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<blockquote data-quote="Will" data-source="post: 4022759" data-attributes="member: 5566">It is in the sense that you're the one making the claim that there is a solution.My claim is that when you face something as nebulous as ideas and writing, the only way to ensure your right not to get sued by someone claiming you stole their posted ideas is to state any posted ideas can be yours.Your claim is that there is surely another way to do it. But you have no idea what it is. Perhaps it's like OS security or police arrests.I don't think 'this idea was derived from this other idea' is anything like security; it's nebulous, it's sticky to deal with.And, honestly, I doubt any such claim would hold up in court -- really, I suspect it's more a matter of the bad blood and people screaming about how WotC is 'ripping off' so-and-so's clever idea of ice demons.The thing most people don't get, though, is the same thing that came up during the WotC setting search -- ideas are cheap. It's doing something with an idea that is important. Also, mechanics aren't covered by IP laws. I could come up with a system that used all of D&amp;D's mechanics, just written completely differently. I'd probably get some heavy-handed legal letters and a lot of people snorting at me, but it's legal.Conversely, WotC could come out with E6, use all the feats posted in ENWorld, and so on. As long as the language isn't the same, they have the right to do it.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Will, post: 4022759, member: 5566"] It is in the sense that you're the one making the claim that there is a solution. My claim is that when you face something as nebulous as ideas and writing, the only way to ensure your right not to get sued by someone claiming you stole their posted ideas is to state any posted ideas can be yours. Your claim is that there is surely another way to do it. But you have no idea what it is. Perhaps it's like OS security or police arrests. I don't think 'this idea was derived from this other idea' is anything like security; it's nebulous, it's sticky to deal with. And, honestly, I doubt any such claim would hold up in court -- really, I suspect it's more a matter of the bad blood and people screaming about how WotC is 'ripping off' so-and-so's clever idea of ice demons. The thing most people don't get, though, is the same thing that came up during the WotC setting search -- ideas are cheap. It's doing something with an idea that is important. Also, mechanics aren't covered by IP laws. I could come up with a system that used all of D&D's mechanics, just written completely differently. I'd probably get some heavy-handed legal letters and a lot of people snorting at me, but it's legal. Conversely, WotC could come out with E6, use all the feats posted in ENWorld, and so on. As long as the language isn't the same, they have the right to do it. [/QUOTE]

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