Copyright is broken. What began as a system balancing the promotion of individual incentive and "the progress of science and useful arts" has become a weapon of commerce that tries to eke out every last penny from artistic creations, whether or not the original artist wants it that way. Creative Commons aims to steer the boat back on course, by offering a spectrum of licenses for artists to control the use of their creations. Choose from options such as "attribution," "noncommerical," "no-derivatives," "share alike" and even a "Founder's copyright," which allows authors to publish their work with the 14-year period of exclusive ownership that the framers of the Constitution orginally enacted and not the "70 years from the author's death" that Congress adopted at the urging of that other noted stateman, Sonny Bono. Use the Founder's copyright when you want the beat to go on...just not for a 100 years.

Harold Check