Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!sharkey!indetech!pacbell!ditka!qiclab!leonard
From: leonard@qiclab.UUCP (Leonard Erickson)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: Introduction to REC.HUMOR.FUNNY -- Monthly Posting
Keywords: Copyright, Plagerism
Message-ID: <2002@qiclab.UUCP>
Date: 5 Feb 89 23:08:56 GMT
References: <2712@looking.UUCP> <1449@papaya.bbn.com> <166@deltam.UUCP>
Reply-To: leonard@qiclab.UUCP (Leonard Erickson)
Distribution: na
Organization: Qic Laboratories, Portland, Oregon.
Lines: 57

In article <166@deltam.UUCP> mark@tech.deltam.UUCP (mark galbraith) writes:
<In article <1449@papaya.bbn.com> rsalz@bbn.com (Rich Salz) writes:
<>In <2712@looking.UUCP> funny-request@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton) writes:
<><The contents of rec.humor.funny are compilation copyright 1987, 1988,
<><1989 by Brad Templeton.   ...
<> 
<><A licence is granted to the owners of computer systems on what is
<><commonly known as USENET to read and/or store this compilation in electronic
<>  .
<>  .
<><not sure you're on USENET, and you want to forward the group, just ask me.
<><It's very likely I will say yes.  I just want to keep track and keep control.
<
<
<Judging from what Brad is saying in his posting, he is claiming
<to own the jokes he is sent to put on the net.  'Tain't so Brad!!
<The copyright, if any, belongs to the person who *CREATED* the
<joke, not the last person to propagate it.  I think Brad should
<read the section of the Usenet installation manual on copyright
<law.  In this article the author, Jordan Breslow (415-932-4828),
<discusses ownership rights, and other related topics.  This
<should be required reading for all administrators on the net.
<
<Brad has overstepped his responsiblity, and will be lucky if there
<isn't a lawsuit filed over his plagerism.
<
<I think the biggest joke here are the words "Copyright by Brad
<Templeton."  The problem is, the joke isn't that funny.

We went thru this sort of nonsense on Compu$erve a couple of years ago,
so I'm familiar with whats going on. By claiming a "compilation copy-
right", Brad is not copyrighting the jokes. It has *no* effect on the
author's copyright (exception: if the author hasn't copyrighted the
item, then this will enable him to claim copyright if the item is 
grabbed by somebody else).

What is being copyrighted isn't the jokes, its the *collection* of 
jokes. You can distribute the individual jokes all you want, but as
soon as you try distributed the *collection* without permission, you
can get nailed. (Note that copyright voilations are now good for
$250,000 a shot!!)

The bit about licensing is just required legalese to keep him from
losing *his* copyright to *his* work. Nothing more, nothing less.

Brad iis *not* plaigerising anything. And any attempt to sue him
over this will only be a waste of time and money. He is within his
rights. And his action has no effect on *your* rights unless you wish
to distribute the contents of rec.humor.funny in some manner he doesn't
approve of. (you can *still* do this, but you'll have to get permission
from the author of each and every joke...)

-- 
Leonard Erickson		...!tektronix!reed!percival!bucket!leonard
CIS: [70465,203]
"I used to be a hacker. Now I'm a 'microcomputer specialist'.
You know... I'd rather be a hacker."