Public Domain???

[Cliff Patrick]

I was curious as to how you would go about finding out if something is public domain or not. I know there is a lot of knowledge here on the creek and was hoping someone could lead me in the right direction. I know you can't use anything that is copyrighted or trademarked but I was wondering about various quote that I have seen out and about that doesn't have the TM or CC beside it. Some will have names and some will be blank. Just curious so any information would be appreciative. Thanks in advance to all that replies.

[Jeff Bratt]

Copyright does not require a CC (or TM). The basic assumption is that any original work is covered by copyright upon its creation. Some additional protections are added if the work is registered with the copyright office. Safe assumptions about public domain are 1) if the work is old enough, then copyright will have expired. 2) if the work is explicitly released into the public domain. 3) if the work was created by the US government, it is in public domain. Current US copyright terms are a) the life of the author plus 70 years b) when a corporation holds the copyright - 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication, whichever is shorter. Wikipedia has a lot more details.

The history of recent of US copyright terms is - they are extended whenever Mickey Mouse would fall out of copyright protection...

[Dan Hintz]

The history of recent of US copyright terms is - they are extended whenever Mickey Mouse would fall out of copyright protection...
And I believe when some lawmaker stands up and finally puts an end to the extensions, you'll see Mickey begin taking on face lifts again.