may reproduce this guide for NON PROFIT ONLY. I don't
care who you are. If I am not making money with the guide, then you shouldn't
either, especially since I worked so darn hard on it.

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Super Mario Wiki - www.mariowiki.com
DeviantART - http://jellysoup.deviantart.com/

For now on guys, we're putting aside the third week of March every year to actively hunt down plagiarists. This is ridiculous. :/

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Devin Morgan | CRP #3579
NES Completion Project: http://faqs.retronintendo.com

I wonder if it's cruel of me to say it, but... YES!

I'm disappointed that anyone would be so low, but I'm glad it's someone who I would expect it from- I've never liked Steve and wouldn't put it past him to do something like this... I will happily watch him go down for it. There's no denying the DIRECT plagiarism of things that should not be copied.
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Q!

So is his whole guide just like the bady guide or some sections?
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Whatever bad you do always comes back to bite you down the road. It's called Karma.

So is his whole guide just like the bady guide or some sections?

The whole thing is like this.
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rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

It seems that after busting DJ, the other plagiarists kind of left.
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Wake Forest 17-17 (3-13) End of Season
Sign My Petition: Receive Notification if Contribution is Taken Down

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

At the rate this is going, CJayC is going to have to make a "FAQ Contributors - Plagiarist Reports" board...
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"And don't go having sex with your PS2 either." -shadowed_fire

LMFAO. Keep these topics coming, fellers.

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To protect and serve! http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/september2005/050905policelooting.htm

It seems that after busting DJ, the other plagiarists kind of left.

And they should have taken their copied FAQs/Reviews with them.

In Psycho Penguin's case, is it really so much plagiarism as copyright violation? Both are unacceptable, but he did admit to taking from the guide, albeit in a vague manner. I don't think the Brady/Prima switch had any deceptive intent (hell, I've probably referred to my Infotainment guide as "Prima" at least once after buying it).

Obviously, the FAQ in question has no place here (unless he can prove he got permission from the publisher, highly unlikely).

In Psycho Penguin's case, is it really so much plagiarism as copyright violation?

Looks like both, actually, since he is trying to pass the whole thing off as his work. The credit he gave Brady doesn't begin to cover it all.


I don't think the Brady/Prima switch had any deceptive intent

Nor do I. I'm pretty sure it was an accidental thing. I, too, forget who published some of the guides I've seen.
---
rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

-___-

Psycho Penguin too?
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"The pilot and co-pilot are just fine. By the way, can anyone fly a plane?" - Airplane

Plagiarism. Copied almost word for word. How the hell do you get away with that even if you credit them, but aren't specific about it?

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"I love stealin', I love takin' things!"

It isn't plagiarism because he credited them. It is, however, blatant copying-and-pasting and copyright violation, which is still a very serious crime.

All of this made me think of something. I wonder how many of the Foreign Language FAQs contain "borrowed" info? I'm sure we can trust the big names like Patt3rson or Lu4R but with out being able to thoroughly read the guides a lot of things can slip past the admin.

Just a thought.

You have a point, LtCmdData.
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The world before the fall... Delightful is the light of dawn... Noble is the heart of man...

-Prima Strategy Guide
Yeah, I admit I took some stuff from them. I am crediting them here, though,
right?

He doesn't say what is "some stuff", which, we see, is actually a lot of stuff. This half-ass credit doesn't make what he did any less excusable... And if you ask me, the 'credit' itself exudes the arrogance which probably led him to steal in the first place.

People want to debate over whether it's plagiarizing or copyright infringement, but to me that's beside the point. This was a smack in the face to any author who has slaved over a guide to help people out. If you want to copy and paste guides to help people, do it on your own webspace, not GameFAQs.

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To protect and serve! http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/september2005/050905policelooting.htm

I caught a guy directly C&Ping my guide into another language once.
---
The killer, karmic©, charismatic, cryptastic©, clever Kirby!
FAQs: 24 (2003KB) | CRP: 43180 | Images: 6

So when am I going to be caught out? Mwahaha!
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CRP: 7818
“One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.”

*forty FCBers get a ! above their heads and scan Ronan's work*
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33/49 Full Circle | Y.T.W.S.R. |
The FAQer Profiles and History - http://homepages.tesco.net/vicky.reynolds1

XD!
---
If your boss ever gets you down, just stare at him through the prongs of a fork and imagine him in jail.
o.O Push button to turn on. Play with button to drive wild...

*forty FCBers get a ! above their heads and scan Ronan's work*

Ooh! What skill did we learn!
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rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen!
AKU RYO TAI SAN!

Paraphrase3 and Typo2. ;)