Margaret wrote: >I would like to cite material in a Ph.D dissertation which is unpublished in book form, but published electronically by the university and publicly available through the university. The author, of course, retains copyright. >My question is whether I should contact the author when I know specifically what I would cite or should I ask permission giving a general guideline of the material I am interested in? So really a question of timing. Is there a protocol for this? I do not expect to quote from the material extensively; it is more for sourcing historical context. Margaret, Citing someone's work does not require permission. Quoting someone's work can require permission, depending upon how much is used. The old "rule of three," which I learned decades ago as a history major, usually works at times like this. - If we quote more than three words in a string, we use quotation marks. - If we quote more than three or so sentences from a short work (like an article), we should ask permission. - If we quote more than three or so paragraphs from a long work (such as a dissertation or book), we should ask permission. Elizabeth ---------------------------------------------- Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG www.HistoricPathways.com www.EvidenceExplained.com AUTHOR OF: Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers & Librarians & now . at Louisiana State University Press: The Forgotten People: Cane River's Creoles of Color New edition-significantly revised and expanded