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From: dgary@ecsvax.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.micro.cpm
Subject: Re: mdm740 copyrighted-- how can he do it??
Message-ID: <2704@ecsvax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 11-Jun-84 17:22:59 EDT
Article-I.D.: ecsvax.2704
Posted: Mon Jun 11 17:22:59 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 14-Jun-84 06:32:22 EDT
References: ihxxq.986
Lines: 34


>From: covert@ihuxq.UUCP (covert) Fri Jun  8 09:34:30 1984
>How can Irv Hoffman copyright the mdm7xx programs. As I understand
>it the latest mdm740 is based upon the original work of Ward
>Christensen. Is Hoffman going to split his profits with Ward??
>	Heres to hoping that public domain programs remain public.

Once a program (or anything) has been put into the public domain,
it cannot be 'copyrighted'.  Any changes, however, can be.

For example, go to your neighborhood bookstore and pick up a copy
of Moby Dick (or, better yet, The Bible, King James Version).
You will probably find that it bears a copyright notice on the page
following the title page.  This copyright protects any original
preface, foreward, footnotes, or the like inserted into the text.
It also protects an abridgement if the work is abridged.
But it clearly does not mean that you can claim copyright to the
Bible (although that is something to think about...)

(Mark Twain once made fun of Mary Baker Eddy for suing a publisher
claiming copyright infringement when said publisher reprinted 'Science
and Health' or some other Christian Science text.  It seems
Twain wanted to know how Eddy could claim divine authorship of the
work and yet allege she was entitled to royalties.)

I don't believe there's anything illegal about putting a copyright
notice on a public domain work, unless someone could claim fraud.
In any event, it is certainly of questionable ethics!

I'm not a lawyer but I know what I like...
D Gary Grady
Duke University Computation Center, Durham, NC  27706
(919) 684-4146
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