playmate1111 
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Aww Zippo I'm in the same boat as you. Both with this site and the same illness. Let's not let either get us down! I just say SOD it! :)
Reply #201. Mar 21 13, 9:43 AM
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kyleisalive
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Re: "I like Rossian's idea of covering plagiarism in the Editor char threads started in the Lounge."
--Plagiarism is one of the many topic we'll cover, likely sooner than later.
In regards to plagiarism procedure, please keep in mind that we do have to be strict and follow protocol for every case. Don't forget that we want to help your quizzes get online! We would be glad to help work through the issue and prevent it from happening with future submissions; all you need to do is ask! :)
Re: "Maybe some new authors submit whole quizzes which are lifted direct from other sources - we don't know."
--Certainly.
Reply #202. Mar 21 13, 9:53 AM
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agony
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It's extremely common to have quizzes submitted with all of most of the info copy/pasted from another source. Every editor here sees at least a couple of examples every week. We're strict about it because, as mentioned above, we do not allow your quizzes to be bandied about the internet without credit. In order to have some credibility in that, we need to show that we take steps to avoid copying here.
We are also strict about it because it isn't fair to the many authors who write their quizzes from their own heads rather than taking the easy way. From this side of the fence it is very easy to see the difference between an author who has taken time to research from more than one source, and taken pains with the wording of the quiz, and one who looks it up on wiki, changes one word, and submits.
Yes, certain facts can only be stated in one or two obvious ways - Paris is the capital of France and you can't change that too much. The editors are as aware of that as you are. We also know, though, that when you say "Paris has all but exhausted the superlatives that can reasonably be applied to any city. Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower have been described countless times, as have the Seine and the subtle (and not-so-subtle) differences between the Left and Right Banks." you can't really pretend you didn't get it from  www.lonelyplanet.com/france/paris
We don't inform authors that we have found copied material in their quizzes lightly. Roughly once a month I have an author complain to me that they did SO write it all themselves and how dare we accuse.... until I show the same paragraph, word for word, on another website.
If any author feels that they have been unfairly targeted, they can discuss the matter privately with their editor. If they find that unsatisfactory, they can come to me - I am Chief Editor - and I promise I will look into it with an unbiased eye. We record instances of suspected plagiarism carefully, because, as I said, we don't do this lightly. There have been one or two instances in my time here where we have informed an author of the inclusion of copied material, only to find that we were in error. When that happens, all authoring privileges are of course restored, with apologies.
Reply #203. Mar 21 13, 10:25 AM
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guitargoddess
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It also helps to not think of it as having your honesty called into question. We know that can happen inadvertently or it happens when the author has no nefarious intentions but just doesn't understand what we mean by plagiarism or "must be in your own words".
I personally (can't speak for all editors but I would bet at least a few would agree with me) think that that's most often that happens, not that an author is sitting there writing their quiz purposely thinking "I'm going to copy this and get away with it, take that editors you'll never catch me!"
But even if you didn't intend to plagiarise we have to point it out when it's found and ask for it to be corrected. Same as we have to point out that you didn't use quotation marks where needed or that you've gotten the name of a character wrong.
Reply #204. Mar 21 13, 12:15 PM
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agony
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I agree with GG that this is most often not deliberate "stealing".
Many of our younger authors, who may have been allowed at school to present research directly copied from a source as a "report", don't even understand that this could be a problem.
Reply #205. Mar 21 13, 12:25 PM
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rossian
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When it happened to me, I had written a music quiz, and wrote something like 'x has been the only constant member of the band'. I believed at the time that those were my own words, but the editor found virtually the same wording on a website about that band - not Wiki. I hadn't consulted that site, and definitely hadn't copied the wording - it was sheer chance. It seems from what zippolover has posted that this is what has happened to her. I was upset to be told I'd plagiarised, when I hadn't, but I do understand that editors can't be expected to know us all as individuals and realise that I would never copy directly from another site.
Reply #206. Mar 21 13, 1:14 PM
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zippolover
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That must be what happened to me.
When writing the II, sometimes there is a lot to get in. I try to condense it down as I am one of those who does not like too much writing under the answer. When there is not much to say, I will stretch it out to several sentences with one fact in each.
If the site I use had lifted from wiki, maybe I rearranged it back to the original?
Reply #207. Mar 21 13, 1:45 PM
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rossian
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Well done - and wrapped up the challenge!
Reply #209. Mar 25 13, 5:05 AM
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zippolover
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Will I get a badge too?
Reply #210. Mar 25 13, 5:56 AM
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zippolover
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my bad :(
I did not mean to come across so eager and forgot to say thank you
Reply #211. Mar 25 13, 5:57 AM
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dcpddc478
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Very nice quiz Zippo...very creative:)
Reply #212. Mar 25 13, 7:36 AM
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212 replies. On page 11 of
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