Ask YC: Hacking, Is it unethical to emulate others designs?

I think it's fine to get inspiration as long as you aren't stealing. I modeled mine after amazon. I'm not a guru designer and I took what I liked from about five sites total to create my mashup. Take the ideas/elements you like and make them your own somehow. People will appreciate the originality also.

my first mockup takes inspiration from http://last.fm and http://digg.com

Great artists steal.