Software Designer
Page, Brian. computerroom.jpg. 1982. Pics4Learning. 30 Jul 2004 <http://pics.tech4learning.com>
You have
just finished your first brilliant computer game and it has gotten
fabulous reviews in Gaming Addict and Gamers' World. It hasn't
been out
very long, but sales are good and the reviews should make them even
better. It has been 5 years since you and your college buddies
decided to start your own company instead of "getting a job" like your
parents wanted. The four of you worked days designing websites so
you could use your nights and weekends to work on the game. The
animation alone took 3 years.
There is something bothering you, though. While you were in the software section of Binkles Department Store you overheard several kids saying they were just going to get a friend to burn a copy of the game so they didn't have to pay for it. The friend was charging five dollars per copy. YOUR GAME! You want to get a lawyer, but you aren't sure exactly what your rights are. Now you find out that a local school has decided to use your game as part of their after school program. The teacher only owns one copy so she must be copying the CDs or somehow sharing the one copy with 20 kids. Should you call her up or let it go? Is it different from what the kids were talking about in Binkles? Some of your buddies down at the Artists for Art support group are just as confused. You need some answers!
Use these sites below to find the answers to your questions. Take what you find to the next meeting of Artists Protecting Art.
Great General Information, Vocabulary, and a Quiz - Find Out What You Know (http://www.copyrightkids.org/)
Basic Answers to Simple Questions (http://www.cyberbee.com/cb_copyright.swf)
Copyright and Fair Use (http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter7/7-c.html)
Examples of Copyright Cases (http://www.benedict.com/)
Myths of Copyright and Fair Use (http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html)
What Teachers Need to Know about Fair Use and a Great Chart (http://home.earthlink.net/~cnew/research.htm#EXAMPLES%20OF%20WORKS)
Software Piracy - What is it? (http://www.legal-database.com/software-piracy.htm )
Types of Software Piracy (http://www.bsa.org/usa/antipiracy/Types-of-Piracy.cfm )
File-Sharing - What is it? (http://www.legal-database.com/file-sharing.htm )
Software from the Internet (http://www.legal-database.com/copyright-laws-internet-law.htm)
There is something bothering you, though. While you were in the software section of Binkles Department Store you overheard several kids saying they were just going to get a friend to burn a copy of the game so they didn't have to pay for it. The friend was charging five dollars per copy. YOUR GAME! You want to get a lawyer, but you aren't sure exactly what your rights are. Now you find out that a local school has decided to use your game as part of their after school program. The teacher only owns one copy so she must be copying the CDs or somehow sharing the one copy with 20 kids. Should you call her up or let it go? Is it different from what the kids were talking about in Binkles? Some of your buddies down at the Artists for Art support group are just as confused. You need some answers!
1. Can this teacher do this? Do schools have different
rights than commercial or private groups?
2. Does the teacher have to buy 20 copies of the game? Maybe the school couldn't afford that, and you want kids playing your game! Is there another way to give permission and still make some money?
3. If she does buy the 20 copies, can the kids take them home and load them on their home computers to continue playing the game after school?
4. Can she load the one copy on the main server for everyone to access? Could all the kids use it at once?
6. Can kids do what the kids in Binkles were describing? The kid said he owned the game so he could do whatever he wanted with it. Is that true? Does he own it? Are there any limits on what he can do?
7. There are things called "cheats" that make beating the game easier. A woman in a chatroom said she was going to make a cheats manual for your game, and publish it on the web! Can she do that? Does she need your permission? Does she have to pay you somehow?
2. Does the teacher have to buy 20 copies of the game? Maybe the school couldn't afford that, and you want kids playing your game! Is there another way to give permission and still make some money?
3. If she does buy the 20 copies, can the kids take them home and load them on their home computers to continue playing the game after school?
4. Can she load the one copy on the main server for everyone to access? Could all the kids use it at once?
6. Can kids do what the kids in Binkles were describing? The kid said he owned the game so he could do whatever he wanted with it. Is that true? Does he own it? Are there any limits on what he can do?
7. There are things called "cheats" that make beating the game easier. A woman in a chatroom said she was going to make a cheats manual for your game, and publish it on the web! Can she do that? Does she need your permission? Does she have to pay you somehow?
Use these sites below to find the answers to your questions. Take what you find to the next meeting of Artists Protecting Art.
Great General Information, Vocabulary, and a Quiz - Find Out What You Know (http://www.copyrightkids.org/)
Basic Answers to Simple Questions (http://www.cyberbee.com/cb_copyright.swf)
Copyright and Fair Use (http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter7/7-c.html)
Examples of Copyright Cases (http://www.benedict.com/)
Myths of Copyright and Fair Use (http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html)
What Teachers Need to Know about Fair Use and a Great Chart (http://home.earthlink.net/~cnew/research.htm#EXAMPLES%20OF%20WORKS)
Software Piracy - What is it? (http://www.legal-database.com/software-piracy.htm )
Types of Software Piracy (http://www.bsa.org/usa/antipiracy/Types-of-Piracy.cfm )
File-Sharing - What is it? (http://www.legal-database.com/file-sharing.htm )
Software from the Internet (http://www.legal-database.com/copyright-laws-internet-law.htm)