Re: PHIL: Copyright Protection: Reasons

Reed M Wiedower (r.m.wiedower@larc.nasa.gov)
Sat, 2 Dec 1995 11:23:10 -0500 (EST)

If we include information about the design of each VRML object in the
code, this code would be transferred should anyone "plagarize" one's
project and put it somewhere else. Then the original owner could simply
look at a building, or picture and say, "That's mine." There would be no
discussion, because the person who copied it wouldn't claim it as their
own, and the original designer could show off a world he/she did not
cesate and say that they contributed an integral part of it. If the end
design is to incorporate most VRML world into one giant "world" then in
the end everyone will be a part of it. Asking to receive money for
something as "cool" as VRML is morally wrong. We, the first people
working with VRML, have the chance to design a complete Universe in 3-D.
We can't squander that chance by arguing about money, and who should get
what. Plagarism is only a problem if one copies ONLY the original VRML
and attempts to pass it off as his own. This is unlikely, because
normally the person who take the code will use it to incorporate it in a
more complex, and by the same token, better, world. There is nothing
inherently wrong with this any more than say, a city planner using his
local architects' designs to build his city into a beautiful place.

End of Line,

R. Wiedower

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