Originally Posted by
nativetexan
copyrights are going into the bin due to the internet and all the sites there in. so many quilters are posting tutorials on how to make blocks or quilts that designers sell patterns for. it's happening every day. so things will be changing some time but i dont' know how they are going to handle this. I think the world is to big to put manacles on everyone.
You know, they need to start with a basic premise that any design in the public domain CAN NOT be later copyrighted by anyone. The person seeking the copyright should have to prove to the best of their ability that "Their" pattern did not exist prior to their making it.