tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22351669.post3332875343553841464..comments2023-11-01T06:23:51.952-04:00Comments on Copyright Litigation Blog: How to Digitalize Your Textbooks: Fair Use?Ray Dowdhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07527134078878618834noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22351669.post-7038121850567452802010-06-02T15:05:40.009-04:002010-06-02T15:05:40.009-04:00Dear Peter: Copy shops have gotten in trouble for ...Dear Peter: Copy shops have gotten in trouble for copying for professors in the past - the very famous Kinko's case. Just because the technology and some kid making minimum wage will do something doesn't mean that it complies with the Copyright Act. I think it's pretty clear that in the student/prof context, a copy shop making a copy of an entire textbook for commercial gain without paying a license fee will be found by a court to have engaged in copyright infringement where publishers do have electronic versions you can purchase. Multiple copies for classroom use in the fair use clause of the Copyright Act in my estimation and I think the case law means copyrighted works that were not created for classroom purposes that you would like to comment on. For example, taking an occasional news article and distributing for a current events discussion.<br /><br />But these cases are so fact-specific that I'd have to reread cases in this area and know all of the circumstances and think about the fair use factors before forming a final opinion. This isn't legal advice and just for discussion purposes. My advice is to be very careful before copying, even more careful before distributing other people's works. If you take a calculated, educated risk, like Napster or Limewire, that is one thing, but I hate to see people blindsided.Ray Dowdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07527134078878618834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22351669.post-5036563814232464192010-06-02T11:02:21.531-04:002010-06-02T11:02:21.531-04:00As long as the copy shops will scan the books, whe...As long as the copy shops will scan the books, whether it's fair use or not really is kind of a moot point.<br /><br />The publishers do have e-copies. I'm a prof, and I always ask for and get a pdf of my texts.<br /><br />Which brings me to my ultimate point -- I don't understand why e-books haven't had more of an impact in law schools. Casebooks are ridiculously large, e-books can be searched, and increasingly students are screen-bound and averse to the codex form. I think, therefore, that though it hasn't happened yet, the use of e-books in law schools is inevitable.Peter Friedmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12367214098614734119noreply@blogger.com