Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!pasteur!ames!elroy!mahendo!wlbr!hacgate!gryphon!richard
From: richard@gryphon.COM (Richard Sexton)
Newsgroups: comp.fonts
Subject: Re: HP LaserJet Downloadable Fonts
Message-ID: <14001@gryphon.COM>
Date: 31 Mar 89 05:46:12 GMT
Reply-To: richard@gryphon.COM (Richard Sexton)
Organization: Trailing Edge Technology, Redondo Beach, CA
Lines: 43

In article <96281@sun.Eng.Sun.COM> eager@sun.UUCP (Mike Eager) writes:
>In article <229800002@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu> mcdonald@uxe.cso.uiuc.edu writes:
>>
>>Make a copy of them on floppies.
>>Use debug to edit out the copyright, and change the name of the font
>>to something else. 
>
>You might get the idea that editing out the copyright statement constitutes
>a violation of copyright.

Not really. Copyright means ``right to copy''. Ie, Copying copyrighted
material is illegal. Alterinf it isnt. Consider: you buy a copyrighted
book. Can you copy it ? No. Can you alter it ? Yes. You'll notice there
is a notice inside (at least ther probably is) that says you cant
lend, lease or sell an altered version.


>>The BIT PATTERNS of the fonts cannot be copyrighted
>>or patented or protected in any other way.
>
>The BIT PATTERNS, can and (since you saw the notice) are protected by 
>copyright.  Copying the diskettes, and removing the notice, are a violation
>of copyright.

This is a great  point of contention right now. The copyright office
has stated they will not support ANY copyrighting of fonts.

What we have here is the wild wild west of fonts.

>
>The actual shape of the character cannot be protected by copyright.  This allows
>you, if you wish, to digitize the printed version of the letter and create your
>own bit mapped or PostScript font.  Then, you can copyright the bit map or
>PS program that you created.  

Of course if what you end up with is binary identical to the original
it kinda complicates matters, huh ?



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