Will I get in trouble for this????

[masterbeavis]

scanning and putting up stuff from a 35 year old publication, namely the GM repair manual? I got my shop manual today and want scan and upload some of the service procedures, namely for the eaton axles. Is it OK to do if the book is old enough? I see the Dana Spicer repair manual for the Dana 60 axles available for download hosted by several honorable web sites....

I eventually would like to build a FAQ, so everyones answers can be answered in one place. The eaton seems to be a forgotten about axle, that alot of people have no clue existed. I have gathered some good info so far, The book is a good start for answering a few questions. Id like to make it availabele for everyone to see.

[blaserman]

Why would you get into trouble for doing this? You are not selling it.

[LONGHAIR]

Because it is copyrighted material.

You've heard it all before.
This copyrighted material cannot be used in any form w/o the expressed written consent............

[BobbyK]

If GM wants to come after you for posting tech. info. on 35 yr old trucks they have some mental problems.

You'll be fine.Post away.

[Jim_PA]

Originally Posted by BobbyK

If GM wants to come after you for posting tech. info. on 35 yr old trucks they have some mental problems.

You'll be fine.Post away.

Seeing all the new cars/trucks they've come out with in the past few years, I am begining to think they do have a mental problem.

[67Fleet]

I'm pretty sure copyrights are only good for a certain amount of time, depending on how old it is you may or may not be able to do so. Play it safe and double check that before you publicly post that kind of info, but we would all love to see it.

[phlegm]

Googled this, it looks like it depends on if they renewed their copy right.

Works published or created after January 1, 1978 are not subject to renewal registration. For works published or registered prior to January 1, 1978, renewal registration is optional after 28 years but does provide certain legal advantages.

it goes on ....


For works created on and after January 1, 1978, the copyright term for works created by an individual is the life of the author plus 50 years.

The question is did I break copyright law by pasting this here?.?.?.???
kinda boggles the mind doesnt it.

[phlegm]

Come to think of it, I went to school some years ago, and between all the mud and the guts and the blood and the beer, someone said as long as you were not selling it, and refrenced it in a way that made it clear to the audience whos work it was originally your good. So by simply saying I got this out of my 1971 Chilton manual, I think your covered.

BTW I also learned in school that the first sentance her is full of gramatical errors :-)

[fletch4x4]

Thanks Mr. Cash

But there are two different things, plagiarism (not sourcing your info basically) and copyright infringement, so you would want to check with GM or someone to see if you are breaking the copyright.

Of course there is always a chance that im compleatly wrong. So who knows

[Tynee]

Actually copyright laws aren't there just to prevent you from profit. Who was profitting from Napster? That was a case of file-sharing taking money out of the pockets of the record companies and the artists, even though nobody else made any money. Conceivably (sp?), you posting this material makes it possible for someone else to avoid paying for the info they need, and you are therefor taking money out of the pockets of the publishers and anyone who is owed royatlies from the sale of the service manuals.

[Liz]

you are technicly not allowed to reproduce, copyrighted materials. If you went by the extreeme part of the laws no you can not post it. More commonly tho people will post bits and pieces and be ok. If you are posting entire sections of a book it is not ok. Copyrights do expire and if they are then so be it, just be sure first. GM does watch sites and we wouldn't want to do anything illegal.
Look into the laws a little and you will knwo for sure either way. You should just write a letter to GM and ask for use permission from them. There are forms asking for consent to use copyrighted materials.

[Rdub]

For what it's worth.... I was at the Portland swap meet a couple weeks ago.... one of the "literature" vendors had a bunch of shop manuals and I purchased one for my 71 gmc. I paid about $10. more for the GMC manual becasue, he said anyway, the GMC manuals are not being reproduced but the chevrolet manuals are being reprinted.

[rambler]

take a picture of it, then you own the rights to that picture...you do have to get permission to reproduce that document, and sometimes you also have to give credit to the orginal author. it gets really "ify" with the internet and what everyone is posting.. and who posted it and where... it

[tomatocity]

Think of it this way. If the manual is still being sold over the counter then you are possibly preventing the sale of another manual. My guess it could be trouble.
I used to be on a VW forum and Volkswagen of America talking some of the abusers to court if they don't pay the asking price. It was as simple as using the VW logo on an ad. Others were for reprinting (phots, digital, etc) VW documentation. At first I thought it was scare tactics by VW. After awhile I found it to be serious when VW started targeting the forums.

[shortymac83]

why not scan it, then put a citation at the end of your page, MLA style? You can copy entire sections of a book as long as it's cited properly.


I almost got busted for having something of someone else's on my website (even though it was cited correctly). They gave me a warning - take it down or else. that's probably what GM would do to you, if they'd find it or even if they'd care to look for it.

[special-K]

Is it available as a poster?I want one!!

[Zumo]

Those books are handy. I got one off of ebay a while back.