Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!dptg!att!chinet!saj
From: saj@chinet.chi.il.us (Stephen Jacobs)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: Contribution copyright query
Summary: Good question; much discussed in news.admin
Message-ID: <9154@chinet.chi.il.us>
Date: 3 Aug 89 16:25:25 GMT
References: <570023@otter.hpl.hp.com>
Organization: Chinet - Chicago, Ill.
Lines: 18

In article <570023@otter.hpl.hp.com>, gjh@otter.hpl.hp.com (Graham Higgins) writes:
> I'd appreciate some guidance/instruction on the position of copyright on usenet
> contributions. I am doing a bit of spare-time writing for one of the U.K. ST
> mags (STWorld). Between us we have been considering doing a monthly "Best of ST
> usenet" feature. 

Questions like this get kicked around frequently in news.admin, largely in
response to things like Brad Templeton's joke collections.  It would appear
to be the consensus that contributors to usenet retain copyright to their
writing, but constructively grant the right of unlimited duplication by posting
it in a public place where it will be echoed everywhere.  In a moderated
group, the moderator automatically acquires a 'compilation copyright' simply
by sorting good from bad.  Best of usenet in a magazine with minimal editing
and with attribution would be very difficult to attack.  A magazine containing
only selections from usenet would be asking for a confrontation.  There's a
lot of ground in between.  We're pretty much all friends here, but its hard to
predict what will make someone angry.
                                      Steve J.