[Coco] The dire condition of software documentation.

[Francis Swygert]

As Gene noted, Disney and other large commercial organizations that depend on copyrighted material lobbied (and continue to do so) for the draconinan copyright laws we now have. The only change I thought a good idea is when they stopped requiring you to register for a copyright -- just put a notice in your work and it's automatic. 

The time limit is what most have an issue with. I have no problem with it being basically unlimited -- as long as it is in use/available for sale. could be a corporation, the original author, or their estate. As long as it is a viable product in use by a copyright holder it should be protected. If the law were changed with an "in use" or "five years after use or commercial availability ceases" clause it seems it would do it's job of protecting the copyright holder without undue stress. "Available" can be from a website by the author or publisher. Don't have to have sold any in five years or more, just listed and made available if ordered. On demand publishing or even just as a PDF file would easily cover that today. Mickey Mouse would be safe, and hobbyists like the CoCo community would also. 

Honestly, there is little danger of being sued in the CoCo world simply because it's been so long few (if any) care. There are a few, and everyone I know of in the community respects those wishes when they ask that their rights be respected and copies not distributed. Truth is there are so many copies out there already that it's next to impossible to uphold any rights, but that doesn't mean we should blatantly abuse them.