You've answered it beautifully. Give this guy a law degree! :-) /Larry Rosen
> -----Original Message----- > From: Rick Moen [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Friday, March 14, 2003 10:10 AM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: Re: Please add "Public Domain" to "license" list > > > Quoting David A. Wheeler ([EMAIL PROTECTED]): > > > Hello - I'd like to ask OSI to add "Public Domain" to the > open source > > software license list at: > > http://www.opensource.org/licenses/index.php > > I'm not sure there's reasonable consensus on the legal effect > of declaring one's copyrighted work to be in the public domain. > > In the context of USA Federal law, at least, I've looked in > vain through 17 USC to find any provision permitting a > copyrighted work to become public domain before expiry of its > copyright term. > > People have sometimes claimed that caselaw has interpreted > public-domain declarations as irrevocable licences for gratis > usage by anyone -- but I haven't seen citations, let alone > any showing that wide legal precedent exists. Moreover, it > seems a-priori unlikely that an author could excuse himself > from any duties that go with copyright ownership, though such > a declaration: Otherwise, it'd be a dandy way to evade > product-liability lawsuits. > > It seems possible, even, that a public-domain declaration > might have _no_ legal effect. All told, I don't know if the > OSI should want to put its stamp on this particular can of worms. > > (Disclaimer: IANAL. Fortunately, the above does not contain > legal assertions, only questions I think are relevant.) > > -- > Cheers, "My file > system's got no nodes!" > Rick Moen "How does it shell?" > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > -- > license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3 > -- license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3
