[chrisooc]

Originally Posted by pod

Sorry to burst YOUR bubble, but not all works are under copyright.

Specifically, works released into Public Domain, and works on which copyright has expired (like all the stuff Disney is ripping off).

http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/okbooks.html
http://www.pdinfo.com/copyrt.htm

While works are protected under copyright laws automatically, they receive stronger protection if there is a copyright notice, and even better if they are registered with the US Copyright Office.

http://www.copyright.gov/register/

Oh, well, old stuff has already come into the public domain, of course. Current art work will be protected for a very long time since laws have been adopted to extend the protection.

I should have qualified my statement to refer to Canada and the US more specifically, as other countries have different views.

The registration of the copyright only serves as a tool to facilitate litigation.

The presence of a copyright notice is pretty much useless legally speaking.

©Myself, 2004 - does that mean anything? Nope.