Thread: The Moral Delima

What happens when you post on this forum asking for some one to do your homework for you?

You get flamed


I've flamed such people, and I believe you should "DYOFH" or do your own -------ing homework.



That being said, some one IM'd asking me to code them a program for Monies. It is as I suspected, and admitted right away to be their home work.

As a coder, I take jobs coding. Is it it right or wrong to "take a job" doing some ones home work??

Discuss.









ps: If you're wondering, I happen to be "Working" right now. I never said I wasn't a hypocrit.

Also, what if during the coding process you add detective hints into the code insinuating that this code was not written by the individual turning it in.

Say, you know this individual has no experience with C++, and indeed most of the class does not. But you have throw backs to c++ ideas in your c code.

Say, like my bool definition

Code:

typedef enum { false = 0, true = 1 } bool;

Or macro's that "simulate" c++ functionality like say my new macro

Code:

#define new(c) malloc( sizeof(c) ) 
#define bnew(c) bTreeNodeI( new(c) ) /*/ uses a constructor */

It's kinda like encouraging poetic justice. Dirty on my part, but rightous big picture wise....

Originally Posted by jverkoey

Those would be called Easter Eggs, I believe.

But basically, the general concensus you're going to get here is, no, doing another person's homework is not ok.

This is much like normal subjects in school. Having someone do your homework for you will do nothing for you in the end and will have just been a waste of both people's time.

But perhaps the question is more of context based.
I mean, lets say the government hires you to code an efficient search algorythem. They don't tell you what it's for. You do a service, they pay you. Nothing wrong with this right?

What if, it turns out they are going to use this algorythem in an entirely wrong manner. To invade the privacy of it's citizens or some other sinister idea. Now, they tell you this before hand and ask you to do the job. Is it still ok to take the job? Isn't it relative to perspective? It's the ol' guns don't kill people, people kill people argument. Surely theres something to this argument more then "It depends on if you know, or don't know ahead of time"

Originally Posted by PJYelton

Schools have rules that say they are not allowed to cheat, and by doing their homework you are helping them circumvent these rules.

This may be true, but since I don't go to that school, what will they do to me?

The only times I would do something like this is when the problem is sufficiently interesting, or absurdly simple. The interesting problems are just for my own amusement, and the simple problems usually end up looking something like the following:

Code:

#include <stdio.h>
OO(O0){return !(O0 & 1);}main(_OO,_00)
int*_00;{int _0O;char _O0[]="How many\
 integers will you enter? \0is\0odd.\n\
\0even.\n\0Enter an integer: \0";for(
_00=&_0O,printf("%s",_O0),scanf("%d",
_00),_00=&_OO;_0O;printf("%s",_O0+51),
scanf("%d",_00),OO(*_00)?printf("%d %s\
 %s",*_00,_O0+35,_O0+44):printf("%d %s \
%s",*_00,_O0+35,_O0+38),_0O--);return _0O;}

I don't think the moral dilemma is yours. The person approaching you has decided that they don't care about learning and will attempt to get a good grade through other means. They have already decided to make a poor choice, but their poor choice doesn't transfer the responsibility to make a good choice to you. If you don't help the derelict student, the student will simply go elsewhere. I have no problem profitting from the morally deficient.

Lucky for me I guess, I started coding with the idea of becomming a hacker. (No, didnt pan ou for me)

But it servers to reitterate my lack of ethical and moral standards.
Money is money.

Originally Posted by joshdick

It's blatantly unethical, and you know it.

ACM's Code of Ethics

You're just looking for a way to rationalize irresponsible behaviour.

I gotta agree with JoshDick and Bubba. It's wrong. If someone posts an interesting problem, solve it for yourself, but don't post your solution. Give the poster a general idea of how to start solving the problem.

I'm game.

Exactly where in that code of ethics would you say that doing someone else's homework for money is a violation? I attempted a quick lookover through sections 1 and 2, but I didn't see anything explicit.

Further, I am not a member of the ACM. Why should I allow them to dictate to me what my ethical standards are?

Originally Posted by joshdick

By passing off someone else's work as his own, the student who contacted him is failing to give proper credit to the true owner of intellectual property in clear violation of 1.6. Furthermore, you can bet that the student's college has policies on academic honesty that would be broken by such blatant cheating, and breaking such a policy violates 2.3.

I agree completely. I agree that it would be unethical for me to pay someone else to do my homework. It would be unethical because of the reasons you just stated. However, this doesn't address Jeremy G's original issue. Is it ethical to do someone else's homework (with or without pay)? I contend that it is. From the programmer's point of view, it's simply a pay-for-code job. What the student does with the code after that is up to the student.

I'm willing to concede that doing someone else's homework may be aiding an unethical practice on the part of the student. That may make doing someone else's homework unethical.