Getting away from the whole copyright thing for a moment...

Freeware is sometimes used as a marketing tool, to get people to visit the publisher / developer site. I recall that when GTA 1 and 2 went free, they were initially (and maybe are still today) available only at Rockstar's website, thus drawing in customers to, hey, while you're here, have a look at our newer stuff.

So even if GOG may wish to host some of this stuff in the future, not all freeware will be available to them. Decent reason for it, IMO, and one get still get the stuff for free - just not from here.

Interesting ideas.

So what if say a genius mind invents the chaos theory, the key to the universe to answer all questions ever to be asked, the holy grail to immortality and then decides to not distribute it. 75 years after his death his work would become public domain. But he has the key to immortality, he will never die. What a shame. No immortality to anyone but his first inventor. Copyright is such a nice idea. Just joking

Have nice day.

Great point. I've written some lousy shit when I was a teenager and released it on a website.

Do i have rights to prevent my work from appearing on any other site? I decided to publish it there and there it should remain.

Do i have rights to pull it back and make sure to never see it again? I should have that right.

I've written some stories and put in on my blog. Then I erased it and deleted my blog. Does this gives any rights to anyone to copy my work and publish it (for example just to embarass me how shitty it is?)

Great point, again.

I don't think people realise internet doesn't work de jure.

Yes. I have a cure for cancer in my home. But decided I hate society too much to publish it.

Problem?

Many private collectors have unique works of art in their homes / private exhibition. Do you have any rights to break into their homes and take it? Because society wants it, so we should take it by force!

Chaos theory is already a thing, but if someone invented immortality and whatnot and others found out about it, people would go absolutely insane to get their hands on it so copyright and other laws wouldn't matter anymore.

Also this.

Society should be free to tell you to fuck off by not granting your work any protection to begin with if you're going to behave like a spoiled brath who wants to have his cake and eat it too.

"I don't want to sell it anymore"

Society granted you protection, through laws, when you were still selling it. In the spirit of those laws you got a grace period in wich you decided the best way to capitalize on your work, with the understanding that after that period your work would not only be acessible to the general public but people woud also be legally allowed to build, expand, etc., on your work.

So basically your beahviour iis already that of a sleazzeball, you accepted the protection granted to your work, and you benefited financially form it, but now you don't want to hold up your end of the deal, you no longer wish to sell it, you don't want anyone else to sell it and you don't want anyone to have acess to your work , god forbid, for free either, which means that chances are your work is going to vanish from the face of the earth in a couple of generations - which if your book were in line to become a classic 100 years from now wouldn't anymore because it had vanished long before that, i think this covers the other part of your childish feet stomping.

Yes, i wrote poems, but i kept them to myself. I haven't shared them for free and i sure as shit didn't enter into a contract with society to protect my work while i made money from it. They are mine and i don't want you to have them, but they will only remain mine as long as i keep them for myself. The moment i sign up for protection and coin they will no longer be just mine. Hell, the moment i let someone else read them they'll no longer be just mine. When i make mistakes i own up to them, i don't go back on my word and i certainly don't try to sleazeball my way out of contracts, regardless of the level of embarassment involved.

Unique works of art are not protected intellectual proberty (if they are older then 20 - 75 years). I can have a copy of mona lisa in my home without having to fear that anyone will come to steal it. Your excample is nothing worth. But yes if you are selfish you can have your art collection all for your self. And the society that you hate will help to protect your right to do so.

To not distribute a cure for severe disease is a thing that only big publishers or pharma companies would do. Because they profit from ravaging diseases. Copyright is just a tool in the hands of big business. You are not a company henchman or lawyer by any chance?

Have a nice day
Hi,
yes you are right. the creator of immortal live would be eaten alive, if his flesh would grant immortality. I would not distribute my invention if i were him. And Queen did cheat. He lives forever, as long as his protected songs are played on youtube ;). Oh i do not think that immortal life in youth and perfect health would be such a bad thing. But you had to move to another planet first, to get all out your everlasting life. Earth is not really a good place to live forever.

Have a nice day

The core foundation of copyright law is that "everything was already written".

So new authors use the schemes and ideas already used by someone else (and they do it for free). This means that copyrights are not limitless, and that's why society is entitled to do whatever it wants with your book. Because you made no truly original content, you just used a lot of things that someone else created long before you.

Then society choose to grant you a protection, because the society knows that without such protection, authors won't create much works, which they would have if they could grab some money from it.

But over the years this period of time of protection became 75 years from the death of a creator. Why? Because some companies were interested in it (i.e. Walt Disney).

I understand that, but while providing longer period of protection is good for companies (not even for the authors, who are already dead and they works are still protected)

it's not good for the society though.

Because some works are impossible to obtain.

Let me give you an example - I'd love to watch a cartoon "The Bear's Island" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bear%27s_Island - and I can't buy it anywhere.

It's not even possible to download it from the net (fortunately, lately some of the episodes appeared on youtube, but only in Polish).

Why such situation should be protected? I don't think it should.

So we will enforce the laws on a case by case basis? If the author is an arsehole, he is not entitled to any rights. But if he is a nice guy who will release his work after a certain period of time we will protect his work.

yes they granted me protection and I released my work through channels I see fit, on a price I see fit. What if society decides my work is not worth 20 bucks but only 5? Will I be forced to release at that price?
What if society decides a paperback is not enough and I should release a hardcover too? or an e-book? or maybe I must turn it into a movie too because society wants it. What if society demands to see me at some book signing event, I must fly all over the world to meet the demand.

What you are missing is as long as there is certain interest in a work it will be released.

Society can expand on my work when I feel like it if I decide to release it as public domain. Or after 75 years of my death.

My contract with society is non existant. I write a book, I publish it, I make or lose money out of it and society gets to read it. ıf I decide to pull it back society isn't losing anything, I didn't collect money from my potential readers, I didn't promise them a great book. I didn't promise any sequels either. hell if the book runs out of print I can't even promise them a copy of my lousy book.

I did hold up my end of the deal, I wrote a book, I published it. And now when there are no more copies I don't want to. I don't understand your reasoning behind forcing me to release it. Are you gonna come to my house and see if I am writing another book? I must publish it too ain't I?
I don't care about making my book a classic and I have no problems with it vanishing from the face of the earth. It's me in the first place who doesn't want to release it anymore for whatever reason.

Not everyone is on the same level of enlightment as yourself.
Or maybe they don't give a shit. Society can fuck off, they are not entitled to anything. Even I show my work to whole world it's still mine.

Yes!

Because I think that people are entitled to use cultural goods. It's a human right (Second generation), written in International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (as "participation in cultural life" )

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Covenant_on_Economic,_Social_and_Cultural_Rights

So tickets to a f...n museum should be for free.

What gives you that idea?

You have right to take part in cultural life if you pay, not for free.

I'm not saying that I want my cartoon for free, I want to pay for it, but I can't.