COPYRIGHTS, PUBLIC DOMAIN, TRADEMARKS AND PATENTS
A Central Library Research Guide
Copyright© is a right to prevent others from copying works that you have written, designed, or otherwise created on your own. Works that copyright protects include writings, software, photography, films, videos, recordings and artworks. One needs to understand the law for both protecting one's works, and using others' in a legal manner. The Copyright Office registers copyrights.
Contact
Copyright Office
101 Independence Ave. SE
Washington DC 20559-6000
202-707-3000
| Handbooks |
| The Copyright Guide |
R 346.730482 Wi |
| Getting Permission: How to License and Clear Copyrights |
R 346.730482 St |
Forms
Forms are available from the Copyright Office's web site.
How to Search a Copyright
The records of the Copyright Office are open for searching by the public. Records from 1978 forward may be searched on the copyright office web site. The Copyright Office upon request will search its records at the rate of $75 per hour or fraction of an hour. The Stanford Copyright Renewal Database makes searchable the copyright renewal records received by the US Copyright Office between 1950 and 1992 for books published in the US between 1923 and 1963. WATCH is another copyright database to search - it's one of the largest databases of copyright holders in the world.
How to Get Permission
Contact the publisher for permission to use copyrighted matereial. The Copyright Clearance Center provides the most complete and convenient access to copyright permission for millions of publications worldwide. Watch the CCC's free 7 minute video on copyright law.
A Copyright Term chart created by Cornell University indicates when copyright works enter the public
domain. Stanford University sponsors a searchable database of information concerning copyright and fair use at Copyright and Fair
Use.
Public Domain Sources
American Memory from the Library of Congress
Art Images for College Teaching
Bartlby
Classic Reader
NetLibrary E-books
NOAA Photo Library
The Picture Collection Online
Public Domain Music
Project Gutenberg
US Fish & Wildlife Pictures
A TrademarkTM is a word, phrase, symbol or design, or a combination of words, phrases, symbols, or designs, which identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods or services of one party from those of others. Conversely, a trade name is the formal name of a business. Trade names are not registered at the federal level. Trade names are registered with the county clerk and with the Texas Department of State if the business is incorporated. A business may use all or part of its trade name as a trademark.
The US Patent and Trademark Office registers trademarks used in interstate and international commerce. Marks used in purely local commerce within Texas are registered with Texas Secretary of State.
Contact
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
General Information Services Division
Crystal Plaza 3, Room 2C02
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
800-786-9199
| Handbooks |
| Trademark: Your Business and Product Name |
R 346.730488 Ec |
| Trademark: How to Name a Business and a Product |
R 346.730488 Ma |
Forms
Forms are available from the US Patent and Trademark Office web site.
How to Do a Trademark Search
A trademark search covers three different categories: federally registered trademarks, state registered trademarks, and non-required (common-law) trade names and trademarks.
State Registered Trademarks and Trade Names of Businesses
Texas Secretary of State
P.O. Box 12677, Austin, TX 78711
1(512) 463-5701
| Non-registered (or common-law) trademarks and trade names. |
| Thomas Register of Manufacturers |
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| Million Dollar Directory |
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| Brands and Their Companies |
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| Reference USA |
Patent is a right provided by a government that allows an inventor to prevent others from manufacturing or selling or using the patent owner's invention.
Contact
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
General Information Services Division
Crystal Plaza 3, Room 2C02
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
800-786-9199
Handbooks
608.7
Forms
Forms are available from the US Patent and Trademark Office web site.
How to Do a Patent Search:
All patents issued by the US Patent and Trademark Office since 1972 are available full-text online. Images date back to 1790.
UT Patent Search Tutorial
Google Patent Search
USPTO Patent Assistance Center
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