Re: Culturgrams and copyright law

[Carol Simpson <csimpson@TENET.EDU>]

On 1 Sep 1996, Jane T. Hohn wrote:

>         My question concerning the following posting by Carole
> L. Ashbridge is this.  Are Culturgrams not reproducible even
> under Fair Use provisions?
>
>
> > My culturgrams stay in the library and are checked out at the circ. desk.
> > If you will read the statement on the cellophane and on the culturgram it
> > is copyright violation to make copies.  We haven't had any problem with
> > kids returning the ones they need to use.
> > Carole
> >

This is an interesting question.  You frequently find professional
journals which state that no one may make copies of articles contained
therein.  Gee, I know that publishers are powerful people, but the last
time I heard they didn't have the power to overturn federal law.  The
Fair Use Guidelines (which technically aren't laww but they were intended
to have the force of law and courts intrepret them as such) permit
individuals to make a SINGLE copy of a document (a chapter, an article, a
photo or graphic) for one's own personal education and research. That
would mean, of course, that the STUDENT is making the copy, and making
the decision to make the copy.  Look carefully at the wording on the
Culturegrams copyright statement, and see if you signed a license that
would restrict how you make Culturegrams available in your library, but
students should ordinarily be able to make a single copy for their own use.

Carol Mann Simpson                   csimpson@tenet.edu
Facilitator - Library Technology          214 882-7450
Mesquite (TX) Independent School District