The feature of intellectual property being not protected under patent or copyright, i.e. no person or other legal entity can establish proprietary interests
These are things that are available to the public at no charge because their copyrights, trademarks or patents have expired or somehow, been nullified This may include information on government sites This does not include information that is publicly visible on private or commercial websites Just because it's there, does not mean you may copy it for your own site or publications without permission from the copyright holder
A kind of software which is made freely available, with no copyright restrictions, by the developer In the early days of computers, most software developed was put into the "public domain", as different programmers would develop some utility they considered useful, and make it freely available to others, with the assumption that others would reciprocate Related concepts are freeware and open source
Implies that the source code for a software product can be freely distributed and modified Oftentimes, a notice must be retained in the product indicating that the original source code was public domain, and, in some cases, cannot be sold for profit The author of the code also generally requests that his name be carried around in any modified code
If information is in the public domain, it is not secret and can be used or discussed by anyone. It is outrageous that the figures are not in the public domain. something that is in the public domain is available for anyone to have or use
Any work that is not covered by copyright registration is considered to be in the public domain This includes works created before 1922, created for public use, or those works that have over the years fallen into public domain because the copyright expired This includes documents of the United States government, unless stated otherwise
Computer software on which no copyright exists (usually by a specific statement to that effect by the author), and which may be freely used and distributed
any work that is not copyright protected is considered to be in the "public domain", and includes materials created prior to 1922, works created for public use, government documents unless otherwise specified, and works whose copyright has expired
Not copyrighted, either because it never was or because the copyright has expired or lapsed; public domain material can be used without attribution or permission, though good writing practice means making a note of sources
The status of a particular graphic, writing or software wherein the item is legally and morally within the right for anyone to use by virtue of source declaration, limited license or a particular degree of conversion whereby the item was made legally different from the original Public domain software is typically called "freeware" (See also: clip art)
Works which are no longer owned by anyone because the creator has been dead a certain amount of time and, therefore, the work is no longer protected by copyright law (Unit 8> Giving Credit Where Credit is Due)
Software which has been entered into the public domain The author has given up all rights to the software You may sell it, modify it, redistribute it, burn it, and so on You can do anything you want to the software (except copyright it, since it is "PD") Once software has entered the public domain, it cannot go back It is forever free HOWEVER, if a new version is released (updates, etc ), then the status may be changed A simple change in something like the name or author may not be enough, but changes or upgrades in functionality usually are This type of software is usually the only type in which the author gives up his or her rights For the other types of software here, the author usually retains full rights, including copyright, unless otherwise noted by the author
A term which is often used to refer to computer software for which the author has released rights to the general public Such software may be used freely without licensing or fees See also: shareware
Of all the kinds of software or information you can download, public domain had the fewest strings attached With public domain downloads, there are no copyright restrictions whatsoever
Information in the public domain is open for free use by the public, so public domain software can be copied, modified and redistributed free of charge and restriction Other information can also be in the public domain, such as books, music and documentation
Intellectual property, including software, Web documents, images etc that are not protected by copyright or patent regulations and are freely available for use by anyone