[WikiEN-l] What constitutes a copyvio?

[Fred Bauder]

on 9/10/03 10:24 PM, Rick at giantsrick13 at yahoo.com wrote:

Is Stevevertigo correct that, because the page doesn't specifically have a
copyright on it, it's fair game to be stolen and incorporated onto
Wikipedia?  I can't believe that.

You should not believe that. Everything is copyright by its author, if no
one else, notice or no notice, unless it has been released into the public
domain either by the passage of time, some specific license to use it or
simply a declaration that people are "free to use it" as one sometimes sees.

You did the correct thing. If User:Stevertigo wishs to do enough editing to
create a credibly new article using the factual material in the copywrited
material (thus conserving energy as he alleges) that is fine. But in fact he
did not. He just reverted. User:Stevertigo's demand that you edit it rather
than request deletion is inappropriate.

Fred