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[bryant]

This is very sad. The Online Computer Library Center, who owns the Dewey Decimal System, is suing the Library Hotel. Apparently one’s not permitted to use the DDC without purchasing a license.

Since Melvil Dewey first published the DDC in 1876, one would think that at least the early editions would have passed out of copyright, but perhaps there’s a wrinkle I don’t understand. It’s still a malicious, nasty lawsuit.

“A person who came to their Web site and looked at the way (the hotel) is promoted and marketed would think they were passing themselves off as connected with the owner of the Dewey Decimal Classification system.”

Yeah, sure. And Al Franken’s book was published by Fox News.

Comments

[tahnan.livejournal.com]

"A person who came to their Web site...would think they were passing themselves off as connected with the owner of the Dewey Decimal Classification system."

Which might be true if the average person remotely thought the Dewey Decimal Classificational system had an owner.

[marith.livejournal.com]

Those weasels. The hotel should switch to the LC system. Or keep the subject groupings and just, er, file off the serial numbers.

I wonder if libraries had to pay $500 a year to keep their own collections in order before 1988.