Copyright and Trademark Information

Updated July 4, 2004

Copyright laws and their interpretations can turn into a very slippery subject to discuss on our list. It is almost like that old saying, "If you don't want a heated argument, then NEVER discuss Religion, Politics, or my Mother." (LOL) All joking aside, since laws are a form of politics, the best thing for anyone to do if they are really interested in the copyright law is read them for yourself. If you still have questions, you can email or snail mail it to the proper governmental department. I have included a few URLs below for you to do this and to gain their mailing addresses. Since we are all on email, I know I can safely assume we all have been blessed with the ability to understand what we read, so let me tell you a little story. I too thought I could read and understand the written word.

Back in January I had to do a large research project on copyrights and patents for my technical writing professor as a final project. One of the most important things I learned from this 124-page report was that you should never give advice about "laws." In layman's terms this is referred to as practicing law without a license! I know it seems kinda drastic, but it is nonetheless the truth, with numerous cases on record of those who have paid stiff fines and have been jailed for mis-quoting/advising a law that someone else acts on. Ok, now that I've scared the pants off y'all (LOL), let me go on about my research project.

Many times prior to this project I had, what I call "interpra-quoted" both copyright and patent laws. One of the things I was required to do was provide written verification of my own interpretations with backup from the government authorities. This proved to me that no matter how much of a scholar I thought I was, when it comes to the interpretation of government rhetoric as written in many of our laws, well, suffice to say, now I know why lawyers have to go to school for so long (LOL). Without going into the details of my report, one simple mis-interpretation is just the words: may, shall, and must. Depending on the context in which it is written, "may" can mean "must," "shall" can mean "may," and "must" can mean "may" or "shall!" So, you can see how this can be very confusing. Well, that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I know you are getting tired of reading this, so let's all do the CROCHETCRAFTS LIST a couple of favors:

	Whenever one of our future new members asks about copyright laws, just provide the following URLs and politely ask him/her to read the law for themselves.
	If anyone ever asks you to break a copyright law, have patience ... and send them to the URLs ... they probably don't know that, if you were to do what they're asking of you, it would be wrong. Another option is to loan them your actual pattern and pray they're as honest as you and will return it (LOL).
	Remember the golden rule of any law ... if you're not sure whether doing something is breaking the law ... just don't do it. As Crochet Crafters we are the most creative people who can surely come up with a solution we have confidence in./b>

Ok, I'll get off the horse now so you all can read and/or crochet. Take care and, as always, God bless.

DEFINITIONS

Copyright	the exclusive legal right to reproduce, publish, and sell the matter and form
Trademark	a device (as a word) pointing distinctly to the origin or ownership of merchandise to which it is applied and legally reserved to the exclusive use of the owner as maker or seller
Patent	a writing securing to an inventor for a term of years the exclusive right to make, use, or sell an invention

LINKS

LII: Law about...Copyright

Copyright and Needlework

10 Big Myths About Copyrights Explained

United States Copyright Office - Library of Congress

United States Patent and Trademark Office

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