Photographs & copyright

[Thomas H. Slone]

>Folks
>
>I have started incorporating photographs into the web site, for example:
>
>http://coombs.anu.edu.au/SpecialProj/PNG/MIHALIC/M2/LetterM/Me.htm
>http://coombs.anu.edu.au/SpecialProj/PNG/MIHALIC/M2/LetterM/Maria.htm
>http://coombs.anu.edu.au/SpecialProj/PNG/MIHALIC/M2/LetterL/luluai.htm
>
>I am looking for simple images of everyday things. It might be best if we
>stuck to using images that are out-of-copyright or are published in books
>whose authors can give clear authorisations about copyright. Some of you may
>have useful shots of things in your personal collections, but I do not want
>to use images from any sources where there is the slightest chance of a
>later complaint that acknowledgment as a contributor was insufficient as a
>form of accreditation.

For the United States, any works first published in the US before 
1923 are in the public domain in the US.  Any work first published 
outside the US before 1909 is in the public domain in the US. Works 
published after these dates may or may not be in the public domain 
but it takes a bit of work to determine this.  (Source: The Public 
Domain by Stephen Fishman, Nolo Press; 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0873374339/abiblofmelapidge).

For Australia, photographs taken before 1952 (2002 minus 50 years) 
are in the public domain in Australia (source: 
http://www.copyright.org.au/PDF/InfoSheets/G023v04.pdf).  See also 
the home page: http://www.copyright.org.au.

Other countries have different different rules; a work can be in the 
public domain in one country and not in another.

Perhaps we should mail you directly any photos rather than burden the 
list with excessive bandwidth?


>
>Just to remind everyone, copyright to Mihalic's dictionary was held by
>Mihalic himself, and he passed this on to our project in the form of an
>email explicitly saying this. My reply to him was that we would act in a
>collective manner to revise his work and no one person would 'own' it.
>
>What do people think? Should we form an incorporated association to continue
>this work? If so, do we need advice on how to do this?


What are the implications of incorporating vs. not?

--Tom Slone

>
>John Burton
>
>Reminder: web site home is at
>http://coombs.anu.edu.au/SpecialProj/PNG/MIHALIC/Index.htm


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