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<P>Not to sound harsh but......Do you have any support for these categorical statements? Please cite some European case law, statutes, legal texts, etc. Inquiring minds want to know.<BR><BR></P></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>>From: Angelo Schneider<ANGELO.SCHNEIDER@OOMENTOR.DE>
<DIV></DIV>>To: forrest@mibsoftware.com
<DIV></DIV>>CC: license-discuss@opensource.org
<DIV></DIV>>Subject: Re: copyrightable APIs? (was RE: namespace protection compatible wit
<DIV></DIV>>Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2001 18:42:49 +0100
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>Hi!
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>In Europe APIs are not "copyright able".
<DIV></DIV>>No idea about the US.
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>However if you publich them in a book, the book of course is
<DIV></DIV>>copyrighted.
<DIV></DIV>>However you can not prevent anyone to write a software against a given
<DIV></DIV>>API.
<DIV></DIV>>Same is true for data formats. (In Europe dataformats e.g. a flat file
<DIV></DIV>>format for a word processor are not copyright able)
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>Regards,
<DIV></DIV>> Angelo
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>Forrest J Cavalier III wrote:
<DIV></DIV>> >
<DIV></DIV>> > > ----------
<DIV></DIV>> > > Von: Forrest J Cavalier III[SMTP:FORREST@MIBSOFTWARE.COM]
<DIV></DIV>> > > Gesendet: Freitag, 20. April 2001 13:50:06
<DIV></DIV>> > > An: license-discuss@opensource.org
<DIV></DIV>> > > Cc: forrest@mibsoftware.com
<DIV></DIV>> > > Betreff: copyrightable APIs? (was RE: namespace protection compatible wit
<DIV></DIV>> > > Diese Nachricht wurde automatisch von einer Regel weitergeleitet.
<DIV></DIV>> > >
<DIV></DIV>> > How can you copyright an API? Isn't it simply a
<DIV></DIV>> > collection of facts?
<DIV></DIV>> >
<DIV></DIV>> > Perhaps you could copyright the formal parameter
<DIV></DIV>> > names, and certainly the documentation in a header
<DIV></DIV>> > file.
<DIV></DIV>> >
<DIV></DIV>> > But the facts of
<DIV></DIV>> > function name,
<DIV></DIV>> > return type(s)
<DIV></DIV>> > parameter type(s)
<DIV></DIV>> > are just facts. There is no creative expression involved.
<DIV></DIV>> >
<DIV></DIV>> > Forrest J. Cavalier III, Mib Software Voice 570-992-8824
<DIV></DIV>> > http://www.rocketaware.com/ has over 30,000 links to
<DIV></DIV>> > source, libraries, functions, applications, and documentation.
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>----------------------------------------------------------------------
<DIV></DIV>>Angelo Schneider OOAD/UML Angelo.Schneider@oomentor.de
<DIV></DIV>>Putlitzstr. 24 Patterns/FrameWorks Fon: +49 721 9812465
<DIV></DIV>>76137 Karlsruhe C++/JAVA Fax: +49 721 9812467
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