cmaguire@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (Camm Maguire) (02/08/90)
Greetings! Many interesting responses have come in, one of which I'd like to address here. And that is the translation by H.A. Shakir, and published, I believe, by Tahrike Tarsile Qur'an Inc. I have a copy of the third edition, which was published in 1985. This translation, as was pointed out by a respondent and verified on my own copy, seems not to have any copyright information on it. This, however, does not mean that it is not copyrighted. If the first edition appeared without copyright notice before 1978, we can use it. Or, if the first edtion appeared without copyright notice after 1978 and no registration has been received in the US Copyright office within five years of the first publication, we can use it. Otherwise, it is protected. After a little research, the best dates I can find for the first edition are 1981 or 1982. However, the Princeton library has lost its copy of the first edition, so I know nothing of its copyright notice status. The nearest such copy to my area, I am told, is in the Columbia library. (Are there any netters in Columbia who could check this out?) In the case that the first publication date is after 1978 and copies of this edition do not have copyright notice, we would still have to do a search through the files at the US Copyright office, a service which they will perform for us for a small fee, but which would take 6-8 weeks. Even if it is protected, there is still a possibility that we might use it, as the preface states that the publisher is a non-profit organization which in addition to selling this translation also distributes copies free of charge as a service to Islam. It seems from my copy that the work could have been published posthumously, thereby further reducing the chances of a commercial interest. The only address is a PO Box 1115 in Elmhurst, New York, and the Post Office can only give further information after weeks of their own paperwork. New York telephone information gives no phone number. Any New Yorkers on the net who know how to chase this down? In addition to the respondents, I can also recommend Shakir's translation from my own limited study of this work. But unless anyone knows a way to resolve the question of its protection status, we may have to look elsewhere. In any case, what do people on the net think of the 6 translations I listed earlier, which we know are available? Let's discuss these, and then, if people are content with this range of choices, vote on them and start going. Many thanks to the offers to type, which keep coming in. I think we have about 40 confirmed and 60 possible now. And I am told that we have at least one scanner without restrictions. Great! Peace, Camm