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Fair Use Copyright Law Don’t Overstep the Fair Use Copyright Law Many people are interested in the fair use copyright law. The fair use copyright law enables people to use portions of material that is copyrighted for the purposes of criticism or as commentary. The hard part for many people is understanding what is permissible under the fair use copyright law and what is not permissible. Anyone who writes or publishes should brush up on what is allowed and what is not allowed. Using another person’s words to make news reports, to use as a comment or criticism or to use for research, scholarship, or for educational uses that are nonprofit are generally considered fair use. In these instances, the fair use copyright law allows one person or author to make use of another person or author’s work without asking permission to do so. In situations that do not fall within these specifications you are probably violating someone’s copyright if you use their work – especially if you are using another person’s work for economic or commercial gain. When you are trying to see if you can use another’s words, you should keep a few things in mind. The answer to the following questions will help you gage whether you would be violating a copyright. First, are you transforming someone else’s work or are you copying it? Second, are you going to be making any financial gains from your work that would compete with the original copyright holder? Third, do you have the author’s permission to quote their work? Just because you list the author and give credit to him or her does not protect you from infringing upon someone’s copyright. Fourth, how much of the original author’s work are you using? If you are using a substantial amount of another’s work, you are probably in direct violation of their copyright. Many publishing companies have set rules on how much material they will allow to be quoted in other sources. Some of these ranges start at 100 words or less. However, there are truly no standards to go by, so be careful. You can not assume that keeping your copying fewer than 50 words will allow you to pass under the radar – especially if the original piece is hovering around 125 words itself! Lastly, what portion of another’s work are you using? If it is the meat of the book and the most important part of the book, you are probably in direct violation of the owner’s copyright. With a little common sense it is not hard to decide if you are violating someone’s copyright. People who are truly interested in staying within the guidelines of the fair use copyright law usually do a good job of doing so. Many people push the fair use copyright law right up to the line, while others will blatantly cross over it without giving a second thought to the repercussions. When these people are summoned to court to answer for their vagrant disregard for the property and copyright of another they are usually sorry. Sorry they got caught! It is very important that people who take advantage of the fair use copyright law are held accountable for their actions. Without accountability many more people would follow in their footsteps and use another’s works as their own.

Software copyright Software Copyright Difficult to Enforce For those of you who love computer games, you probably know more about software copyright than you ever thought you'd want to know-especially if you have or have ever owned multiple computers. Most new games not only come with special copyrights but also built in security features that are designed to enforce those copyrights. Some have even gone so far as selling you the right to 'use' the material you are purchasing rather than providing you with actual ownership of the software to which they own the software copyright. That bothered me a bit at first, but I've come to understand it's another way of protecting them and their rights as well as controlling or limiting how you use the software they provide. Software copyright is actually quite confusing and hotly debated. Many stores will not accept opened software as returns because the software companies won't reimburse them for the product and they are left holding the bag. It doesn't sound like much but when you think of literally thousands of consumers attempting to return opened software because they didn't like or worse, they only needed to download and install it for it to actually run. Companies that produce computer software have become savvy to the ways of the modern consumer. Those companies that produce computer games especially require that the disk actually be in your player in order for the game to operate properly. This enforced the software copyright to the extent that two people can't reasonably share ownership of the same game, as they both need an actual disk in order to operate the games. But for every solution there is a hacker or budding programmer that creates a new problem for software makers and holders of software copyright to face. One of the latest problems is the virtual CD. The long and short of this is that the computer is tricked into 'seeing' the CD where it should be and carries out the game as though it were. Another important thing to note about software copyright is that there are many programs available that mimic some of the more notable applications for no fee. These are often referred to as open source software and often have excellent if not superior quality to similar programs that are available for fees. One thing I've noticed is that I will often find free open source software, download it, love it and a few months later I will find a more polished version of the same software, by the same company available with a few more bells and whistles for a fee. The new improved software has a software copyright and is not free to consumers but it is also a much better version than what I currently have. It's a great way for new software developers to make names for themselves and get volunteers for the testing process of their development phase. A software copyright offers protection and recognition to the owner of the software. The problem with protecting software is that it is impossible to police properly. That would require walking into every home on the planet and checking each computer to make sure there are no duplicate copies extra copies, illegal copies, etc. Plus, who keeps the actual boxes from all their software? I certainly do not. I could never prove that I was honoring the software copyright if the packaging or receipts were the only way I have of doing so. Most people in the world today honestly want to do the right thing. Software is one of the most expensive purchases people will often make for their home computers, it only makes sense to buy actual copies that have an actual software copyright in order to protect your investment not only in your software but also in your computer.

Copyright music free Getting Copyright Music Free can Pay the Artists There are few people that will allow you to use their copyright music free. If you've found a person or a business that is willing to allow this then either consider yourself extremely lucky or start searching for the very fine print. Most people feel a certain kindred or passion for the music they like and they aren't overly willing to part with it at all unless they feel it is their calling to share this music with the world. In those circumstances you will be amazed at how eager they are to share their "message". I however, worry more about those that are eager to share than I worry about those who say no rather quickly and without sending another thought your way. Call me crazy but I'm usually the first one to give my things away and to share when I don't really have that much to begin with. I believe in sacrifice and the need for giving to those who have less or those whose needs are somehow not being met. This makes me a prime candidate for those who would ask me to share my copyright music free. I'm afraid my answer to that question is almost always going to be a no of my own. That being said I've always held a special fondness for musicians. Perhaps it's those teen crushes from which I've never fully recovered-ahem-2 or 3 years later. The problem today is the people are downloading copyright music free online without regards to the fact that when they get it free, someone isn't getting paid for their talents, efforts, and hard work. There are alternatives that will allow you to download the music really cheaply or pay a subscription fee for a service that allows you to download all the music you want for one set amount each month. These services allow the talented writers and performers of this music that adds so much to our lives each and every day to get paid for their labor. Paying for the music in this manner also allows us to enjoy that music while cutting out the middlemen and markups we often pay when purchasing music at retail prices. You do not have to get copyright music free in order to enjoy a wonderful bargain and when you pay something for your music you are ensuring that these talented writers and performers will find it profitable to continue providing this music that entertains you so much. We all enjoy getting things for free or feeling as though we've gotten a terrific bargain. That is one reason that subscription services are so wildly popular. You pay one price for the privilege of downloading as much music as your hard drive and modem can handle each month. It's like paying one fee and enjoying copyright music free except that you are actually paying for the music you are getting in other ways. More importantly though, the artists, writers, and recording companies are getting a piece of the profit pie, which keeps them in business. After the recent problems involved with massive and illegal downloading of copyright music free, recording companies began putting their proverbial feet down and demanding that action be taken. The solutions have been quite clever and highly effective. Consumers were much more willing to pay a monthly subscription fee that amounted to the amount of money that one CD would cost in order to download unlimited music from their homes. Record companies are getting paid for work that has already been done without the need actually produce, deliver, transport, and market their new CDs. This is copyright music free in its best form for all involved.