RE: Question: does permission to distribute reprints include pdf files?

[Max.Hyre@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

   Dear Ms. Swanson:

   Your correspondent asks:

> I do have the pdf file on my computer and could easily e-mail
> it, but wonder if sharing it is allowed by copyright laws?

[Answer void in states where prohibited, and outside the U.S.]

   My immediate reaction is that if it's not allowed, then
copyright law is broken, since its explicit purpose is (wait
for it...) ``[t]o promote the progress of science and useful
arts....''.

   Unfortunately, the legal answer depends upon what has been
done with the copyright since it arose when your colleague
wrote the paper.  If she retains copyright (even if some rights
were licensed to _Cell_), yes, it's emphatically hers to do
with as she wishes.

   If, on the other hand, _Cell_ now holds the copyright, all
depends on the details of the contract which transferred it.
My reading suggests that in the majority of cases, the author
retains the right to send out reprints, but it may also be
affected by her contract with Brandeis.  At this point I fade
out, being unfamiliar with the details of academic and journal
practices.

   I hope this has at least helped point her in the right
direction to start looking for the definitive answer.


-- 

                         Best wishes,

                                  Max Hyre