A lobbying group in Washington recently released "The Netsurfer's Simple Guide To Copyrights," which distills U.S. copyright law into five maxims:

• If you didn't create a written work, art, photograph, or music, or obtain distribution rights to it, you don't own it.
  
  
• If you don't own it, you can't copy or distribute it.
  
  
• The author or owner must explicitly relinquish rights for a work to be placed in the public domain.
  
  
• Fair use allows copying of small portions of a work without the owner's permission, but only for criticism, education, and news reporting.
  
  
• When in doubt, ask for permission to use a work.