From: Christophe Grandsire Date: 2005-11-08T21:56:17+09:00 Subject: Re: which open source licence? Selon "Jon A. Lambert" : > > Wrong! > The five copyrights of the authors in the US are as follows... > > To reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords; That's copy. > To prepare derivative works based upon the work; Only if they are to be distributed. The author can't forbid you to write your own little story based on his that you will never show to anyone. An author can't forbid you to take an image from a movie and make it your screensaver. > To distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale or > other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; Distribution. > To perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, > and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other > audiovisual works; Doesn't apply to software, which was the sole focus of this thread. > To display the copyrighted work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, > dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or > sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or > other audiovisual work; and in the case of sound recordings, to perform the > work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission. > "Publicly" is the keyword here. And what public display means for software is a matter of discussion. Is using a web browser in an internet cafe where everyone can see my screen considered public display? In any case, this is not personal use, so it doesn't influence what I said. > Computer programs and software are generally covered under the literary > rules, unless they also include music and art. > But those are usually licensed separately. Look at how Firefox and Thunderbird are licensed differently from the icon art that they contain for instance. > Under Canadian copyright law and I suspect some European law, author's also > have rights of attribution. > Which have no meaning unless you're redistributing. I stand by what I say: personal use is *not* covered by copyright. I can buy a book, cut it in small pieces and glue all the sentences on my wall if I want, and the author has no business forbidding me to do that. Not in the law and not in practice. And "public display" is not personal use, especially for software, so it doesn't change what I said. -- Christophe Grandsire. http://rainbow.conlang.free.fr It takes a straight mind to create a twisted conlang.