Comments on: Miscellanea for 1-May-2009 http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/miscellanea-1-may-2009/ PTS Excel Charts and Tutorials Blog Sat, 21 Nov 2009 04:01:08 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jon Peltier http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/miscellanea-1-may-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-13577 Jon Peltier Fri, 01 May 2009 13:48:11 +0000 http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/?p=1862#comment-13577 My understanding is that this activity, using a sample of someone's work for the purpose of review or critique, falls within the scope of "fair use". I don't even think it is necessary to get permission from the copyright holders, though it is the courteous thing to do, as long as it doesn't take heroic measures to do so. Certainly the requirements are tougher if it's a published book as opposed to an informal presentation or a blog post. Whether you're paid to present your discussion is immaterial. You will get all manner of opinions on this. I've come across many forum discussions about copyright, and even when you show someone a passage in the actual US Code, and link to discussions by experts, they persist in their notions about what is appropriate. For example, some people will think that what I described in this comment is wrong (having no concept of fair use). Others will think that what I described in the article about scraping someone's pages and posting them verbatim is okay: "What's the big deal, they included your name, even though they misspelled it." (Yes, I've heard that, and quickly walked away from that discussion.) My understanding is that this activity, using a sample of someone’s work for the purpose of review or critique, falls within the scope of “fair use”. I don’t even think it is necessary to get permission from the copyright holders, though it is the courteous thing to do, as long as it doesn’t take heroic measures to do so. Certainly the requirements are tougher if it’s a published book as opposed to an informal presentation or a blog post. Whether you’re paid to present your discussion is immaterial.

You will get all manner of opinions on this. I’ve come across many forum discussions about copyright, and even when you show someone a passage in the actual US Code, and link to discussions by experts, they persist in their notions about what is appropriate.

For example, some people will think that what I described in this comment is wrong (having no concept of fair use). Others will think that what I described in the article about scraping someone’s pages and posting them verbatim is okay: “What’s the big deal, they included your name, even though they misspelled it.” (Yes, I’ve heard that, and quickly walked away from that discussion.)

]]> By: Naomi B. Robbins http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/miscellanea-1-may-2009/comment-page-1/#comment-13575 Naomi B. Robbins Fri, 01 May 2009 13:04:07 +0000 http://peltiertech.com/WordPress/?p=1862#comment-13575 I'd like to hear what you and your readers have to say about clipping a figure from a web site, book, or magazine for the purpose of discussing it, showing alternative presentations, and critically reviewing it. What if you want to use it in a presentation instead of writing about it in a blog? Can you include it in handouts or let it be included in conference proceedings? Of course, the source would be given. Does it matter whether you are paid for delivering the presentation or speaking to a professional society with no compensation? Finding the copyright owners and getting permission to use the figures for Creating More Effective Graphs was an extremely time consuming task. I’d like to hear what you and your readers have to say about clipping a figure from a web site, book, or magazine for the purpose of discussing it, showing alternative presentations, and critically reviewing it. What if you want to use it in a presentation instead of writing about it in a blog? Can you include it in handouts or let it be included in conference proceedings? Of course, the source would be given. Does it matter whether you are paid for delivering the presentation or speaking to a professional society with no compensation?

Finding the copyright owners and getting permission to use the figures for Creating More Effective Graphs was an extremely time consuming task.

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