Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!mgnetp!ihnp4!drutx!houxe!hogpc!houti!ariel!vax135!floyd!cmcl2!seismo!hao!hplabs!sri-unix!DBrown@HI-MULTICS.ARPA From: DBrown@HI-MULTICS.ARPA@sri-unix.UUCP Newsgroups: net.micro.cpm Subject: Re: keeping modm700 in the public domain Message-ID: <822@sri-arpa.UUCP> Date: Wed, 13-Jun-84 10:28:00 EDT Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.822 Posted: Wed Jun 13 10:28:00 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 15-Jun-84 02:19:53 EDT Lines: 31 Well, I shan't comment on the legality of claiming copyright of previously published material: it varies with whether you adhere to the Berne conventions or not. However, copyright can be used to keep a published work available, if not really in the public domain. (1) Claim copyright on your own behalf, and that of the previous authors (2) Make use of the program contingent on acceptance of a contractual obligation (3) Make the contract enforce the accessability requirements you desire. The following is at least close to correct in Canada: Copyright (C) 1965, 1967, 1983 XXX.YYY A free and unrestricted licence to use, modify and distribute this program is granted, subject to acceptance of the following requirements: That this notice appear unchanged in the program source and executable That the program be distributed in full source to any further recipients, and That ..... This does NOT prevent a person from claiming copyright on extensions, or refusing to release his copyrighted parts to the public domain. It does keep him from from simply claiming that "no-one owned it so I took it". --dave (unix hack on a bun) brown DBrown @ HI-MULTICS.ARPA watbun!drbrown @ watmath.UUCP