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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   3850 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for January 15, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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What is the legal identity criterion of textual copyright?

E.g. Let's say you wrote a book.

I take it and change one word.

Is it still your book or is it now mine or public domain?

2 words?

100 words?

Is there a percentage?

Does the location matter?

If i change words mostly at the start of the book or throughout it?

Does semantics matters? Can i via a software replace some words by identical synonyms or do i need to change semantics?

I have no clue how the legal system solves this major problem.

I would probably enforce the use of

the sota in https://paperswithcode.com/sota/semantic-textual-similarity-on-sts-benchmark and set a magic number percentage. Although it can be gamed that's probably much more accurate than whatever is being used now.

I have no clue how the legal system solves this major problem.

Juries. Sometimes they get it wildly wrong.

You're applying math thinking to a common law legal problem. Rewording the sentences won't be enough if it's clear you started with the other text.

The actual text doesn't always matter. Harlan Ellison is pretty famous for suing over copied story elements, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_Ellison#Copyright_suits

Can a jury be sued for criminal incompetence?

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