[GRASS-user] color copyright (was: [off-topic] spoke too soon)

[Hamish]

Brad Douglas wrote:
> On Wed, 2007-10-03 at 13:25 -0700, Hamish wrote:
> > Brad:
> > > (paraphrasing) You can't copyright colors
> > 
> > ... but can you copyright a series of colors? Maybe I'm thinking more
> > from a mathematical standpoint versus a legal one, but if you take
> > the 2D case instead of the 1D case, then you have an image, which is
> > copyrightable. Presumably we can incorporate anything from GMT though
> > (GPL). [I like their bathymetry scheme]
> 
> "Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs;
> mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring;
> mere listings of ingredients or contents."
> 
> That leads me to believe that the image product is copyrightable, but
> the input colors (the ingredients) are not copyrightable.

The original work is in the combination of the colors. But I think you
are right it is the image not the colors which have copyright. (unless
the rules themselves are printed, as in computer code or a poem)
??

It was my understanding that that wording was there to stop paint
companies from trying to lay claim to some specific "Nevada Sunset"
RRR:GGG:BBB combo. They can trademark the name, but not copyright the
color. (sorry to mix trademark & copyright here)

similarly (but less relevant) Harley-Davidson recently losing it's court
case over trying to trademark the sound of its engine when another
manufacturer came out with something sounding not-dissimilar. The best
they could do would be to copyright a recording of it, but that is about
as enforceable as copyrighting a recording of 4'33" of silence.

> I'll get clarification from one of my despicable lawyer friends. ;-)

hey, if someone doesn't like to share, then from purely a public
relations standpoint we probably should respect that. Even if we are
legally free to do it, there is a moral duty not to.

We can make r.colors accept any rules file the user gives it, the
question we are dealing with is what can be incorporated into the offical
grass distro.


shrug,
Hamish