[GRASS-user] [off-topic] spoke too soon

[Glynn Clements]

Brad Douglas wrote:

> > > P.S.: Some of these palettes actually have licenses attached to them.
> > > What sort of a world do we live in that requires the most trivial
> > > things to be licensed? Come on people, you can give _some_ things to
> > > the public domain w/o conditions ...
> > 
> > My thoughts exactly- however you are going to have to pay-up if you decide to 
> > implement this idea!  j/k 
> 
> The product palette image can be copyrighted, but the palette, itself,
> cannot be copyrighted.
> 
> From copyrights.gov[1] - What can NOT be copyrighted (not a complete
> list):

As GRASS is distributed internationally, it isn't sufficient to comply
with US law.

What is subject to copyright varies internationally. E.g. typefaces
are not subject to copyright in the US, but they are in other
countries (e.g. Germany).

On the subject of typefaces, the US Copyright Office considers that
bitmap fonts aren't subject to copyright, being nothing more than a
representation of a typeface, but that outline fonts are considered
computer "programs" and thus subject to copyright.

By the same reasoning, a .cpt (etc) file might be considered a
"program" which generates the colouring.

If the creator of a palette is claming copyright, it wouldn't be a
good idea to dismiss that claim without adequate legal advice (which
would need to encompass more than just US law).

-- 
Glynn Clements <glynn at gclements.plus.com>