Copyright question...

[Spinward Scout]

Hey Everybody,

Not sure if this is in the right section, but I was wondering: if I make a conversion for d20 Trinity psionics to T20, at what point is it considered copyright infringement? They are both d20 products - both require a Core rulebook. Not sure what the line is here.

Any help would be hot,

Dameon

 

[parmasson]

Hmmm my gut reaction is that just my considering it you have committed a felony.

No clue, one of the “ancients” will probably know.

 

[siefertma2]

I would think that as long as you don't sell it and credit the original source, you should be OK.

 

[Anthony]

Originally posted by Sir Dameon Toth:
Hey Everybody,

Not sure if this is in the right section, but I was wondering: if I make a conversion for d20 Trinity psionics to T20, at what point is it considered copyright infringement?

That depends on policy specifics of the publisher. Using it for your own games is fair use. Publishing (including web publishing) is a copyright violation unless you have permission from the publisher. However, many RPG companies have fairly generous online policies. The White Wolf ones appear to be here: http://www.white-wolf.com/darkspiral/signup.html

Offhand, it looks like you can't post converted power lists, but you can probably post information usable to make a conversion.

Dropping away from the specifics of WW, as a general rule game companies like fan sites that help them sell books and dislike fan sites that make their books unnecessary, so if your pages are usable without having access to d20 Trinity they'll react poorly.

 

[Spinward Scout]

I was just going to do the conversion notes and probably rewrite a couple of feats to adjust for that conversion. The conversion would require both d20 Trinity and T20 to be usable. But other than those rewritten feats, nothing else completely out of those two books. It was the feats I was worrying about. Natural Talent and Psi Training - and maybe a little from the first page or two of the Psionics chapter in T20, but not a lot of it.

I'm trying to keep my felonious actions to a minimum here, Kurega. hehe

 

[aramis]

It's only a felony if it involves encryption/encoding... (DMCA)

However, a case has been made for text files being "encoding"... and HTML is a subset of text files.

You're probably safe enough so long as you provide only the bridging materials, and list copyright AND trademark status on the page.

 

[Berg]

I'm looking to make GRiP adventures for various systems, and was wondering about the OGL. If I make something that uses the modern SRD document, I need to include the WOTC OGL, but I can't make any references to "Compatable with..."? Is this correct? How would I let people know what system it is to be used with?

I realize if I translate other people's material I need permission, (just good etiquette anyways...Thanks Flynn ), but if it's my own adventure creations, yet uses a system (open or not), is there any acceptable protocol for posting free share alike stuff?

 

[Scott Martin]

Hey Aramis

The logical limit of "text files being encoded" is that being able to read (since this would contravene an encoding scheme) is a felony punishable under the DMCA.

I'm glad I live in Canada

Scott Martin

 

[aramis]

Shush!!! The powers that be might get ideas about burning books!

 

[parmasson]

Ok that's it! Everybody gets a one way ticket to the new copyright prison on St. Helena.
That's right. It's a new British plan to help raise funds for the NHS so they can get a dentist in Wales

 

[Spinward Scout]

So, is typing it up in Microsoft Word 'encoding' then? Word puts in printer codes.

Hmmm. Maybe I should make this for my own use...

 

[Bob Weaver]

Hey Everybody,

Not sure if this is in the right section, but I was wondering: if I make a conversion for d20 Trinity psionics to T20, at what point is it considered copyright infringement? They are both d20 products - both require a Core rulebook. Not sure what the line is here.

Daemon,
The questions of coding and free sharing/selling are secondary. The main issue is: how much of someone else's creative work (intellectual property) are you using, and do you have permission to use it?
I commend you on your deisre to be law-abiding, in an age where technology makes so much illegal activity easy. Your best source of permission information is the copyright holder, which is the folks who publish D20 books. Call them, and ask to speak to their legal department. They may say, "sure, go ahead, just give credit where it's due." Or they may say "No." It's their call.
I'm sure you've heard of the concept of "fair use" exempting one from asking permission, but it's not likely to apply in this case. Better to ask.

Cheers,
Bob Weaver
(professionally mired in copyright law)

 

[Anthony]

Well, in this case the company has an established online policy (the white wolf link above), so you can do anything that is explicitly allowed by that.

The first step for creating a fan page for a game should be searching for the company's website and finding out if they have an online policy. Most of them do.