============ OGREverse list, June 7th (Last: June 5th) ============= ===== Copyright From: tanker@best.com From: Steve Jackson ------------------------------ From: tanker@best.com Subject: Copyright Steve, You realize that Cyberboard, like Aide de Camp, incudes no rules what so ever. It only has computer representations of the map and counters that are proprietary to the program in question. Ownership of the game is required to make any use of them as Ogre/GEV. License and copyright permission would seem desirable but not necessary. There is certainly a great gray area at the very least. Just my2 cents. Paul J. Calvi Jr. tanker@best.com ----- From: Steve Jackson Subject: Copyright Nope, not one little bit gray. Sorry. I'm talking as one who has not only studied this, but paid tens of thousands of dollars to attorneys who specialize. It was an expensive education, but I *have* to know this stuff to protect my livelihood . . . and to AVOID infringing the rights of OTHERS, too. And it's easy to do that by accident when you think you're just being a fan. Specifically, here: When you copy and distribute a *portion* of a copyrighted work, you are still violating the copyright. It's no defense/excuse/escape hatch if it's not complete. In fact, there's a legal term for that: "mutilation." And it's bad. And if you don't actually COPY it, but make use of it for your own project and publish that project, it's still an infringement. The term for that is "derivative work." That's bad too. Furthermore, when you distribute that mutilated or derived work under its trademarked name, you infringe the trademark as well. Note that this is an entirely different discussion from "should publishers be willing to license things like this." The answer to THAT question is "Quite possibly, and in fact I have already licensed one for Ogre." But when people start telling me that they can use my stuff without permission; that they have a RIGHT to do so, bla bla . . . they are pushing a button that should not be pushed, and making it harder for the people who are willing to observe the decencies and formalities. Steve Jackson - yes, of SJ Games - yes, we won the Secret Service case Learn Web or die - http://www.sjgames.com/ - dinosaurs, Lego, Kahlua! The heck with PGP keys; finger for Geek Code. Fnord. ------------------------------ Henry J. Cobb hcobb@io.com http://www.io.com/~hcobb All OGRE-related items Copyright (c) 1998, by Steve Jackson Games.