COPYRIGHT FACTS
- Definition: Copyright is the protection provided for the creator of anything written, recorded, posted on a website, drawn, composed, or sculpted. Anything put into some permanent format is considered copyrighted or under the protection of the law.
- What this means to you is that you may not use any information, whether or not you paraphrase, unless you have permission from the creator, you follow the fair use guidelines, or you cite where you got the information.
- Previously, the @ sign indicated that a work was copyrighted but that sign is no longer necessary. You must assume that any work in a permanent format is copyrighted.
- If you use anyone's words, ideas, music, images, recordings, paintings, or film you must have permission.
- Copyright means that only the creator has the right to reproduce, change or adapt, distribute, public performances, or display works.
- When preparing a research paper, you must make sure that any information you use from books or print sources, webpages or entire websites, videos, images, or online databases at your school library, must be cited.
- Even if you put the author's /creator's words or ideas into your own words or paraphrase, you must give credit to that person.