In case you didn't know: The WotC community is FREE

[Raven Crowking]

Actually, facebook I believed reversed it, or created an op out after a huge outcry from its public that uses it.

Actually, this was found illegal in Canada, as a violation of privacy law, and Facebook was given a limited amount of time to change their policy.

If you are posting something on a forum, you already published it, essentially. People can read and use it. Maybe they won't sell it, but maybe they will. "Hey, that idea about jousting rules is cool. Let me reword that a little and publish it as part of my Medieval Duels & Jousts book!".

Not an IP lawyer, I take it?

If you are publishing something on a forum, people can read and use it, but they face the same limitations in selling it as they do were it to be published in a book, AFAICT (although I am not an IP lawyer either). Ideas are not protected by copyright, but expressions of ideas are, and if you can convince a judge that what I published is significantly the same as your expression, I am in trouble.

Or, at least, that is my understanding.


RC

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Actually, this was found illegal in Canada, as a violation of privacy law, and Facebook was given a limited amount of time to change their policy.



Not an IP lawyer, I take it?

If you are publishing something on a forum, people can read and use it, but they face the same limitations in selling it as they do were it to be published in a book, AFAICT (although I am not an IP lawyer either). Ideas are not protected by copyright, but expressions of ideas are, and if you can convince a judge that what I published is significantly the same as your expression, I am in trouble.

Or, at least, that is my understanding.


RC

I am pretty certain that most people don't care about the specific expression of their idea that is copied, but the idea itself when it comes to game mechanics. Especially when they want critique, all they are doing then is working at their expression of their idea, not the idea itself. That at least is the most common thing I see in house rules. "I want to achieve X, here's my take. What do you think I should tweak?" (Of course, there are still many people that don't "get it" and say. "No, the idea itself is horrible and you should never try to do that!"

 

[Raven Crowking]

I am pretty certain that most people don't care about the specific expression of their idea that is copied, but the idea itself when it comes to game mechanics.

You may be right, but I would hesitate to be so certain, myself.


RC

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

You may be right, but I would hesitate to be so certain, myself.


RC

It probably will not be true if you're writing a story or a poem or something like that. But even then you might be pissed if someone else writes the story of how Drizzt fights 1000 Orcs, because you will have a hard time selling your story of Drizzt fighting 500 Half-Orcs.

 

[Raven Crowking]

 

[pawsplay]

Actually, this was found illegal in Canada, as a violation of privacy law, and Facebook was given a limited amount of time to change their policy.



Not an IP lawyer, I take it?

If you are publishing something on a forum, people can read and use it, but they face the same limitations in selling it as they do were it to be published in a book, AFAICT (although I am not an IP lawyer either). Ideas are not protected by copyright, but expressions of ideas are, and if you can convince a judge that what I published is significantly the same as your expression, I am in trouble.

Or, at least, that is my understanding.


RC

OTOH, IIRC, forum posts are not generally considered "in a fixed form." You certainly could publish something on a forum, but fora are not automaticlly considered publication.

 

[Korgoth]

It's true that WOTC's ToS for the fora isn't the same as charging a monetary fee. It's also true that WOTC is benefitted by a clause protecting it from legal action. And it's also true that some people wouldn't care if WOTC deliberately used their idea... in fact, probably a fair number of people would be happy and/or flattered over it.

Still, it bears pointing out that one of the perks of a place like EN World is that you own what you post. And since WOTC is famously touchy about IP, there's at least a conceivable reason why someone might want to post their item here and not over there.

Myself, I don't have plans to try to make a living in the "rpg business", so it's not such a big deal. Though I would be annoyed if I posted a cool idea, it got used, and then I no longer had the rights to post it elsewhere and/or use it as I pleased.

 

[AllisterH]

It's true that WOTC's ToS for the fora isn't the same as charging a monetary fee. It's also true that WOTC is benefitted by a clause protecting it from legal action. And it's also true that some people wouldn't care if WOTC deliberately used their idea... in fact, probably a fair number of people would be happy and/or flattered over it.

Still, it bears pointing out that one of the perks of a place like EN World is that you own what you post. And since WOTC is famously touchy about IP, there's at least a conceivable reason why someone might want to post their item here and not over there.

.

Not picking on you personally Korgoth, but I think this post highlights the problem.

It's written in a manner that basically implies that WOTC can unfairly benefit from its forum goers, but to WOTC's eyes, it is to protect them from others unfairly benefiting from their own work.

 

[Chrono22]

They are working on it. It is somewhat down the list of things I imagine (getting a full BBCode suite up and running is pretty high up on the list), but it is on their radar.

So should we expect it before or after the game table?

 

[Truth Seeker]

Stop waiting, there's recovery software, that could do the job.

But per usual, it is very expensive to do.

So...it will never happen.

Funny you say that, because - and I don't remember where - I thought WotC was going to restore the forum archives and threads that were lost in the switch.

Waiting~