Important! BOC Lyric Copyrights and the WWW, FTP

[Ted O. Jackson]

> One more thing - let me take all of this copyright stuff to some
> further extremes . . .
>
> In many of my e-mails to people, I have a signature file with the lyrics
> to the first verse of "Cities on Flame".  Many people have similar
> such signature files.  Are all of us violating copyrights by doing
> this?  And where does one draw the line?  The whole song is out but you
> can reproduce one verse?  You can't reproduce a verse but one sentence
> is o.k.?  You can't reproduce a sentence but 2 words are o.k.? (Bolle
> often signs his letters, "Fantasy Domains" - is he violating a copyright?)
>
> I'm not trying to be flip here or anything.  I seriously don't know
> the answers to these questions that I ask.
>
> John

John,
Isn't there a clause where one can quote a couple of lines, like for
a record or concert review?  Also, I know in the academic world, it's
common practice to lift a paragraph here and there 'in the interests
of academic pursuits.' Hell, I've had profs copy whole chapters from
mmany books, have them bound together, and sold at the school
bookstore!  I think these are done at cost, more or less, but the
copying service certainly profits on it--hey, they ain't workin' for
free.

what is the scoop?
theo