4 ms·

So what exactly entitles someone to exclusive control/ownership over a particular arrangement of bits, just because they happened to be the one to produce the f

So what exactly entitles someone to exclusive control/ownership over a particular arrangement of bits, just because they happened to be the one to produce the first copy of that arrangement?

aristus 15y ago
Copyright law. And in Europe at least a deeper moral right to be identified as the author of a work and to have a say in how it's used. For example, I would be very upset if my work was used in advertising, or a political campaign that I violently disagreed with. It's not a black and white issue and that's why this went to the lawsuit stage.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
- wingo 15y ago
  The question is ill-posed. In Europe there is a legal concept of moral rights, which does not exist in the US.
  - dhs 15y ago
    It does, at least for visual artists: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Artists_Rights_Act http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Artists_Rights_Act
benologist 15y ago
"bits" is a very disingenuous way to look at creative work. The end product is "just" 1s and 0s in the same sense a Porsche is "just" atoms.
- jonknee 15y ago
  This would be like making a Porsche out of Legos for an art project and then getting sued. No one is confusing one with the other.
- jeffool 15y ago
  So, if I took a picture with a magic camera, that "copied" a Porsche, and magically "pasted" another one in reality, I should have to pay for it again? I mean, this is already an issue with 3d printers and small items. It'll happen with larger ones soon enough. I understand a little under a decade of copyright protection when you had to horse and buggy your manuscript to a printer and they shipped it by train and boat around the nation to salesmen who again went by train or carriage to sell it... But in the world of one-click publishing? A hundred years plus? Really? The window of protection is now less a window, and more a gaping wound in the side of creativity, as seen here.
  - ahlatimer 15y ago
    Even without the magic printer, you'd probably be stepping on a number of patents by reverse engineering a Porsche (not to mention copyright/trademark infringement for things like the emblem). You could still be found to be infringing upon patents if you were only using the duplicates for personal use (IANAL, though). As far as the length of copyright (which, I agree, is currently too long), you can thank Disney for that.

So what exactly entitles someone to exclusive control/ownership over a particular arrangement of bits, just because they happened to be the one to produce the first copy of that arrangement?

aristus 15y ago

Copyright law. And in Europe at least a deeper moral right to be identified as the author of a work and to have a say in how it's used. For example, I would be very upset if my work was used in advertising, or a political campaign that I violently disagreed with. It's not a black and white issue and that's why this went to the lawsuit stage.

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

wingo 15y ago
The question is ill-posed. In Europe there is a legal concept of moral rights, which does not exist in the US.
- dhs 15y ago
  It does, at least for visual artists: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Artists_Rights_Act http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Artists_Rights_Act

benologist 15y ago

"bits" is a very disingenuous way to look at creative work. The end product is "just" 1s and 0s in the same sense a Porsche is "just" atoms.

jonknee 15y ago
This would be like making a Porsche out of Legos for an art project and then getting sued. No one is confusing one with the other.
jeffool 15y ago
So, if I took a picture with a magic camera, that "copied" a Porsche, and magically "pasted" another one in reality, I should have to pay for it again? I mean, this is already an issue with 3d printers and small items. It'll happen with larger ones soon enough. I understand a little under a decade of copyright protection when you had to horse and buggy your manuscript to a printer and they shipped it by train and boat around the nation to salesmen who again went by train or carriage to sell it... But in the world of one-click publishing? A hundred years plus? Really? The window of protection is now less a window, and more a gaping wound in the side of creativity, as seen here.
- ahlatimer 15y ago
  Even without the magic printer, you'd probably be stepping on a number of patents by reverse engineering a Porsche (not to mention copyright/trademark infringement for things like the emblem). You could still be found to be infringing upon patents if you were only using the duplicates for personal use (IANAL, though). As far as the length of copyright (which, I agree, is currently too long), you can thank Disney for that.