First World War database

[stockman fred]

Hi, I read on the BBC text news that "The University of Oxford" are going to start an online website of First World War documents, letters or artifacts in order to create a free resource for researchers. They said that everyone is welcome to send in scans of anything that might be of interest, and the website will open on the 11th of November.
I thought it might be of interest if it takes off. 
Fred
added link:
http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_stories/2008/080303.html

[stockman fred]

Just to add, I notice that they are already taking contributions at special events.
Fred

[gommecourt]

The window for contributions is very narrow, though.  Just 3 months as from 3rd March.

[Andy Pay]

Not convinced re their statement regarding copyright so will not be sending any material.

Andy

[gommecourt]

I must check that as I was thinking of contributing my grandad's diary.  If they want to control the copyright, however, then it's a no no.

[gommecourt]

Not convinced re their statement regarding copyright so will not be sending any material.

Andy

As a matter of interest, what is your particular issue re:copyright?  I cannot identify anything (yet!) which concerns me.

[stockman fred]

I hadn't thought about copyright either in this case, but I had an incident this week that made me take note. A chap phoned up a while ago to see if he could use Uncle's photos (of a shot down German bomber) in a local history book he was writing. I agreed as long as he acknowledged my Uncle's name.
Now the book has appeared with the photos and there is no mention of where they came from, just a copyright notice saying they are not to be reproduced without the publisher's consent.
I was wondering if this is a problem or just bad manners. Luckily I only sent photocopies of the originals!
Fred

[gommecourt]

Fred,

Exceedingly bad manners, IMHO, and possibly a breach of your copyright in the photographs as you had specifically requested the acknowledgement.  If it were me I would write and express my displeasure.  I would guess that, as a local history book, the initial print run would be small.  Tell him if he does a second print run to ensure the photograph is credited as agreed.  Organisations like the Imperial War Museum will allow writers of very short run books to use their photographs royalty free (you still pay for a copy) but they do insist on a proper credit, i.e. the source and the catalogue number, and this would seem to me to be the form for any similar source.  I have recently written/published a couple of WW1 books for which a large number of people have supplied photographs or biographical information (sometimes both) and everything is credited, i.e. photographs, footnotes, appendices, etc.    Seems to me to be the right thing to do.

Bill