Nancy Drew still in copyright?

[Elfwreck]

I don't think works for hire are treated differently by copyright law, except that they assign rights to the employer rather than the creator of content. Terms of copyright should be the same.

And I think the relevant part of Ralph's quote is "but the publication of any such new works shall not affect the force or validity of any subsisting copyright...or to secure or extend copyright in such original works."--the new "revised" or otherwise derivative copyrighted work doesn't affect the copyright of the original. (Interesting thought, that; I wonder if older textbooks that keep being revised every year will have to deal with the originals dropping into the public domain while the revised versions are still controlled by copyright.)

[Abecedary]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

(Interesting thought, that; I wonder if older textbooks that keep being revised every year will have to deal with the originals dropping into the public domain while the revised versions are still controlled by copyright.)

I'm not so sure it's too relevant. I mean, would you want to learn from a physics, chemistry, or business textbook that was published in the 1920s? Sure, you could get a semi-decent basic education from those, but nearly any field with a textbook that gets updated regularly is moving a whole lot faster than that.

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

I don't think works for hire are treated differently by copyright law, except that they assign rights to the employer rather than the creator of content. Terms of copyright should be the same.

And I think the relevant part of Ralph's quote is "but the publication of any such new works shall not affect the force or validity of any subsisting copyright...or to secure or extend copyright in such original works."--the new "revised" or otherwise derivative copyrighted work doesn't affect the copyright of the original. (Interesting thought, that; I wonder if older textbooks that keep being revised every year will have to deal with the originals dropping into the public domain while the revised versions are still controlled by copyright.)

The 1976 law change (or earlier) did a total rebuilt on copyright for works for hire and/or collaborative works (like films). They got totally separate rules under copyright.

Only for ones before 1964. After all who is interested in old textbooks that are out-of date? After 1964, they're good to go for 95 years....

[Greg Anos]

Originally Posted by Abecedary

I'm not so sure it's too relevant. I mean, would you want to learn from a physics, chemistry, or business textbook that was published in the 1920s? Sure, you could get a semi-decent basic education from those, but nearly any field with a textbook that gets updated regularly is moving a whole lot faster than that.

History textbooks, maybe. Most static subject wouldn't get revised, so the copyright renewal would be OK.

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward

History textbooks, maybe. Most static subject wouldn't get revised, so the copyright renewal would be OK.

History textbooks get horribly out of date, because they're written to confirm the prejudices of their eras. However, as historical books in their own right, they're often worth studying--and sometimes, the authors and publishers wish the older editions would just vanish, because they don't want anyone to know they used to promote those ideas.

[apswartz]

Originally Posted by carld

They'd be in PD if it weren't for the Sonny Bono Public Domain Theft Act, or whatever it was called.

I think it was called the Sonny Bono Mickey Mouse Public Domain Theft Act! LOL!

[Mason]

Here's the official Copyright laws in the United States, last time I checked.

Unpublished works
Death of the author + 70 years
Works from authors who died before 1939

Unpublished anonymous and pseudonymous works, and works made for hire (corporate authorship)
120 years from date of creation
Works created before 1889

Unpublished works when the death date of the author is not known
120 years from date of creation
Works created before 1889

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Published Before 1923
In Public Domain
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http://www.copyright.cornell.edu/res...blicdomain.cfm