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Nah... you can't copyright HTML code, it's a public standard.
Hmmph. That's like saying you can't copyright a story because the english
language is public domain. The C programming language is a public standard,
yet programs written in it are copyrightable.
HTML code certainly *is* copyrightable. The problem is there must be a
certain amount of originality, of non-trivial creative effort, in the work
to make it copyrightable. For example, if I use the sentence, "The corn is
green" in a story, that doesn't preclude someone else from using the same
sentence in their story. Taking some HTML code out from a page and using it
yours may come under "fair use," depending upon how much of it you lift.
The table code used in the example is certainly trivial. So it's equally
certainly not copyrightable. At what point does it become copyrightable?
I'll sit down and let a lawyer answer that one. I've never found a solid
layman's definition.
Have fun,
Arlen
Chief Managing Director In Charge, Department of Redundancy Department
DNRC 224
Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- Com
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In God we trust; all others must provide data.
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Opinions expressed are mine and mine alone.
If JCI had an opinion on this, they'd hire someone else to deliver it.
