What a week it has been last week and set to continue still. I've been juggling work on around 3-4 sites as well as my constant maintenance on a few other sites. I've had no time at all to really stop and think about the various issues that went on last week. Swish World is not back in Google despite Googlebot still visiting. You'd think if they've dropped me they'd stop using my bandwidth too! (Yes I know I can block it). It's a shame but it's not worth enough to really concern myself over. I only made a few dollars a day off Swishworld. Considering today I've actually made £500+ from no work besides 2 emails (it's handy employing someone else) as well as finishing off an upgrade to a client's site, I can't really complain over losing around $75 / £40 a month. Plus I have other sites up my sleeve.
Last week we finished off a site for a friend. Matt owns and runs Mattian which is a community style site allowing you to sign up for a free blog, photo gallery and other features without having to put up with adverts across the site unlike most of these free blogging sites. You can also now sign up and upgrade to a selection of paid for packages such as more space for your photos, I think there's a feature where you can blog from your mobile phone and also another account that lets you use Pod Casting. It's great for people who want to set up their own site, without all of the adverts that usually come, but don't want the hassle of sorting it all out. Anyhow, no I didn't write the software used to run the site but we did redesign it into the funky retro look that was wanted. I've helped Matt fix some of the software too as the new upgrade had a few bugs in it including not updating from the Paypal payments (always handy!). Still it's a good site and if you want to dip your toe in the water it's definitely something to consider. However the new design sparked a major discussion (for what of a better word) on a forum we both frequent as the previous designer wasn't too impressed with the design and sent a couple of unethical messages over it.
I know and realise to succeed in business you need a hard skin, to be able to take it on the chin, to realise it's a hard world out there and to realise that plenty of businesses will forget their ethics at times. I'm really not like that. I have too much of a conscience to try and pull a fast one, to try and put one over on someone else without caring. Today I had a client, who's new redesign we've been finishing off before transferring his domain, who called to say his web site wasn't working and that they'd had no emails all morning. After spending around half an hour on the phone to Fast Hosts, their current host, I discovered that my client's ex-developer had deleted the site with no mention to him whatsoever. My client's been trying to call him but has had no response for the past few months now. It's wrong to do this to a business. Yes whilst you have the right I guess to cancel a contract after the expiry date it's pretty nasty to just delete the site without a warning. The ex-developer hadn't even been told about the new redesign or even new I existed, so he's taken it upon himself to just cancel the web site leaving a busy business who rely on their email to be working, with no site or email. Luckily I could get the nameservers transferred pretty quickly and a holding page with contact details are in place whilst we finish off the new site however the email could take the rest of the week before it works 100% again. This type of transfer needs to be done on a Friday afternoon not Tuesday morning!
I often wonder if people in this business ever think about their actions and knock on effects it has on others. Like the guy I took to court last year over an unpaid invoice. After he'd given me 50% of what he owed (yes I gave in – I'm not a fighter and didn't really fancy court!) a month later I sent him a CD with his web site on plus a warning that his hosting would be cancelled. I gave him 4 weeks notice to find alternative hosting. I moved all of his domains into his own 123-reg account and forwarded login details for the account. To be fair I did more than I had to. He didn't appreciate the knock effect that not paying an invoice of £500 would have. 3 days after the hosting was cancelled I pretty much had them phoning and emailing begging to get the hosting reinstated. I only agreed because I like the employees of the guy and only agreed providing I never have to deal with him ever again. I don't even think the court issue bothered him as he hadn't bothered to read half the paperwork that came through (which I read through with a fine toothcomb to ensure I understood it all!). But the lack of ethics again just puzzles me. I guess I've been brought up to be more respectful to people regardless who they are.
However besides all of my quibbles over ethics today I did have one great remark. The owner of the site I finished off today and did a major security sweep for it too came back and said he was really glad he'd got me to do the job (aww shucks). I know I'm no where near the level of PHP knowledge that I'd like to be, MySQL and AJAX is just even more further in the distance but I do hope that I provide the best service I can. I don't do the whole finish a job and just move on malarky. I'll bend over backwards to help my clients out if i can. The proof I believe is in referrals and repeat business. I've had 3 further job offers through today, 2 off current clients and one via a referral. Now all I need is a freelance PHP developer to help me out (I have one in mind I just need to ask!).
Well I was definatly very very very happy with it all
You rocks
The word "ethics" varies from person to person. Haivng read the thread, I didn't feel the need to reply to it.
What is ethical for one, is unethical for another. An example; I consider a certain person (named in that thread) to be unehtical in one respect, but ethical in another. I've been let down by him, and wouldn't want to have any sort of business connection with him, but in general he's a good guy.
So, you can see, that what you hold as ethical, the person next to you might see as fair game.
Regardless of whatever level of Business ethics you deem somebody to have it doesn't give reason to believe someone's a bad guy from it, unless you have further issues. I truely believe age and experience were also to blame from my personal thoughts. But as you say, it could also be considered fair game, and I know a lot of people in the business world would think that. I don't have a great deal of experience in business and I've been told in the past that I'm not the right person for business. Perhaps that reflects in my ethical viewpoint?
I've been approached to do work by others who have obviously left their previous developer for whatever reason. Am I being unethical in accepting the work? No. Yet if I know the previous developer am I then being unethical? Or am I being responsible (that's not a question to Gary but to anyone who has an answer!)
The ethical issue for me wasn't the action that happened, but that it was a member of a community where people gather to help each other and exchange ideas. This person chose to disrespect people who have provided help for him and the other members of his company (a considerable amount in fact), to me that's the unethical component. Aside from that I could care less what the idiot does, I'm confident enough that I can fulfil what a client wants to not care about some teenager that will do a site for £40.
I don't know the answer. I wouold probably speak with the other developer to ascertain why there was a parting of the ways…always good to get both sides of any story.
Here's another Scenario for you to mull over
Is it ethical to purchase a template once, then use it on more than one site ?
Oh I know the parting of ways. The previous developer supplied incomplete unsecure code. I saw this with my own eyes and have since fixed two jobs that they worked on previously. A site that uses Paypal for payment, has the whole IPN system set up but even in the comments the developer has made a remark saying "this is to email the client to then manually update the tables" instead of just doing the code. Yet what confuses me is that I know the developer is capable of making it work which then again leads to the lack of care that the developer has had or taken.
As for the templates – depends on the license. If the license is for use on one web site then it would be used on one web site. Besides a couple of free WordPress Templates I've only ever used 1 template that was purchased. I wouldn't use it elsewhere for several reasons but I don't believe I have the right to either.
You know the effect, but you don't know the cause. So, the dev supplied incomplete code – why is that? Maybe it is because the client decided not to pay, or paid late, or changed his mind so many times (as clients are prone to do).
Most times, there is always a reason, and then the real reason. A good example is when I quoted for an osCommerce job, to find out that the client was a bit "scatty".
I rebuffed them as my time is better spent with clients who know what they want (I don't have the patience to deal with people who waste time) – as it turns out another member of DDN got the job, and I know they are having an absolute 'mare with the client.