[Off topic] allowed to put Python material on the Web?

[Neelakantan Krishnaswami]

On Sun, 28 Jan 2001 14:02:42 -0800, Erik Max Francis <max at alcyone.com> wrote:
>Neelakantan Krishnaswami wrote:
>
>> Erik Max Francis <max at alcyone.com> wrote:
>>
>> > Sheila King wrote:
>> >
>> > > Technically, once the messages are posted to Usenet, anyone can
>> > > archive and copy them.
>> >       ...
>> > > Authors of Usenet posts still retain copyright to
>> > > their own material.
>> >
>> > These two statements are inconsistent with one another.  (The latter
>> > is the one that is correct, by the way.)
>> 
>> No, they're not.
>> 
>> When someone posts a message they have to grant permission to people
>> to copy, archive and redistribute their messages -- since a) that's
>> how Usenet works, b) since posting to Usenet is wholly voluntary, and
>> c) judges and courts are not entirely stupid.
>
> "Anyone can archive and copy them" is not sufficiently limited to be
> accurate.  You cannot copy a Usenet post uncredit into a book you're
> writing and be free of copyright infringement, for instance.

Touche -- I assumed that Web and ftp were the only way to archive
Usenet. The only book I know of from Usenet material is from
comp.compilers, which states explicitly in the moderation messages
that this is one of the purposes to which posts may be put, so it
doesn't really count.  But I don't know of any actual legal cases
about copying material from random unmoderated Usenet groups, and
that's the sort of thing I would want the opinion of a real lawyer
before trying it, and I expect that I'd pay several hundred dollars to
find out that I could only find out for sure in court. 

Easier just to get permission. :)


Neel