Tag: minimalism

  • The Undeniable Tour Day 10 – Life is about Experiences

    The Redwood Forest at the Trees of Mystery
    The Redwood Forest at the Trees of Mystery

    I recently saw an article pass through my Facebook feed that says people who focus on experiences rather than possessions are happier. I couldn’t agree more.

    Dylan and Me at the Trees of Mystery - look at giant Paul Bunyan in the background!
    Dylan and Me at the Trees of Mystery – look at giant Paul Bunyan in the background!

    This morning I woke up at the hostel at Point Reyes after sleeping like a rock, had breakfast with my fellow travelers, and headed north in the Maven Mobile (courtesy of my sponsor Web3Mavens). I drove through the gorgeous Redwood Forest to Crescent City. (I’ll be speaking at Lewis and Clark in Portland on Monday.) Photographs do not do justice to how beautiful this area is.

    Just south of Crescent City is the Trees of Mystery in Klamath, CA. I don’t know what the mystery was but the view was amazing – huge trees as far as the eye could see. I met a fellow traveler named Dylan in the parking lot and we trooped through the trees and rode the Sky Train to the observation deck. We discovered that we both have discarded many physical possessions in favor of freedom and adventure. I definitely get more joy from what I do than from what I own.

    Sometimes I have to step a back and remember that I’m on a business trip. I’ve always known that I didn’t want a traditional legal career, but I had no idea that my professional life could be this good. I have seen the most beautiful things and met the most amazing people in the last five years. I am grateful for all that I have, all that I get to do, and that I get to share part of it with others during The Undeniable Tour.

    If you are interested in connecting with me while I am traveling please follow me on Twitter. If you have any questions or comments about The Undeniable Tour, please shoot me an email.

    The Undeniable Tour would not be possible without my awesome sponsors: Web3Mavens, Enchanting Lawyer, Total Networks, and Attorney at Work.

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    Ruth Carter

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  • Burning CDs and Copyright Law

    CD Reflections by spcbrass from Flicker (Creative Commons License)
    CD Reflections by spcbrass from Flicker (Creative Commons License)

    One of my favorite minimalists shared a post by Lindsay Schauer about the eight things you can live without on Twitter last week, and it kicked off a legal discussion and he asked me to comment. One of the things Lindsay said to get rid of is your CD collection – burn them to your hard drive and get rid of the physical CDs themselves. That makes a lot of sense. A single CD doesn’t take up much space but a collection of jewel cases does.

    I put my CDs in a CD binder and chucked the cases years ago, but can you legally copy a CD you own and keep that instead of the disk?  Probably.

    The copyright holder (likely the record label or the artist) controls when/where/how their work is copied, distributed, and performed. When you buy a CD, you only purchase the tangible object – not the intellectual property rights. Just like when you want to get rid of an old book you can give it away, throw it away, or sell it to a second hand store, the same is true for CDs. However, you can’t make a photocopy of the book so you can keep the original for yourself and give a copy to a friend. The same is true for CDs. (Yes, all those copies of CDs you burned from or for your friends are probably illegal.)

    CDs by borkur.net from Flickr (Creative Commons License)
    CDs by borkur.net from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

    If you legally purchased a CD, you can make a copy of it for “archival” purposes. This prevents you from having to buy a new one in the event the CD gets lost, damaged, broken, or used as a Frisbee, coaster, or for an art project. The same rule applies for making a copy of computer software that you’ve legally purchased.

    So can you take Lindsay’s advice and copy all your CDs to your hard drive and chuck the originals? Yes, if you legally purchased the albums. You can only make one copy for yourself. You can’t make copies for your friends.

    The purpose of the copyright law is to give artists rights in their work and allow them to profit from selling it. An archival copy is supposed to be a backup for the original, so some copyright holders may frown on people who make an archival copy of a CD and sell the original. (You’re starting to look like the guy who sells a book to a friend but keeps a photocopy of it for himself.) There’s an argument that you’re committing copyright infringement; however, the amount you’re making isn’t really cutting into their profits, and the artist might be happy that more people are being exposed to their music. If someone is concerned about their rights and maximizing profits, they might be less upset if you throw the CD away or repurpose it into a coaster so anyone else who wants the album has to buy it.

    The good news in copyright infringement cases is the only person who can come after you for copyright infringement is the copyright holder. If they don’t know what you’re doing or don’t care, they will never come after you.

    If you want to chat with me about this or any other topic, you can connect with me on Twitter, Google+, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, or you can email me.
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    Ruth Carter

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