Lord of the Ring in HTML

[JRRTolkien]

I got tired of crappy versions floating around and decided to format
the LOTR Trilogy in HTML. They are formated in HTML and ready to
convert to iSilo or MS Reader. Enjoy!

*** Link removed by Admin ***

[gvtexas]

Originally Posted by JRRTolkien

I got tired of crappy versions floating around and decided to format
the LOTR Trilogy in HTML.

I appreciate your efforts, but LOTR is a copyrighted publication, and as such what you're offering is a pirated version. Please do not post links here to pirated material. I have removed the link in your original post.

[javabird]

Yes, it's really too bad the books are not available in a legal, ebook format. I would be willing to pay for it, and I know others have expressed the same feeling.

[cbarnett]

I would pay to, just to keep them on my device.

[jasondv]

Same here. I've bought maybe three sets of the LOTR (they keep getting lost as they make the rounds of my friends!) and would pay to have them on my device. I make it a point to read them every three years or so.

[cbarnett]

I usually re-read them every couple of years. They're the only books I can do that with, strangely...

Craig.

Is it not alright to have an etext version as long as you own the book and not share the book with someone while you use the etext version?

Originally Posted by gvtexas

I appreciate your efforts, but LOTR is a copyrighted publication, and as such what you're offering is a pirated version. Please do not post links here to pirated material. I have removed the link in your original post.

[cbarnett]

I'm not sure of the legality of the situation, though I'd like to assume it came under "fair use". I've heard that it's ok to make one copy of audio CD's for backup, etc, but I'm also not sure of the legaility of that.

Maybe someone more up to date can enlighten us??

Craig.

[gvtexas]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Is it not alright to have an etext version as long as you own the book and not share the book with someone while you use the etext version?

Nope. That's a violation of the copyright. Your "rights" when you buy a book is just for that book in that version. If you buy the etext version, then you have acquired the rights to use that version. To my knowledge, however, LOTR has never been released in electronic form. AFAIK, the only intellectual property you're allowed the privelege of an extra copy is software.

Here's a blurb from the 10 Myths about Copyright Explained that might help (pointed towards Internet use, but still valid for in-print use):

The "fair use" exemption to (U.S.) copyright law was created to allow things such as commentary, parody, news reporting, research and education about copyrighted works without the permission of the author. That's important so that copyright law doesn't block your freedom to express your own works -- only the ability to express other people's. Intent, and damage to the commercial value of the work are important considerations. Are you reproducing an article from the New York Times because you needed to in order to criticise the quality of the New York Times, or because you couldn't find time to write your own story, or didn't want your readers to have to register at the New York Times web site? The first is probably fair use, the others probably aren't.

Fair use is usually a short excerpt and almost always attributed. (One should not use more of the work than is necessary to make the commentary.) It should not harm the commercial value of the work -- in the sense of people no longer needing to buy it (which is another reason why reproduction of the entire work is a problem.)

More info here as well.

What complexes copyright issues greatly is the disparity of laws around the globe governing intellectual property rights. The main reason the Far East pirates get away with what they do is the lax copyright laws over there and the unwillingness of those countries to cooperate with U.S. authorities to enforce our copyright laws.

This is probably more than anyone wanted to know in this thread, but here's one more bit! I wrote an article about copyright issues as it relates to pulling stuff off the Internet and reusing on a site (such as this) last May on my blog. If you're interested, you can read that article here (if I reproduced it here without the author's permission, I'd be violating copyright laws! ).

[radleyp]

I'm afraid that's not true. When you buy the book, you can do what you want with it. If you wish to transcribe it electronically and read it that way, you are free to do so. What you are not free to do is to distribute that version to the public, i.e. sell it, give it to students in classes, etc... The copyright law does not seek to, nor could it, police what anyone does privately.

"Fair use" is a different matter and is traditionally used to justify reproductions of texts and pictures in articles, reviews, etc...

Cheers, Philippe Radley

[gvtexas]

Originally Posted by radleyp

I'm afraid that's not true. When you buy the book, you can do what you want with it.

To my knowledge, the only intellectual property sold to the public that allows what you suggest is software, which gives you the explicit right to make a backup copy. Printed books do not have this as such, although your point is more of what's practically enforced that what the copyright law states.

No one will go after anyone making a private copy of a book either photocopying or transcribing as you describe, although I believe they could but wouldn't, because they would not be able to prove damage of any kind.

If one sells a pirated copy or distributes it free, then obvious monetary damage can be proven and thus one could conceivable get into trouble.

Back in the days of cassettes, we all taped our albums to play in our cars, and it was widely accepted (but not legal), so long as you didn't sell or giveaway the cassette, thus infringing on the copyright holder's rights. Same thing on a book: you copy it for yourself, no one's going after you in a practical sense or ever would...but it's not "technically" legal to do so...or more to your point, it's not practical to police such a thing in a private setting.

[radleyp]

Here's one involving this site. I first learned here that Laurence Lessig's "Free Culture", as you know an attack on what Congress is doing with the copyright law, is available free in a variety of formats. Yesterday, on another site (I can't remember which) someone wrote about not being able to find it in PalmReader format. This morning I see on the Palmdigital site that it is now available in that format, but you must pay for it. Two minutes later I see that it is available for free in that format at Memoware. Lessig and his publisher (Penguin) made this text available for free, though not in PalmReader format. Now someone has so encoded it: what will you argue, that Palmdigital can stop Memoware from distributing it? Philippe Radley

[gvtexas]

Originally Posted by radleyp

Here's one involving this site. I first learned here that Laurence Lessig's "Free Culture", as you know an attack on what Congress is doing with the copyright law, is available free in a variety of formats

If someone release something into the public domain (and so states it...I haven't seen Lessig's notice as such), then it is treated the same as any intellectual work whose copyright has expired. Anyone can then pick it up in its entirety, publish it, charge for it, or give it away free...and owes nothing to the original copyright holder(s). Many classic books fall into this category, hence you see them reprinted in a myriad of forms, some even free in electronic form.

Now if you could prove that the Memoware file is a copy the PalmDigital file, there's probably some issue there. But if the Memoware file is simple a PalmReader version created from another source, then I don't know but wouldn't think that was a violation. I'm not an attorney, just have done some deeper readings for various research projects.

There are a lot of gray areas in copyright issues, and it's even more of a nightmare with so called "fair use" which is abused far more than full text pirating. It's less likely to get in trouble for misuing the fair use allowances. Copyright laws, as you know, were written before electronic use and options, and badly need to be overhauled. And, of course, this discussion only revolves around U.S. copyright laws...try to fathom how all this works in an international setting and you'll go bonkers trying to figure it out!