Copyrights

[Jediscroller]

Originally Posted by wood-n-things

BOB,
Can I muddy the waters a little?

I have a subscription to your mag.

Can I share my magazine with a neighbor?

Can I later down the road sell my copy of my magazine? I see old copies of mags for sale on the net everyday. I have several hundred copies of old mags I'm trying to decide what to do with, so my wife does not have to deal with them upon my demise.

Can I donate it to a hospital waiting room?


Just curious....

Not muddying at all Mike and a good question. Under the First Sale Doctrine you can sell the original (or donate it) provided you don't keep copies for yourself. Sharing it with your neighbor technically would be a no-no though I don't think you'll get into much trouble.
As far as who's patterns, if you have any patterns with "WSA" on them as the creator I would be very hesitant to use them.

[BobD]

Jim,
Nope, as long as it's your original design, you can post what you want.

Bob

[BobD]

If you've got any concerns about patterns, you can follow Kevin's advice or PM me. I'd rather keep things like that off the open board as much as possible. Even posting thumbnails is a violation of the original artist's copyright.

Something else I was thinking about last night. I know there is a perception that if you see the same image in multiple places on the internet, then the image must be public domain. That's just not true. There's no way of knowing if the other websites are disregarding the original artist's copyrights.

Bob

[Wood Dog]

So......if i get a book, or magazine at the library, and make a copy of a pattern to scroll for myself, am I breaking the copyright rule? How about copying a pattern to scroll from the same library book, or mag, and give it away, am I breaking the copyright rule?

[BobD]

WD,
That's really a grey area. Technically...it is a violation, but it's nearly impossible to enforce. Technically, the magazines and books in a library are for reference, and the library is the "owner" of the books. It quickly descends into a death spiral when you get into this grey area of the copyright law.

My concern is primarily about the board. I don't want to see the board shut down because someone is posting patterns made from copyrighted images.

Bob

[wood-n-things]

Thanks for clearing up my questions Kevin...

Bob thanks for explaining without lecturing...It is a pleasant aside to inform without being condescending..It is appreciated.

[BobD]

Thanks Mike! That's the attitude I was trying to get across...I'm not the lecturing type, and I can't stand to be on the receiving end of one <GRIN>.

As another aside, a member asked me about posting photos of completed projects based on copyrighted images. Honestly...that's up to the individual poster. I don't think someone is going to come down on us for allowing those things to be posted, but they may go after the person who actually used the copyrighted image without their permission.

Bob

[CanadianScroller]

Copyright law is so vague, it has become an industry of its own.
I think people who hold copyrights often have far more resources at their fingertips than you or I do.
The RCMP have sold the copyrights to their "Look" and their symbolism to Disney. Kind of Ironic in a way, I seem to recall Donald Duck in a Mountie uniform long before they bought the rights.
I have friends who are mounties and I wonder how much trouble I would be in if I made items for them.
..... Disney has way more money than me.......
Perhaps this is one of those times it is best to" let sleeping dogs lay.."
Good boy Pluto, Down boy. Down!......

[JimSawyer]

So I guess we can't, "Mickey Mouse", our way around this subject.
I think if one respects the rights of other peoples creative property, there really is no debate. One important thing, to me anyway, is to always give credit where credit is due. I know I wouldn't like if someone took one of my designs and sold it as their own. If they produce a project from that design, that's just fine. I figure they've earned any proceeds from it. Giving credit to the designer is just the right thing to do.
Wow...How did I get so wordy...lol.

[tamoria]

Bob, my dad has a clock pattern that has inserts that you could change out. I think the original pattern that came in the design had a deer in it. Can I create a new inserts like say another piece of a pattern from a Woodworks or Scrollsaw or my own designs without violating the copyright of the original design (or the one I am copying)? I don't want to do anything illegal, but he has asked several times and finally I found a place that I feel can advise me.