Copyright

I have tried to be really careful about copyright issues and, since the learning log is actually a blog and not an assignment, it's a little easier to avoid copyright issues if you simply type what you have learnt and, if you use something you've picked up somewhere else, you cite. At this point I haven't actually used anything from anyone else...I've just reported on my experiences. It kind of feels strange - when I do an assignment I refer regularly to specific articles, books, pictures etc and they are all cited. This is different - it's my personal diary. I've used a pic from my own collection, I've worked through the exercises and I've blogged about them. I think I'll have to go through every one of my posts just to make sure I haven't unwittingly referred to some article etc without referencing!

As for the Curtin Logo question (NET11 Module 3 Study Guide, Curtin University), I think it would depend on the intentions of the user. Really it's unlikely there would be a valid reason for using the Curtin logo unless you have been specifically authorised to do so. More to the point, if someone is purporting to be authorised to use the logo but isn't actually authorised to us it, that would be a breach of copyright. Eg. If I use the logo to suggest I am a Curtin employee or to give my document some sort of credibility, then that would be a breach of copyright.

The Curtin website has a section entitled 'Copyright and disclaimer', and under that heading there is the following copyright statement:

"Copyright statement
Unless otherwise stated, the material published within the Curtin website is Curtin copyright.

Information for students and staff about copyright can be found Curtin University of Technology's copyright website.

Under the "fair dealing" provisions of the Commonwealth of Australia Copyright Act 1968 an individual may make a single copy of a "reasonable portion" of the material on this site without prior permission or payment, provided it is for the purposes of research or study, criticism or review.

Limited amounts of material may also be used by educational institutions or other agencies that participate in a statutory licence agreement in accordance with Part VB of the Copyright Act.

Aside from these specific uses, no part of this site may be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the specific written permission of Curtin first-hand and obtained. Generally speaking, the University is disposed to allow a "reasonable portion" of the material on this site to be reproduced and communicated for educational or non-commercial purposes, provided that:

express permission is sought and granted beforehand; and
due acknowledgement is given as to the source of the material so used.

I think that says it all. Even if the copyright statement was not included, the Curtin logo is copyright protected because it is owned by Curtin. However, if the logo was included because it was part of an imaged document or was necessary for the purposes of research and study, and it was suitably referenced, that would be considered fair use. I found lots of info on what is considered okay and under what circumstances, but I didn't find anything about use of the Curtin logo except as noted above.