[sword-devel] Finding out copyright programatically

[Peter von Kaehne]

> Von: Chris Burrell <chris at burrell.me.uk>

> I guess the next question, is whether your four categories are
> comprehensive? We would perhaps want to include another bit to indicate
> that there are special non-parseable conditions, so as to indicate to a
> developer that he'll have to work out what it means for him. I'm thinking
> for example of texts that someone makes available on condition that they
> are not displayed/used alongside other texts from different publishers, or
> other kind of special permissions.

Yes, makes sense. And there may be more.


> What do you mean by "rights for distribution of an unchanged module"? Do
> you mean that someone accessing the module through a front-end, in this
> case a web server, would not be included in the licence? i.e. because the
> web server has made modifications to the way the data is displayed?

Quite a few modules of ours can be distributed as modules, unchanged, e.g. you can pack them on a CD and pass on. But you could not create a new module with them, to add e.g. strongs and then distribute the result. Or, indeed, you could not use them to power a webserver.

> I guess the one thing that I'm not quite clear on yet which affects the
> above discussion, is what where the distribution licence ends and where a
> license to use the distributed module in Sword frontends starts/ends. 

As soon as you display for others you have moved from using to distributing.

So a module to power your private intranet swordweb install is fine. but the same module might not be used for running a public swordweb or e.g. a webapi for people to "bible-power" their blogs.  

I have not paid much attention to what you are doing, but I guess that is what you are about, no?



Say,
> a Xiphos user gets a module distributed by CrossWire, such as the ESV.
> Does
> the Xiphos user then need to seek permission to use the module through
> Xiphos from Crossway? Presumably not? Or do the Xiphos owners need to seek
> permission from Crossway? Possibly?

I do not understand that... Does CrossWay remotely start up on my computer Xiphos and feed it bible references for me to peruse? That should be fine. It is my use for myself. 
> 
> Just trying to get my head around the Copyright and licensing law which I
> find rather complicated.

It is. But the basic rule applies - if others come into it you start distributing. And short of that you can do a lot or at least no one will really object. Even in the UK where there is no fair use.

Peter
> >
> >