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Date:      Wed, 3 Mar 1999 04:53:13 -0500
From:      Rob <drifter@stratos.nospam.net>
To:        Matthew Hunt <mph@astro.caltech.edu>, "Ben J. Cohen" <bjc23@hermes.cam.ac.uk>
Cc:        questions@FreeBSD.ORG, freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject:   Re: The FreeBSD Dictionary
Message-ID:  <19990303045313.B1500@net>
In-Reply-To: <19990301135117.A74364@wopr.caltech.edu>; from Matthew Hunt on Mon, Mar 01, 1999 at 01:51:17PM -0800
References:  <Pine.BSF.4.05.9903012039050.1596-100000@bjc23.trin.cam.ac.uk> <19990301135117.A74364@wopr.caltech.edu>

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On Mon, Mar 01, 1999 at 01:51:17PM -0800, Matthew Hunt wrote:
> On Mon, Mar 01, 1999 at 09:24:10PM +0000, Ben J. Cohen wrote:
> 
> > I have been using it with a friend to try and solve crosswords and it
> > hasn't been too brilliant---for instance it doesn't have the words
> > "Internet" or "cheapskate".  (Of course, our crossword solving skill
> > aren't brilliant either.)
> 
> Note the README:
> 
> # Welcome to web2 (Webster's Second International) all 234,936 words worth.
> # The 1934 copyright has elapsed, according to the supplier.  The
> # supplemental 'web2a' list contains hyphenated terms as well as assorted
> # noun and adverbial phrases.  The wordlist makes a dandy 'grep' victim.
> 
> The lack of "Internet" in a 1934 dictionary should not be surprising.
> We have that dictionary because its copyright expired, not because
> anyone donated it.  I don't know whether there are any more recent
> or more complete dictionaries available for free.
> 
> -- 
> Matthew Hunt <mph@astro.caltech.edu> * Science rules.
> http://www.pobox.com/~mph/           *

     This might sound like a stupid question, but how is it possible
to "copyright" a dictionary?  I(c) mean(c), they(c) don't(c) own(c)
the(c) words(c), do they?
     At the very least, it would seem that Webster's would be hard-
pressed to prove that somebody "stole" their word list.

     -Rob


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