OSD modification regarding what license can require of user

[John Cowan]

I.R.Maturana scripsit:

> When using the expression "derivative work" you are including
> publication/distribution: That is: you read my phrase as if I was
> describing a "published-distributed-derivative" work".

No, I understand you correctly, but you are simply in error.
The U.S. copyright law speaks of "preparing" derivative works
as a right reserved to the author.  It does not speak of
"distributing" or "publishing" them.

> While the transformed work is not made publicly available,
> an author cannot forbid transformation. This would be an absurd.

Absurd or not, it is the law.

> For this same reason, he cannot forbid the _translation_ of his
> work. (Can you believe seriously that States will adhere to a
> Convention that allows authors to forbid translation of works ?

I do seriously believe it; in fact, I know it is so.

> BTW, the actual attempt to adopt Software patents arise because
> companies have discovered that they were unable to forbid
> the reverse engineering. They cannot sue anybody for this.

Patents are not copyrights; the rules are entirely different.
In particular, there is AFAIK no international patent law at all.

> I suppose you are a lawyer. I am only studying these laws since 1998.

I am not a lawyer.

-- 
John Cowan <jcowan at reutershealth.com>     http://www.reutershealth.com
I amar prestar aen, han mathon ne nen,    http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
han mathon ne chae, a han noston ne 'wilith.  --Galadriel, _LOTR:FOTR_
--
license-discuss archive is at http://crynwr.com/cgi-bin/ezmlm-cgi?3