TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!

Subject: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: GutBucketeer
Date: 01 Jun 00 - 11:08 PM

Well I just came across an announcement in the BanjoL archives that the Harry Fox Agency is at it again. They contacted the TABLEDIT site and threatened them. In response TABLEDIT pulled ALL of their tabs from their website.

TABLEDIT is a great, great program which provided the tabs the music notation, plays the tune, and shows the fingerings as it plays the song. As my 10 year old would say. Sweeeeet. It also works on banjo, guitar, and many other instruments. The TABLEDIT site provided the tabs they had collected/submitted free of charge to run within their program. Granted it did have some copyrighted tunes like beattle songs included. It also had many, many public domain old time and traditional banjo tunes. They pulled everything!

My questions are: why, and when will this insanity stop? Besides... What right does the Harry Fox agency have to stop the distribution of tabs for public domain songs? Who owns the TABS?

The Banjo-L discussion is here:

http://listproc.ucdavis.edu/archives/banjo-l/log0005/

The TABLEDIT site is here:

http://www.tabledit.com/

Riled in Silver Spring!!!

JAB

Please no KTS (Keyboard Tourette's Syndrome) in this thread.

Subject: RE: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: Sorcha
Date: 02 Jun 00 - 12:00 AM

The "Fifties Website Lyrics etc..." has also succumbed to Harry Fox, and I don't know where it will stop. It was a great lyric/MIDI site for those of us who love '50's Bop. they also pulled everything, in response to Harry Fox. Who is going to lead the charge against good ole Harry?

Subject: RE: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: 5-string
Date: 02 Jun 00 - 12:36 AM

Too bad - some people just can't stand others being happy and learning.

I am just getting into playing banjo, and the tabs I had already tried have been a great help!

Subject: RE: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 02 Jun 00 - 11:18 AM

Sorcha, I don't think it will stop where the law is on his side and unfortuntely, whether we like it or not there are many copyright infringements.

I think the Harry Fox agency does use bullying tactics though and the way Max handled it here was excellent. Rather than being intimidated, he asked them to identify which songs they objected to and simply removed those few.

This is probably a simple soulution for something like the DT database where much of the stuff is PD and probably there are many folk song writers who have copyrighted stuff but would be pleased to see them in something like the DT but I doubt the situation with other more comercial forms of music would be the same.

JAB, TAB sounds complicated to me, I don't know but even with a PD song, given exact fingering could it be argued that they are duplcating XXX as played by YYY that maybe copyrighted?

All that said, these are just my thoughts and I don't understand copyright law. Personally, I just wish he would leave these sites alone.

Jon

Subject: RE: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 02 Jun 00 - 11:32 AM

Aren't there any countries with sensible copyright laws and reliable Internet servers? Music Island maybe?

Subject: RE: TABLEDIT Pulls Tabs due to Harry Fox!
From: Easy Rider
Date: 02 Jun 00 - 12:48 PM

INDIA has NO COPYRIGHT LAWS.

All you have to do is set up your site on a Web site host in India, and nobody can touch you.

Would anybody like to go into the Web hosting business with me, in India?