January 12, 2009 was the scheduled release date and as planned this book is available now on Amazon and in some bookstores. I hear that there may be release events on Friday and Saturday. Steve also mentioned that pre-ordered books were to be in the mail as of last Friday. So yayyy, it should be here soon



I saw this information on Facebook where I have just set up a Facebook page! Feel free to friend request me.

One of the things I am looking forward to this year is the Middle School production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying." My son got a part after trying out at the urging of his friends who later dropped out. I am proud of him for sticking out the audition process which has to be tough on a 14 year old boy and landing the part of the book voice. He is also going to be in the scene for Brotherhood of Man with a little solo and plenty of song and dance. I am sure this means I will end up painting the entire set but hey I live for this crap.

I have also been considering what I might do with myself now that the kids are pretty self sufficient and I have a lot less volunteer stuff to do than when they were younger. I have been trying to get a job in social work or psychology but having been out of the field for 8 or 9 years hurts on top of entering a weak job market. The money stinks too which is a big drawback. I am considering options such as painting murals and faux finishes since I do get calls for jobs occasionally despite not really marketing myself as an artist. Despite a weak economy, I live in an area that is close to some very wealthy neighborhoods. If I can make this work, I think I would prefer doing the murals. I am still thinking on it though.

I have so much to be grateful for at the end of this year. My daughter is being taken off the immune suppressants to give it a go without drugs to see if she is in a remission of her autoimmune disease as yet still unnamed. She is going to have a minor surgery to clear up some damage to her vocal chords next week but it looks as though she is doing much better. She got all A's and one B+ in her first semester at Penn so that was great too. Hopefully one of these days she'll decide what she wants to do but hey I am still figuring that out so I don't have room to talk there.

( Infringing on Bluestocking's shout outs. See them all behind the cut! )

Columbia Law professor Tim Wu has posted an article that he intends to publish in a law review on tolerated use of secondary and derivative works that complement (without substituting) for the original. In my opinion, this article has clearly been inspired by the Lexicon trial. In his opening, Wu refers to fan websites as "marketing." that in plain economic terms adds value to the original:

"One reason that many uses of copyrighted works are tolerated is that they cause no harm to, and in fact help, the owner of the original copyrighted work. For example, if I create a film that is obscure, and a fan creates a loving website for the film that uses images from the film, it is probably the case that the fan has infringed. Nonetheless it is also obvious that the web site creates value for the owner of the original work. In fact, many fan websites and other tolerated uses are exactly the kind of thing that content creators pay for when it is called “marketing.”

In economic terms, what the fan has created is called a complement (as opposed to a substitute) – a good that makes another good more valuable. For those unfamiliar with this concept, examples are plentiful. More lenses make my camera more valuable. The sale of screws makes a screwdriver more valuable. My coffeemaker becomes more valuable the more varieties of coffee are available. And so on."

 

Wu's suggested approach would have tremendous impact on fansites such as The Leaky Cauldron, Mugglenet and many others.  Infringing material would not have to be tolerated and under threat of removal since it would be legally protected.  Such cites report on and build enthusiasm for the original work but do not compete with it directly.  This would have the additional benefit of protecting the high dollar markets such as licensed movie adaptations for the author.  Other copyright experts have expressed a desire to open that market believing that the movie licensed and clearly influenced by the author will likely be the best anyway.  Such an approach would allow multiple versions of the Potter movies that would compete with the licensed Warner Brothers version.  Personally I think this might be a bit of an extreme change that might harm the author unnecessarily.  I will freely admit that I haven't really examined the arguments for such a change very closely, however. 

What I like about Wu's approach is that it deals with the concerns raised in the Lexicon case head on.  Clearly any author who wants to write a complementary work such as an encyclopedia can claim infringement and effectively destroy the market for a competing entry.  Without the benefit of Stanford pro-bono involvement, RDR would be completely at a loss to effectively make their case in court.  The copyright owner, in effect, can expand their copyright protection by virtue of deeper pockets rather than the strength of their case.