> You, Genealogy, and Copyright > The copyright laws affect both the research and the publication of your > genealogy, either a narrative family history or a simple pedigree family > line. First, though, consider that the basic facts about your ancestor's life > (such as name, birth date and place, marriage partner, date and place, and > death date and place) do not receive copyright protection, no matter their > source. Whether you went to the county courthouse, rented a microfilm of the > relevant records, or found the data in a commercial CD-ROM, the basic facts > of a person's life may be freely copied; they are in the public domain. This is probly true, but what it didn't say is.... If you invent a certain program, or format, to "present" this material, that program or format is under copyright. You can use the information that is under public domain, but you can't use the format without permission, i.e. the "Family Tree Maker Viewer" that is built into Family Tree Maker, used to present various records. Tree