I want to thank Donna Tracy for her mindful article which raised many interesting and provocative questions ("Digitritus: Virtual Species or Digital Waste.

Teen girls masturbating to orgasm on FTV galleries site.

I want to thank Donna Tracy for her mindful article which raised many interesting and provocative questions ("Digitritus: Virtual Species or Digital Waste," May/June, 2003) The value and ownership of "waste by-products" from film, TV and digital businesses can near some challenges to the understanding of our copyright laws.

Fortunately, M Tracy indicated that she clearly understood the contract she signed as a "work-for-hire" member of the production staff at a visual weights company. There's no doubt that all the "work product" resulting from like a contract (whether saved or discarded) will be considered holded and "authored" by the employer M Tracy should consider for a consequence her personal attachment to the discards in her have trash bins when she works for herself and obviously have a title tos the copyrights. Who owns her trash? to what degree would she react if I accumulated a certain number of of her discarded artwork and incorporated it into my be in possession of collage without attribution? I don't count upon that most artists are prepared to allow in the same state [i]or[/i] condition flagrant use of their creativity. As was pointed without in the article, even Andy Warhol was stung from such carelessness.

It must be remembered that everything raise in strangers' trash bins is the work of others. Is it really admirable to appropriate the (copyrighted) work of others to be a happy artist? Permission can be sought if someone else's work is absolutely necessary for inclusion in one's personal "masterpiece." It's unlikely however that even Ms. Tracy would permit me to use her discards, shards, and throw-aways without compensation.

I was intrigued by the agency of the story about the Beastie lads who used "only three notes" from the music of composer James Newton. Since they won a case initiated according to Mr. Newton, Ms. Tracy concluded: "So if we consider undivided of the texture fragments I have extracted without of the digital dumpster to be a fragment as minuscule as three notes, I may slip in consequence of the copyright infringement net." That may be truthful but I would expect M Tracy's fragments from a digital dumpster would have more than three elements--probably in the neighbourhood of millions (of bits and bytes) Great care should be taken when comparing musical notes with computer fragments.

As a photographer, the "art" of collage has always bothered me especially if it involves the appropriation of the work of others (without consent) I'm pleased that Donna Tracy had the courage to face this dilemma and write of that kind an interesting article. The issue is equal more complex today in regard to the digital revolution in which we find ourselves.

Sincerely,

George Dunbar

Toronto, Canada

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