Permissions and licenses

[klambert]

Is it absolutely vital to get the original authors permission to modify their work on trainz? It can be a real pain if the author is unobtainable.
Do you need the authors consent if, I dont want to release the content on the DLS but still put the content on a file sharing site.
By the this is all not for profit.
Where do the rules stand if I want to modify a piece of Auran content, eg re-skinning the HST and then release it on the DLS.
I bet theres some small-print somewhere I'm not reading.

Thanks in advance.

 

[shaneturner12]

I am pretty sure that under copyright law, you are required to get the author's permission to release or modify their work as it is likely to be their IP (intellectual property), and especially if it's a reskin of someone else's work in the first place, as you will need permission potentially from both users involved.

As for Auran/N3V content, I would advise reading the relevant config.txt file, and if in doubt, ask Helpdesk.

Shane

 

[sterrett]

To add to that, I would say if you don't get a reply from the author and you suspect the email address is out of date, you ask through the "Content Creation Support" part of the forum. Someone usually knows where the author is or will tell you if they now have full rights to it.

 

[bendorsey]

I don't require it and if you read the license in any of my config files it gives permission to modify, clone, etc as long as it isn't done as payware or profit or part of anything done for profit.

Most content creators have the particulars of what you can or can't do and what they require in there but some don't say one thing or the other in which case the only proper thing to do is contact them and ask permission.

What becomes a problem is when the author has passed away (and I have no idea what Aurans or the general consensus of opinion of Trainzers is in that case).

Its a good idea to give credit for the original authors work by saying something alone the lines of "based on an original mesh by so-and-so" or "done by permisison of so-and-so". I don't require it but most do and its
the polite thing to do.

The bottom line is its always better to ask if possible.

Ben

 

[ray_whiley]

Copyright law protects all original work, without the need for the author to state that he/she owns the copyright. In my opoinion, therefore, it is essential to seek permission to publish in any form, anything which is a modification of another's original work. Remember too that copyright persists for a ong time - 75 years after death, I believe - and may for any remaining length of time belong to the author's heirs and successors.

Like bendorsey, I too give explicit permission in my licence for others to modifiy my content and therefore publish it if they so wish, provided that an acknowledgment of the original source is made. In fact, I feel flattered if anyone likes my creations so much that they want to do this! My aim is to make things that I want or need, and to share them with the community if they appeal.

The problem arises when the licence field is blank. In that case, the legal position is as stated above, that permision must be sought.

Ray

 

[Euphod]

Do you need the authors consent if, I dont want to release the content on the DLS but still put the content on a file sharing site.

That's even worse!

 

[ZecMurphy]

Unless the 'license' in the config.txt file states otherwise, you must get permission from the author of the asset to release any modified versions.

Many authors only allow modified versions of their content to be released via the Download Station, or via specific sites.

In regards to reskinning Auran/N3V content, this is only permitted when the mesh (.im) file is not redistributed. To do this, you must use the 'alias' system.

Please see here on how to alias other objects: http://online.ts2009.com/mediaWiki/index.php5/CCG/Modelling:_Aliasing_Trains

 

[Scottish]

A general question. If the asset is either built-in or downloaded from the DLS, does the copyright pass to N3V as part of their uploading conditions or does it still remain with the originator?

If the copyright remains with the originator, does N3V's conditions require the uploader to pass rights to reskin or modify (eg error fix) to N3V and hence to the wider community?

Also, what if the originator is no longer active in the Trainz community, or does nor respond to emails or PM's. Does the asset remain frozen in time or just die?

Scottish

 

[ZecMurphy]

Hi Scottish
For 3rd party content, they retain all copyright on the asset (they are purely granting a license for the content to be used as built-in content in Trainz).

As such, reskins still require the author's permission.

Error fixing is a little different, in that we are able to do this directly (via patches) for built-in content.

For the DLS, we already have the DLS clean up underway which will see much of the 'faulty' content repaired. This system allows the community to repair the content, and upload it as an 'update' to the original asset. Please see here for further information: https://www.auran.com/planetauran/com_dls_cleanup.php

Note, you must NOT change the kuid number, except to update the 'revision' number.

If an author is no longer active, then this means that you cannot modify the content (except where the DLS clean up allows you to repair faulty assets), unless they have transferred the content to another author (fairly rare) or have made it 'open' for modification (again, fairly rare).

 

[leeferr]

Zec
This questions comes up so often, why not make your very wise advice a sticky? It might cut down on threads like this although it probably won't eliminate them completely.

Mike

 

[ZecMurphy]

Too many stickies I guess

Although they may reduce the number of posts a small amount, most stickies tend to be ignored until directly linked too in a reply, meaning the thread is already there.

Plus, there are other questions that may go along with it, which can be answered at the same time (e.g. how to alias for N3V/Auran content).

 

[leeferr]

Fair enough.

 

[davesnow]

Deleted Post

 

[mjolnir]

Friends,

I see posts here stating what copyright law permits and doesn't permit, but it seems to me that there is one fact about which members of the community are unaware, or are just not taking to account. The laws governing copyright vary widely from one jurisdiction to another, and what applies in one jurisdiction does not necessarily apply in another one. The duration of copyright, the particulars about what one can and cannot do, vary according to juridiction, and then there's the matter of determining what jurisdiction applies. If a member of the community who is under German jurisdiction creates something which is used by a member in the UK, which is uploaded to the DLS, which is operated by an Australian domiciled company, but is (or at least at one time was) hosted on a server in the US, whose copyright laws are applicable? Furthermore, the relevant part of the US code, seems to me to suggest (and here I should make the disclaimer that I am not an attorney in any area of the Law, nor in any jurisdiction, and that what I write here is not intended as legal advice, but merely an expression of my lay opinion) that in the US, copyright infringement actions have to be started by the owner of the copyright. This means that the contributions to Trainz content of a creator in the US who died without making appropriate transfer of his intellectual property are still technically under the copyright of the creator, but that there is no one who can start an action. And if the owner of the copyright is still living, but chooses not to enforce any copyrights he or she may hold, no one else may enforce them, either, at least not in the US. Further, in the US, while any author of content for Trainz has copyright protection on an item from the moment that item is reduced to "fixed form", if the author holding the copyright has not registered with the US copyright office, the copyright has been deemed (as I understand it) to be unenforceable.

It is not my intent here to comment on any of the opinions expressed in this, or similar threads on the subject of intellectual property, only to note that when this topic comes up we need to remember just how complex it is.

And to complicate matters further, as I understand the law, a script would constitute a computer program, and as such could be entitled to Patent protection in the US for a period of 17 years. And to complicate matters still further, for those of us in the US and familiar with the issues of the licensing from UP and CSX, these probably involve (besides any copyright considerations) the issue of Trademark / Servicemark Law, and thus involve still another set of considerations.

ns

 

[bendorsey]

Here is what I believe to be a somewhat related matter (and if'n ya'll disagree just holler and I won't mention it again).

What happens to a content creators original Gmax/Blender/Sketchup meshes when they pass away? No one in my family has the slightest clue as to what Gmax is or anything at all about it. I could mention them in my will and have them passed on to a Trainzer whom I feel will use and/or make them available to others but who would pass them on, or know where to find them, or know how to extract them, and so on? Wouldn't some sort of original mesh repository be a better idea? I'm sure it would but who best to handle the repository? Auran/N3V would be the first and best choice but I assume it would entail a certain amount of expense to setup and manage. Perhaps access would be by FCT only to defer the expense. Anyone could download them since by being given to the repository they are being made available by the giver.

I have all my original Gmax meshes archived on 2 external hard drives (textures, CDP's, and thumbnails as well) so in theory someone in my family could simply disconnect the drives, box them up, and ship them to Auran.

Now for a dose of reality - this isn't gonna happen and we all know it which brings us back where I started. What happens to a content creators original meshes when they pass away. The sad ending is they will almost certainly be lost forever.

Ben (who ain't gettin any younger, lol)

 

[leeferr]

...Further, in the US, while any author of content for Trainz has copyright protection on an item from the moment that item is reduced to "fixed form", if the author holding the copyright has not registered with the US copyright office, the copyright has been deemed (as I understand it) to be unenforceable.,,,

I have to agree with what you've said except for the above statement. As an Architect, I have been to many copyright and trademark seminars through the years produced by attorneys which conduct these seminars on a national level. While trademarks must be registered to be enforceable, copyrights do not hold the same restriction. There are some technicalities involved, but the copyright begins at the moment of expression of the work in a tangible form. Architects and Engineers must deal with this daily in order to protect their original work. Artists must also have to deal with this when they produce a painting, drawing or sculpture, that's why you'll see many artists sign their work with a name and year. A copyright notice in the config.txt file or an expression of ownership of the item suffices. Licenses can be granted, such as the license granted to N3V when an item is uploaded to the DLS, however, a license does not transfer ownership of the copyright. We should all be familiar with licenses with the many EULAs that we agree to during the process of installing computer software, though I doubt that very many actually read them.

You are also correct in referring to the many jurisdictions. Some countries don't even recognize copyright laws from other countries and have no copyright laws of their own. There's not a lot to be done in those situations unless you have a pocket full of cash for the legal battles which you'll probably lose in the end anyway.

Mike

 

[aardvark1]

<snip>
Now for a dose of reality - this isn't gonna happen and we all know it which brings us back where I started. What happens to a content creators original meshes when they pass away. The sad ending is they will almost certainly be lost forever.

Ben (who ain't gettin any younger, lol)

IMHO, what Ben says is correct.

We seem to complicate the problem with commercial Intellectual Property and Copyright laws.

Since Trainz is a niche product compared to global commercial property it may take a little thinking outside the box.

My suggestion for Trainz copyright regulation is:

1 Mandatory date input in the config file as a "creation date"

2 N3V agrees to a "limited" time for copyright protection of this property...say..... 7 years (more or less)

3 If the creator does not reply to a permission request or has NOT been active for 7 years, the copyright expires.

4 I suggest 7 years, but others may have different opinions about this

Just my thoughts about this, nothing more, nothing less.

Regards,
Ron

 

[cascaderailroad]

Questions

If a blank DEM, is labeled:

"This file is free. If you use it and distribute it, them just give me credit for making it."

I take it "Free" means that it is freeware (but whether you can sell the modified DEM, is not clear) ?
================================================

Or if it is a Blank DEM labeled:

"This creation is the sole intellectual property and copyright of the listed author. It may not be modified in any way (such modification includes but is not limited to texture reskins and aliasing) without the express written permission of that author and only then if the creation is subsequently offered for free download via the Auran 'Download Station'. Where any such modification is made, the modified creation must have proper accreditation given to the original author.
It may not be included as part of any 'payware' package, although this does not preclude it's inclusion as a 'dependent asset' of any such package."

Being that it is a DEM, which is a blank route, it looks like this can not be sold as payware, after you make modifications to his DEM, and must be freeware ?

 

[WindWalkr]

"Copyright under the Berne Convention must be automatic; it is prohibited to require formal registration (note however that when the United States joined the Convention in 1988, it continued to make statutory damages and attorney's fees only available for registered works)." - wikipedia.

Go ask a lawyer if you want a more precise answer pertaining to your own case, but generally speaking copyright is automatic and can be enforced in the majority of countries, regardless of formal registration.

hth,

chris

 

[WindWalkr]

My suggestion for Trainz copyright regulation is:

To be clear here, copyright is enforced by the law of your country, and is out of N3V's control. We can request specific waivers in conjunction with the use of our services (eg. the DLS) but we keep that to the minimum required to deliver our services.

chris