Re: More ethics... (long, of course)

Subject: Re: More ethics... (long, of course)
From: Bruce Byfield <bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Tue, 21 Aug 2001 18:11:39 -0700

Jim Shaeffer wrote:


2. Copyright was not an issue prior to the printing press. It was just too hard to make copies.


Actually, it would be more accurate to say that nobody thought of making money from what they published. During the Middle Ages, it was a common practice for a monk to visit another monastery and make copies of the books that his own monastery didn't have. I've also heard of nobles allowing someone to copy one of their books as a favor.

Without copyright protection] anyone foolish enough to print a new work would, if the work were successful, be immediately undercut on the market, suddenly no publisher was willing to print new works,
and there was no market for new ideas.



The trouble with this statement is that books were publishied. Some were even sold to make money. Undercutting was a problem, but publishers simply didn't plan on selling an edition for very long. That was one reason it was hard to write for a living; you had to be able to write very fast.



--
Bruce Byfield 604.421.7177 bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com

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You can have your cake and eat it, & never have to puke up a thing,
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References:
RE: More ethics... (long, of course): From: Jim Shaeffer

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