[681] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
Re: Intellectual Property and its Discontents
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (HICKEY%ITHACA.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.)
Tue Jul 7 13:29:51 1992
Date: Tue, 7 Jul 1992 12:12:44 CDT
Reply-To: Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <PACS-L%UHUPVM1.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu>
From: HICKEY%ITHACA.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu
To: Multiple recipients of list PACS-L <PACS-L%UHUPVM1.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu>
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Re copyright publication of ideas; as I understand the issue, the
last copyright law revision combined the "common law" protections
of ideas for which one had not bothered to file for copyright,
with the formal "c in a circle plus filing fee" protections, in
such a way that the _old_ tried and true formulation of "posting"
your ideas in a form which could be dated (letter to yourself,
postmarked) w/o copyright filing or fees, acquired one the
same protection as formal filing. E-mail posting would have the
same effect, in the U.S., even without the hassle of filing.
E-posting might, then, protect one's ideas at the same time that
it communicated them....
