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What is Fair Use?Fair use is a concept embedded in U.S. law that recognizes that certain uses of copyright-protected works do not require permission from the copyright holder. (See Title 17, section 107) What Determines Fair Use?The following four factors are used to determine if a use is fair: The purpose of the use (eg. commercial vs. educational)* The nature of the copyrighted work The amount of the material used (the greater the amount copied, the less likely it is fair use) The effect of use on the potential market for or value of the work * Not all uses in an academic context are automatically considered fair use!  Fair Use in AcademiaThe Fair Use Doctrine is probably the most important exemption to copyright protections for educational settings, allowing many uses of copyrighted works for the purposes of teaching and research. The complexity of fair use and its importance in academia make it imperative that every member of NYU-Poly understands how to make judgements concerning fair use. Review these Common Scenarios to help you determine whether or not fair use is appropriate. Tools to help you Determine Fair Use Fair Use Analysis Tool:  guides users through the process of determining if a use is fair. Developed by The University of Minnesota Libraries. Fair Use Evaluator: helps users collect, organize, and document the information they may need to support a fair use claim, and  provides a time-stamped PDF document for the users’ records. Developed by the American Library Association, Office for Information Technology Policy.  

Copyright Basics: Fair Use Determining Fair Use Exceptions for Libraries and Archives Exceptions for the use of Materials in an Educational Setting   Fair use is a concept embedded in U.S. law that recognizes that certain uses of copyright-protected works do not require permission from the copyright holder or its agent. These include instances of minimal use that do not interfere with the copyright holder's exclusive rights to reproduce and reuse the work. Fair use is not an exception to copyright compliance; it is more of a "legal defense." That is, if you copy and share a copyright-protected work and the copyright holder claims copyright infringement, you may be able to assert a defense of fair use which you would then have to prove. Fair use is primarily intended to allow the use of copyright-protected works for commentary, parody, news reporting, research and education. However, not all uses in an academic context are automatically considered fair use. The Copyright Act does not spell out the specific types of content reproduction that qualify as fair use. It offers an outline as to how to analyze whether fair use may apply in a particular situation. As a result, the Copyright Act leaves it up to the individual to determine, based upon the factors in Section 107 of the Act, whether fair use applies in each particular circumstance. To avoid a potential legal challenge from the copyright holder, many institutions follow a policy of "when in doubt, obtain permission."

An Introduction to Fair Use What is Fair Use? Fair use is the most significant limitation on the copyright holder's exclusive rights (United States Copyright Office, 2010, para. 1). Deciding whether the use of a work is fair IS NOT a science. There are no set guidelines that are universally accepted. Instead, the individual who wants to use a copyrighted work must weigh four factors:

one has the opportunity to communicate and collaborate with anyone from anywhere and anytime. Unfortunately, many users have not been taught how to make appropriate decisions when faced with so many different digital communicatio

communicate with other people. In the 19th century, forms of communication were limited. In the 21st

Digital Citizenship

Copyright Infringement means using the original piece without the permission of the copyright holder, as such or in parts (without attributing the part to the owner). According to the US copyright laws, one can face heavy penalties in cases of copyright infringement. The infringement may also lead to a jail term or a penalty followed by a jail term.

Princeton University Press v. Michigan Document Services (1996) Michigan Document Services was involved in creating packages of study material for the students of the University. A professor supplied the course material and Michigan Document services, a photocopying organization, took photocopies of the material and converted it into a booklet for sale to students at the University. There was a clause of "Fair use" in this case. The photocopying company could have paid a nominal fee to the University and then used the material. This was available to anyone who wished to use the material. However, the photocopying company paid for only the original and then started making photocopies of the study material. The court considered that it was not "fair use" and penalized the photocopying company. A & M Records vs. Napster (2001) This is one of the most famous cases of copyright infringement related to the music industry. As peer to peer file sharing increased, Napster started a website. This website offered downloads of songs of all genre – new and old. You may know someone who used it. A & M Records brought in a joint copyright infringement case which accused Napster of stealing music and making it available to people worldwide. Before closing the site in 2002, Napster had to settle USD26 million to different recording companies and songwriters. It could have even more if Napster had not apologized and folded the site. Several websites still thrive on offering free music to people who can download it at no cost. As mentioned in our article on "Internet Ethics and Copyright Laws", the music industry faces most copyright infringement cases. The Napster case, though an example of the consequences, still does not act as a deterrent for other music websites that offer free music downloads. We hope these famous copyright infringement cases have clarified what is considered copyright violation to some extent. If you still have any questions, please free to contact us using the comments facility.

Copyright Clarity: How Fair Use Supports Digital Learning

Copyright Law DefinedCopyright law, as defined in Title 17 of the United States Code, protects "original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression" for a limited period. Copyright protection includes, for instance, the legal right to publish and sell literary, artistic, or musical work, and copyright protects authors, publishers and producers, and the public.  Copyright applies both to traditional media (books, records, etc.) and to digital media (electronic journals, web sites, etc.). Copyright protects the following eight categories of works: literary works musical works dramatic works pantomimes and choreographic works pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works motion pictures and other audiovisual works sound recordings architectural works Ownership of a copyrighted work includes the right to control the use of that work. Use of such work by others during the term of the copyright requires either permission from the author or reliance on the doctrine of fair use. Failure to do one or the other will expose the user to a claim of copyright infringement for which the law provides remedies including payment of money damages to the copyright owner.

I am frequent computer user. Of course it’s interesting to know how danger for my health computer can be. Working with computer for whole day is not rare nowadays. If it’s an aspect of our work or if we use computers just for fun, there are certain risks involved with prolonged computer use. 1. Eye Disease It’s the first what occur to us, when we talk about computer harm (right?). Prolonged computer use could be linked to glaucoma, especially among those who are short-sighted. Our eyes are very badly affected by how long you stare at that bright screen. We stop blinking and start staring which makes our eyes strain and dry out. Make sure you look away from the screen and close them for a few seconds every few minutes. We can find many information about eyes health, as Snuz made. And it’s very important not to forget about our eyes while working on computer. 2. Bad Posture Bad posture is enemy number one. Check your posture now! You should be able to reach the keyboard and mouse whilst bending your elbows at 90 degrees, with your shoulders relaxed. If you are stretching, this could cause problems. Your back should be straight and the top of the monitor should be just below eye level. If your monitor is to the left or right of your keyboard you are putting strain on your neck. Long periods of time at the computer while blogging, working or reading often leads to pain in the lumbar region of the back. Neck and shoulder problems also result from poor seating and the poor organization of equipment on the desk (stretching for the telephone or files etc). 3. Hurting Hands Your hand and wrist ache after working at the computer all day, and they sometimes start feeling numb. Research in recent years has found that things like typing and sewing rarely cause carpal tunnel. Wear splints while you work to keep your wrists from bending too high or low, and use a keyboard tray or adjust your chair so the keyboard and mouse are below your elbows and your wrists are level. It is really important to give your fingers, wrists and hands a break from resting on the keyboard all day. A tennis ball is a great way to do this. Every time you need to think you should grab the ball and give it a few quick squeezes. This will do wonders for your joints and muscles. 4. Computer Stress Injuries Many people suffer from structural problems related to the physical stress of sitting incorrectly, or for too long in front of their computers. So there are chances you’ve experienced a fair amount of computer stress, from minor frustrations here and there to a virtual visit to computer hell. High levels of stress can kill you, don’t make mistakes! Highly stressful workers have a higher risk of developing heart diseases and even cancer. So make sure that you can manage your stress. Start making something to reduce it, don’t wait till computer stress will be the main problem in your life. Taking frequent breaks is an important step in preventing repetitive computer stress injuries. Thus, it shows up that there are several problems that occur with prolonged computer use. It is also clear, however, that if certain rules of using computer are observed the risk of any of these problems can be minimized and computer users affected with computer related disorders can avoid or treat them. I consider that persons should have active lifestyle and an ergonomic computer work station, thereby even hardly computer working can’t affect their health. What do you think?