At 11:28 AM 2/26/2005 -0500, [log in to unmask] wrote:

>One of the best ways to preserve information is widespread distribution. I
>once read that if you sell 1000 copies of your book, you assure immortality.
>But unless the copyright laws reverse their current trend, this method will be
>impracticable except for the most popular, marketable commercial material.

I am in full agreement with what Mike has said, but would add that an
individual with the chutzpah and the resources can 'fly beneath the radar'
- can publish and be damned. Given the implications of litigation, the
worst that is likely is a cease-and-desist request (or, if not accepted, an
order).

The cost of producting a thousand CD-ROMs is less than $1000. Once
distribution has been arranged, they can be dispersed as long as the author
does not seek monetary compensation for the hours spent in developing them.
Paper publication is more costly and in our field is often less effective.

The legal justification for the work I have been doing is tenuous at best.
Even where I believe no rights have been violated, proving that in court
would be extremely difficult and costly. I have once been asked to cease
and desist - interestingly because of an inadvertent trademark violation.
The copyright violations were blatant but the holder of rights did not
assert them. If we had named the disc as I originally wished, we might well
still be distributing it and its two successors.

Needless to say, this sort of attitude can only apply to an individual
willing to commit funds to the cause and to risk interdiction.
Incidentally, the lack of protest against my work is not from absence of
publicity. This month, there were articles in New York magazine and the
Atlanta Journal-Constitution addressing it, the latter with my thoughts on
violation of rights. Previous articles and references have been published
in Opera News, The New York Times, the Boston Globe and such international
publications as The Record Collector. So those who care are aware and
choose to turn a blind eye. The one request (which I satisfied immediately)
arose because a dealer forced an issue to the attention of the legal
department.

Mike
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