Question concerning sharing intellectual and personal information?

[Leon]

I have some old hobby documents I have been sharing with the board and a lot of folks enjoy them as much as I do. That being said, is there a time when those documents should be kept private, even though they were obtained very above board and legally, with respect to them being personal conversations between hobby icons? Of course the fact they are well known people isn't necessarily the issue, it's the general nature I am pondering.
Does the fact that most of the folks are deceased matter? Does it matter that the subject matter is not too personal and is discussing mostly hobby events and research? Are there legal issues involved? Almost all of the documents are over 30 yrs old.

Those issues, and probably some others too, are the nature of my concerns. I am certainly leaning towards continuing to share but just thought I would solicit some feedback.

[rainier2004]

Id say looking at the respect the issue is being handled with Id ask what these original correspondants intent was with their letters be...Id guess to spread their zest for cards and I would guess theyd be happy those letters are still doing that. Law does not dictate ethics.

[zljones]

If you are referring to that document you posted from 1948, things like that should not be a problem, because that was a publication and a public document.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by zljones

If you are referring to that document you posted from 1948, things like that should not be a problem, because that was a publication and a public document.

I appreciate the feedback so far. No, these are personal letters between hobby legends concerning questions on hobby matters. Some of it is very intriguing (not that that should really matter in the decision.)

[cardinalcollector]

Leon, I got to know Buck Barker pretty well and I would bet that he is smiling, seeing the interest and respect shown towards him and his pioneer friends. Randy

[tiger8mush]

if its on the topic of vintage baseball cards, i'd say post it! If it involves any personal/intimate matters & conversation, even between hobby icons, perhaps that should be kept to oneself.

[mrvster]

+1

peace

[packs]

I don't know if this helps answer the question but on eBay the auctions for letters and documents always include a scan of the letter and usually a transcript.

[Jantz]

If they are documents/letters about the hobby, such as buying, selling, possible rarities or shortprints, etc. and nothing too personal is involved, I would like to see them posted. I think it would be interesting to read how past collectors viewed cards and building their collections.

Hope this helps Leon.



Jantz

[YankeeCollector]

Originally Posted by Leon

I have some old hobby documents I have been sharing with the board and a lot of folks enjoy them as much as I do. That being said, is there a time when those documents should be kept private, even though they were obtained very above board and legally, with respect to them being personal conversations between hobby icons? Of course the fact they are well known people isn't necessarily the issue, it's the general nature I am pondering.
Does the fact that most of the folks are deceased matter? Does it matter that the subject matter is not too personal and is discussing mostly hobby events and research? Are there legal issues involved? Almost all of the documents are over 30 yrs old.

Those issues, and probably some others too, are the nature of my concerns. I am certainly leaning towards continuing to share but just thought I would solicit some feedback.

There are absolutely no legal concerns here. It doesn't matter if the subjects are deceased or alive. The documents were obtained legally. I see no legal barriers here. For your purposes here, the age of the documents is irrelevant.

[thecatspajamas]

Guys, I don't think Leon is asking whether we would like to see more of these docs, but rather what are the legal ramifications (if any) of publicly posting what was originally private correspondence.

My completely non-lawyerly opinion would be that the posting of letters related to hobby matters and reasearch on a message board dedicated to hobby matters and research would fall under "fair use." My understanding is that whoever wrote the letter would technically retain copyright, but as long as you're not profiting from posting the letters and not hampering the author's ability to profit from his "creation" (which doesn't appear to be the intent of the letters in the first place), it should be okay. I found a pretty good (at least to my quick read through) explanation of "fair use" here:

http://www.citmedialaw.org/legal-guide/fair-use

Hope that helps, and by all means, if anyone reading this is actually trained in the law, please chime in and/or correct me.

[MW1]

Originally Posted by Leon

I have some old hobby documents I have been sharing with the board and a lot of folks enjoy them as much as I do. That being said, is there a time when those documents should be kept private, even though they were obtained very above board and legally, with respect to them being personal conversations between hobby icons? Of course the fact they are well known people isn't necessarily the issue, it's the general nature I am pondering.
Does the fact that most of the folks are deceased matter? Does it matter that the subject matter is not too personal and is discussing mostly hobby events and research? Are there legal issues involved? Almost all of the documents are over 30 yrs old.

Those issues, and probably some others too, are the nature of my concerns. I am certainly leaning towards continuing to share but just thought I would solicit some feedback.

Relevant legal advice:

http://www.guidethroughthelegaljungl...u-receive.html

Also, I think the laws governing "fair use" and the determination of "commercial value" of a particular work or document is relevant here. See answers #4 and #11:

http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

[Leon]

Hi guys
Thanks again for all of the feedback. I think I got my answers. It was really a twofold question, ethical and legal. I got both answers. best regards