Re: Designer of the Commodore Datassette?

Rick Youngman - the duration period of a copyright is 20+ years for
commerical work. You might want to look at the actual copyright laws. Given
that the copyright is established under the name of the company and that
falls under sub-section (c) of Section 302 of the Copyright Law of the
United States of America.

If copyright transfers to an individual, then it will be 95 years from first
publication 1987 then an extension maybe added for another 67 years but at
least 95 years. So the expiration of the copyright transfering from CMD to
Maurice (actually CMDRKey) but even to Maurice directly, the term would be
the remainder of the copyright term of 95 years as established by CMD when
they copyrighted the product. (Whether registered or not)

The year of expiration is 2082. It won't extend except for sunder the
extension rules in Section 304. If Maurice acquires copyright of JiffyDOS
then his next of kin can claim or decendent in will can claim an additional
67 years if renewed on 2081. That can push it to possibly until 2149. All of
us would be dead and who cares. Just make another DOS that functions similar
to JiffyDOS like DolphinDOS and others. Don't worry about "JiffyDOS"
copyrights and all. It will be a F*** you to us anyway.

WARNING - VERY VERY LONG post.

http://www.copyright.gov/title17/circ92.pdf

§ 302 · Duration of copyright: Works created on or after January 1, 1978

(a) In General.-Copyright in a work created on or after January 1, 1978,
subsists from its creation and, except as provided by the following
subsections, endures for a term consisting of the life of the author and 70
years after the author's death.

(b) Joint Works.-In the case of a joint work prepared by two or more
au-thors who did not work for hire, the copyright endures for a term
consisting of the life of the last surviving author and 70 years after such
last surviving author's death.

(c) Anonymous Works, Pseudonymous Works, and Works Made for Hire.-In the
case of an anonymous work, a pseudonymous work, or a work made for hire, the
copyright endures for a term of 95 years from the year of its first
publication, or a term of 120 years from the year of its creation, whichever
expires first. If, before the end of such term, the identity of one or more
of the authors of an anonymous or pseudonymous work is revealed in the
records of a registration made for that work under subsections (a) or (d) of
section 408, or in the records provided by this subsection, the copyright in
the work endures for the term specified by subsection (a) or (b), based on
the life of the author or authors whose identity has been revealed. Any
person having an interest in the copyright in an anonymous or pseudonymous
work may at any time record, in records to be maintained by the Copyright
Office for that purpose, a statement identifying one or more authors of the
work; the statement shall also identify the person filing it, the nature of
that person's interest, the source of the information recorded, and the
particular work affected, and shall comply in form and content with
require-ments that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.

(d) Records Relating to Death of Authors.-Any person having an interest in a
copyright may at any time record in the Copyright Office a state-ment of the
date of death of the author of the copyrighted work, or a statement that the
author is still living on a particular date. The statement shall identify
the person filing it, the nature of that person's interest, and the source
of the information recorded, and shall comply in form and content with
requirements that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.
The Register shall maintain current records of i nformation relating to the
death of a uthors of c opy-righted works, based on such recorded statements
and, to the extent the Register considers practicable, on data contained in
any of the records of the Copyright Office or in other reference sources.

(e) Presumption as to Author's Death.-After a period of 95 years from the
year of first publication of a work, or a period of 120 years from the year
of its creation, whichever expires first, any person who obtains from the
Copyright Of-fice a certified report that the records provided by subsection
(d) disclose nothing to indicate that the author of the work is living, or
died less than 70 years before, is entitled to the benefit of a presumption
that the author has been dead for at least 70 years. Reliance in good faith
upon this presumption shall be a complete defense to any action for
infringement under this title.





§ 304 · Duration of copyright: Subsisting copyrights

(a) Copyrights in Their First Term on January 1, 1 978.-

(1)(A) Any copyright, in the first term of which is subsisting on January 1,
1978, shall endure for 28 years from the date it was originally secured.

(B) In the case of- (i) any posthumous work or of any periodical,
cyclopedic, or other composite work upon which the copyright was originally
secured by the proprietor thereof, or (ii) any work copyrighted by a
corporate body (otherwise than as as-signee or licensee of the individual
author) or by an employer for whom such work is made for hire, the
proprietor of such copyright shall be entitled to a renewal and exten-sion
of the copyright in such work for the further term of 67 years.

(C) In the case of any other copyrighted work, including a contribution by
an individual author to a periodical or to a cyclopedic or other composite
work- (i) the author of such work, if the author is still living, (ii) the
widow, widower, or children of the author, if the author is not living,
(iii) the author's executors, if such author, widow, widower, or chil-dren
are not living, or (iv) the author's next of kin, in the absence of a will
of the author, shall be entitled to a renewal and extension of the copyright
in such work for a further term of 67 years.

(2)(A) At the expiration of the original term of copyright in a work
specified in paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection, the copyright shall endure
for a renewed and extended further term of 67 years, which- (i) if an
application to register a claim to such further term has been made to the
Copyright Office within 1 year before the expiration of the original term of
copyright, and the claim is registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of
such further term, in the proprietor of the copyright who is entitled to
claim the renewal of copyright at the time the applica-tion is made; or (ii)
if no such application is made or the claim pursuant to such ap-plication is
not registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of such further term, in the
person or entity that was the proprietor of the copyright as of the last day
of the original term of copyright.

(B) At the expiration of the original term of copyright in a work speci-fied
in paragraph (1)(C) of this subsection, the copyright shall endure for a
renewed and extended further term of 67 years, which- (i) if an application
to register a claim to such further term has been made to the Copyright
Office within 1 year before the expiration of the original term of
copyright, and the claim is registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of
such further term, in any person who is entitled under paragraph (1)(C) to
the renewal and extension of the copyright at the time the application is
made; or (ii) if no such application is made or the claim pursuant to such
ap-plication is not registered, shall vest, upon the beginning of such
further term, in any person entitled under paragraph (1)(C), as of the last
day of the original term of copyright, to the renewal and extension of the
copyright.

(3)(A) An application to register a claim to the renewed and extended term
of copyright in a work may be made to the Copyright Office- (i) within 1
year before the expiration of the original term of copy-right by any person
entitled under paragraph (1)(B) or (C) to such fur-ther term of 67 years;
and (ii) at any time during the renewed and extended term by any person in
whom such further term vested, under paragraph (2)(A) or (B), or by any
successor or assign of such person, if the application is made in the name
of such person. (B) Such an application is not a condition of the renewal
and extension of the copyright in a work for a further term of 67 years.

(4)(A) If an application to register a claim to the renewed and extended
term of copyright in a work is not made within 1 year before the expiration
of the original term of copyright in a work, or if the claim pursuant to
such application is not registered, then a derivative work prepared under
author-ity of a grant of a transfer or license of the copyright that is made
before the expiration of the original term of copyright may continue to be
used under the terms of the grant during the renewed and extended term of
copyright without infringing the copyright, except that such use does not
extend to the preparation during such renewed and extended term of other
derivative works based upon the copyrighted work covered by such grant.

(B) If an application to register a claim to the renewed and extended term
of copyright in a work is made within 1 year before its expiration, and the
claim is registered, the certificate of such registration shall constitute
prima facie evidence as to the validity of the copyright during its renewed
and extended term and of the facts stated in the certificate. The
evidentiary weight to be accorded the certificates of a registration of a
renewed and extended term of copyright made after the end of that 1-year
period shall be within the discretion of the court.



(b) Copyrights in Their Renewal Term at the Time of the Effective Date of
the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act7-Any copyright still in its
renewal term at the time that the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act
becomes effective shall have a copyright term of 95 years from the date
copyright was originally secured.?

(c) Termination of Transfers and Licenses Covering Extended Renewal Term.-In
the case of any copyright subsisting in either its first or renewal term on
January 1, 1978, other than a copyright in a work made for hire, the
exclusive or nonexclusive grant of a transfer or license of the renewal
copyright or any right under it, executed before January 1, 1978, by any of
the persons designated by subsection (a)(1)(C) of this section, otherwise
than by will, is subject to termination under the following conditions:

(1) In the case of a grant executed by a person or persons other than the
author, termination of the grant may be effected by the surviving person or
persons who executed it. In the case of a grant executed by one or more of
the authors of the work, termination of the grant may be effected, to the
extent of a particular author's share in the ownership of the renewal
copyright, by the author who executed it or, if such author is dead, by the
person or persons who, under clause (2) of this subsection, own and are
entitled to exercise a total of more than one-half of that author's
termination interest.

(2) Where an author is dead, his or her termination interest is owned, and
may be exercised, as follows: (A) The widow or widower owns the author's
entire termination interest unless there are any surviving children or
grandchildren of the author, in which case the widow or widower owns
one-half of the author's interest. (B) The author's surviving children, and
the surviving children of any dead child of the author, own the author's
entire termination interest unless there is a widow or widower, in which
case the ownership of one-half of the author's interest is divided among
them. (C) The rights of the author's children and grandchildren are in all
cases divided among them and exercised on a per stirpes basis according to
the number of such author's children represented; the share of the children
of a dead child in a termination interest can be exercised only by the
action of a majority of them. (D) In the event that the author's widow or
widower, children, and grand-children are not living, the author's executor,
administrator, personal repre-sentative, or trustee shall own the author's
entire termination interest.

(3) Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of
five years beginning at the end of fifty-six years from the date copyright
was originally secured, or beginning on January 1, 1978, whichever is later.

(4) The termination shall be effected by serving an advance notice in
writ-ing upon the grantee or the grantee's successor in title. In the case
of a grant executed by a person or persons other than the author, the notice
shall be signed by all of those entitled to terminate the grant under clause
(1) of this subsection, or by their duly authorized agents. In the case of a
grant executed by one or more of the authors of the work, the notice as to
any one author's share shall be signed by that author or his or her duly
authorized agent or, if that author is dead, by the number and proportion of
the owners of his or her termination interest required under clauses (1) and
(2) of this subsection, or by their duly authorized agents. (A) The notice
shall state the effective date of the termination, which shall fall within
the five-year period specified by clause (3) of this subsection, or, in the
case of a termination under subsection (d), within the five-year period
specified by subsection (d)(2), and the notice shall be served not less than
two or more than ten years before that date. A copy of the notice shall be
recorded in the Copyright Office before the effective date of termination,
as a condition to its taking effect. (B) The notice shall comply, in form,
content, and manner of service, with requirements that the Register of
Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.

(5) Termination of the grant may be effected notwithstanding any agree-ment
to the contrary, including an agreement to make a will or to make any future
grant.

(6) In the case of a grant executed by a person or persons other than the
au-thor, all rights under this title that were covered by the terminated
grant revert, upon the effective date of termination, to all of those
entitled to terminate the grant under clause (1) of this subsection. In the
case of a grant executed by one or more of the authors of the work, all of a
particular author's rights under this title that were covered by the
terminated grant revert, upon the effective date of termination, to that
author or, if that author is dead, to the persons owning his or her
termination interest under clause (2) of this subsection, including those
owners who did not join in signing the notice of termination under clause
(4) of this subsection. In all cases the reversion of rights is subject to
the following limitations:

(A) A derivative work prepared under authority of the grant before its
termination may continue to be utilized under the terms of the grant after
its termination, but this privilege does not extend to the preparation after
the termination of other derivative works based upon the copyrighted work
covered by the terminated grant. (B) The future rights that will revert upon
termination of the grant be-come vested on the date the notice of
termination has been served as pro-vided by clause (4) of this subsection.

(C) Where the author's rights revert to two or more persons under clause (2)
of this subsection, they shall vest in those persons in the proportionate
shares provided by that clause. In such a case, and subject to the
provisions of subclause

(D) of this clause, a further grant, or agreement to make a fur-ther grant,
of a particular author's share with respect to any right covered by a
terminated grant is valid only if it is signed by the same number and
proportion of the owners, in whom the right has vested under this clause, as
are required to terminate the grant under clause (2) of this subsection.
Such further grant or agreement is effective with respect to all of the
per-sons in whom the right it covers has vested under this subclause,
including those who did not join in signing it. If any person dies after
rights under a terminated grant have vested in him or her, that person's
legal represen-tatives, legatees, or heirs at law represent him or her for
purposes of this subclause. (D) A further grant, or agreement to make a
further grant, of any right covered by a terminated grant is valid only if
it is made after the effective date of the termination. As an exception,
however, an agreement for such a further grant may be made between the
author or any of the persons provided by the first sentence of clause (6) of
this subsection, or between the persons provided by subclause (C) of this
clause, and the original grantee or such grantee's successor in title, after
the notice of termination has been served as provided by clause (4) of this
subsection.

(E) Termination of a grant under this subsection affects only those rights
covered by the grant that arise under this title, and in no way affects
rights arising under any other Federal, State, or foreign laws.

(F) Unless and until termination is effected under this subsection, the
grant, if it does not provide otherwise, continues in effect for the
remainder of the extended renewal term.



(d) Termination Rights Provided in Subsection (c) Which Have Expired on or
before the Effective Date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act.-In
the case of any copyright other than a work made for hire, subsisting in its
renewal term on the effective date of the Sonny Bono Copyright Term
Extension Act for which the termination right provided in subsection (c) has
expired by such date, where the author or owner of the ter-mination right
has not previously exercised such termination right, the exclusive or
nonexclusive grant of a transfer or license of the renewal copyright or any
right under it, executed before January 1, 1978, by any of the persons
designated in subsection (a)(1)(C) of this section, other than by will, is
subject to termination under the following conditions: (1) The conditions
specified in subsections (c) (1), (2), (4), (5), and (6) of this section
apply to terminations of the last 20 years of copyright term as provided by
the amendments made by the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. (2)
Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of 5
years beginning at the end of 75 years from the date copyright was
originally secured.


"Rick Youngman" <wlbbs@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:f202a437-3801-4764-beb4-350299245bc7@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On Feb 1, 3:31 pm, MagerValp <MagerV...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
"RY" == Rick Youngman <wl...@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

RY> The question here is........ if the "hardware" is not paten'd"
RY> .... why can't someone duplicate it

JiffyDOS is a piece of software (contained in a generic ROM chip), not
a piece of hardware. You can't legally duplicate it because you don't
have the copyright. Patents are not an issue.

--
___ . . . . . + . . o
_|___|_ + . + . + . Per Olofsson, arkadspelare
o-o . . . o + MagerV...@xxxxxxxxxxx
- + + . http://www.cling.gu.se/~cl3polof/

True... the "chip" is only the "housing" it is supplied in, much like
a floppy disk.... but even so, the software itself has to have a
copyright... it really doesn't matter by what means it's distributed.

Looking thru the Copyright's Records ( of USA copyrights ) here
http://www.copyright.gov/records/
it show's that the software has not been registered since 1987, which
means the copyright has long since expired under US law (at least)
more relevant info here http://www.copyright.gov/faq.html concerning
USA laws.

When I say "laws", they only apply to the USA... and then only in the
case of a legal challange to true "ownership" of a piece of work.

===Back on subject ===

It's very possible NO-ONE ever had a "patent" on the "case" of the
dataset in question... and one would have to question, why to even do
such a thing when that part of the invention was miniscule


.

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