Re: Copy[RIGHT] and ethics: redrawing

["David Marjanovic" <david.marjanovic@gmx.at>]

> - What if it hasn't been possible to obtain permission from the original 
> author?

Usually the author doesn't even hold the copyright, because the author had 
to sign over the copyright, his mortgage, and his firstborn to the 
publisher. (And most of the exception consists of certain open-access 
journals where the author retains the copyright, but has to sign over all 
his department's money.)

> Does publishing redrawn technical images constitute copy[right] violation?

No, at least not if something is modified. For example, fig. 4 in this paper 
http://dpc.uba.uva.nl/ctz/vol77/nr03/art02 differs from the originals in the 
stipples for shading, the labels, and the shades of gray added to mark 
certain bones.

> - Does it matter if the original drawings originate from an academic 
> journal or from a more directly commercial publication?

No idea, but it would surprise me.

> - Does it matter what the new drawings are being used for? If they are 
> being published in an academic or commercial setting?

Good question. All I say above holds for academic settings. If you're trying 
to make money off it, it's probably a better idea to contact the publisher 
of the original... though, again, I don't know.