HTML5: mixed signals

[Mark Waddingham]

On 2017-07-28 19:49, Richmond Mathewson via use-livecode wrote:
> It turns out that teachers who make software at home, in their own
> time, do NOT own the copyright to their work if they are under
> contract to schools
> unless this has been explicitly "sorted out" in advance . . .
> 
> a situation that, frankly, stinks, especially as this is NOT during a
> period of time for which you are being paid for by your employer.

This does sound familiar - it is probably worth everyone checking the 
fine detail of their contracts in this regard.

I honestly can't remember if (things done at home are your employers 
too) that is a presumption of contract/IP law (i.e. doesn't require 
explicit wording in a contract); or whether it is something which has to 
be explicitly enumerated.

The issue here is actually one of IP and knowledge-in-environment. Let's 
say you have a programmer which is working for a company which is doing 
really bleeding-edge stuff X. The only reason that programmer knows 
anything about X is because he is working for that company. Programmer 
goes home, and starts working on stuff in their own time using the 
knowledge they have about X (or have learnt about X due to exposure). 
The company has to protect itself - and in this case, the company would 
be seen to own the copyright on what the programmer has done (as far as 
I understand it).

The reason is simple. The programmer is using knowledge and ideas at 
home which he did not develop himself - he is using the IP of the 
company of which he is part of to do them. He does not own that IP, so 
he does not own any derived works of that IP (regardless of where / when 
/ how he derived said works).

Upshot - best not to do work on things at home which are using anything 
which requires knowledge and ideas you would only been exposed to whilst 
at work, unless you don't mind it being owned by the company you work 
for because it probably will be from the point of any court presiding 
over a case in that fashion, should it come up.

Warmest Regards,

Mark.

-- 
Mark Waddingham ~ mark at livecode.com ~ http://www.livecode.com/
LiveCode: Everyone can create apps