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Originally Posted by KLARCH
......What bothers me about this situation is if someone makes a great improvement and is denied permission to use the files used as a springboard for the change, we don't get the chance to have an even better game experience. That would just be wrong, plain and simple.  ..... |
I agree with most of that. However, we are not trying to stop people improving/editing the game we all love. What we are trying to do is make sure that permissions are requested & credits are given. 9/10 if permission is asked, permission will be granted, there may be some guidelines/restrictions placed upon the release by the original modder but that is something we must respect.
Example 1 - I wanted to use GWX's campaign files for the Spy Sat mod, by design these were nessecary. I could have only asked Kpt.Lehmann for permission but I also asked BBW & Rubini as I know they worked long and hard on it. I did this out of courtesy. There were some restrictions placed upon me which were wholy acceptable. It had to be stated that it was not an official approved GWX mod and that it was a realism killer, which went against what GWX stood for.
Example 2 - I want to make a skin for a U-Boat, in my opinion it will be an improvement. I don't want to start from scratch with stock texture files so I decide to use GW/GWX's default grey textures which were made by Fubar. Before I even started to work on those I PM'd Fubar to ask if I could use his work as a base for mine. I waited 4 days. He eventually answered and although he didn't ask me to credit him, I did. In fact, I still have the PM exchange between myself & him which was back in Sept 06.
There will never be a situation where a would be modder comes to the scene and gets flamed & ostracized for releaseing work which may or may not be against any possible guidelines layed out here. This community is just not like that. In fact the new modder will more than likely be helped along & advised in private.
What I have stated here is just common respect, courtesy & undertanding and that is basically what modding ethics boils down to. How nice would it be for a n00b to come into the modding forums and see a sticky at the top asking him to follow the following guidlines. I know I could have used it when I first arrived.