Welcome to elreno.org

Copyright Infringement Play It Safe: Making Sure You're Not Committing Copyright Infringement Copyright infringement is not an easy thing to explain. While it may seem as simple as not using someone else’s work, it’s not that easy. Thanks to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and many other organizations, we have the ability to use others’ works – as long as we use it under ‘fair use’ laws. So what does fair use have to do with copyright infringement, and how can you utilize it? Fair use laws are the conditions in which you can use a copyrighted work without having to pay someone royalties. This includes when you use a copyrighted work for educational or instructional uses, criticism of the work, commentaries on the work, news reporting about the work, teaching on the work (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship uses, and research. This is talked about fully in Section 107 of the Copyright Code (commonly called Fair Use) and is available for you to read at your local library. Copyright Infringement in day-to-day life Sometimes, if you’re writing a paper for work or school, or if you are creating a Power Point presentation, you need to use someone’s work that is already in copyright. So how do you use it without committing copyright infringement? All you have to do is ask – the worst they can say is no, right? But, if they do say no, there are several items in the public domain which may help you to finish your project without having to commit copyright infringement. What is the public domain, and how does it relate to copyright infringement? Material that is not copyrighted is considered in the public domain – you cannot commit copyright infringement on works in the public domain. These works include things that the copyright has expired on, or is not copyright-able – such as government publications, jokes, titles, and ideas. Some creators (writers, musicians, artists, and more) deliberately put their work in the public domain, without ever obtaining copyright, by providing an affiliation with Creative Commons. Creative Commons allows people who create materials to forfeit some, or all, of their copyright rights and place their work either partially or fully in the public domain. So, how do I ensure I’m not committing copyright infringement? First of all, if you’re going to use someone else’s material, you may want to check the public domain to see if something is suitable for use, instead of trying to use someone else’s copyright. However, if you can’t find something suitable (and you can’t create something yourself), the next best thing (and your only legal course of action) is to find a piece that is in copyright, and contacting the copyright holder. When you contact the copyright holder, make sure you tell them what you want to use their piece for – whether it’s for your blog, podcast, or report – and ask them if you can use it. You may have to pay royalties, or an attribution in your piece, or a combination of both. The creator may also place many limitations on when and how you can use their material. Follow all these instructions they give you, and you’ll be free and clear to use their work as you want. Once you have permission to use a copyrighted work, you need to make sure you stay within the agreed-upon boundaries - if you veer outside their agreed terms, you may open yourself up for a copyright infringement lawsuit – which can be nasty, costly, and time consuming. If you’re in doubt, before contacting the copyright holder, contact a copyright lawyer to ensure you’re following the law – and protect yourself!

Copyright Law Act The Copyright Law Act of 1976 The Copyright Law Act of 1976 is the basis of the United States copyright laws. The Copyright Law Act states the rights of copyright owners, the doctrine of the fair use copyright laws and it changed the term life of copyrights. Before the Copyright Law Act the law had not been revised since 1909. It was necessary that the copyright laws be revised to take into account technological strides that were being made in radio, sound recordings, motions pictures and more. The Copyright Law Act of 1976 preempted all previous laws that were on the books in the United States, including the Copyright Act of 1909. The Copyright Law Act of 1976 defines “works of authorship” to include all of the following: * Musical works * Literary works * Dramatic works * Pictorial, sculptural and graphics * Motion Pictures and Audiovisuals * Sound Recordings * Choreographic Works and Pantomimes * An eighth work which falls under “architectural works” was later added in 1990. What is unique about the United States copyright law is that it is automatic. Once someone has an idea and produces it in tangible form, the creator is the copyright holder and has the authority to enforce his exclusivity to it. In other words, the person is the owner of the creation. It is not necessary that a person register their work. However, it is recommended and it can serve as evidence if someone ever violates a copyright. It is interesting to note that when an employer hires an employee to produce a work that the copyright is given to the employer. Violations of US Copyright Law are generally enforced in a civil court setting. However, there could also be criminal sanctions brought against someone who violates US copyright law. Someone that is in serious violation of US Copyright Law such as counterfeiting can find themselves on the inside of prison looking out. People need to understand that the copyright symbol is not a requirement. Someone may have a copyright, yet their work may not have a copyright notice or symbol. US Copyright Law covers a wide range of things that are derived from artistic expression, intellectual or creative work. This includes things such as literary works, music, drawings, photographs, software, movies, choreographic works such as ballets and plays, poems, paintings and more. The law covers the form of expression, not the concept, facts or the actual idea of the work. This means that someone can use another person’s idea or concept and produce their own take on it. However, copying another person’s work is a violation. It should be noted that some things may not be copyrighted but they may be protected by a patent or trademark. Individuals who have a copyright on a particular piece of work can do with it what they will. They may choose to copy it and sell it. They may display their work or perform it in public and charge admission, or they can assign or sell the work to someone else. Individuals who have a copyright can also choose to do nothing with their work, if that is their desire. However, if someone comes along and takes the work and tries to use it in some way, that person is still in violation of the owner’s copyright. The Copyright Law Act covers published and unpublished work.

The Many Sides of Writer Web Rings (writer web rings) Generally, a web ring is defined as a collection of Web Sites from the Internet that are joined together in a circular structure. Writer web rings are a great example of this collection of Web Sites. Web rings may be used to increase search engine rankings, and can be considered as search engine optimization techniques. It is common for many web rings to take advantage of this and find writers looking to improve their own rankings. There are many web rings available for seasoned writers and novices alike. Becoming a member of one of the many writing web rings is as simple as joining any other web rings with different themes. Web ring web sites each have a common navigation bar that contains links to the previous and next sites. Clicking the next or previous sites repeatedly will eventually take the surfer to the site original site of the web ring; this is the origin of the term web ring. Web rings are organized around certain themes, and of course the theme for writer web rings is writing. These web rings for writers typically have moderators who are responsible for deciding what pages to include in the web ring. The making of the web ring is the foundation for the group of people who will soon join. Writer web rings are readily available and are open for all potential writers and experienced writers to join. These web rings for writers are usually seen as an outlet for many writers, who are otherwise unable to find interesting ways to increase their experience in the writing world. Typically, these web rings for writers are designed specifically for certain groups. For example, there are many web rings designed specifically for women. The Accomplished Women Writers group is a group of women writers who help each other by providing tips and hints for getting published. The web ring also includes a site that teaches women how to manage a family, household, and writing career. The Aspiring Young Writers Ring is also a web ring, and is dedicated to helping young writers on their way to becoming professionals. The Author Ring is a web ring that was established for published authors if book-length fiction and nonfiction. Other writer web rings include Black Folks Who Write, which is open to African Americans who showcase their work on the internet; Freelance Webring for freelance writers; Internet Writers’ Guild, which brings together authors of web-published literature and showcases their writing online; and Romance Readers and Writers, which is designed for writers who love all aspects of writing romance novels, and who enjoy reading romance novels. No matter the person, there is a writer web ring for almost every kind of writer, so no writer should feel discouraged if they feel their case is a unique one and there is no writer web ring to satisfy their artistic needs. Writer web rings are not a new concept, but there are many writers who don’t take advantage of their great services. A writer web ring can be used to help any writer expand their knowledge of writing techniques, of their own experience, level, and style of writing, can help them appreciate their writing as well as others, while teaching them about the business of writing, and helping them figure out the world of writing in general. These web rings are considered to be good things because a person can find many sites relating to their own writing all together without searching endlessly. Many may not see writer web rings as perfect, but they can be noted for their service they provide for many writers, and can be seen as a great tool for the writer.