What is a copyright violation, or piracy? A copyright is a legal entitlement that says "this is my product and/or symbol, no one else can use it". It allows a person or company to get the benefits and entitlements to something they have created, and not have someone else steal it from them. It is a Federal law in the US, and in most other countries of the world. Most countries uphold the copyright laws of other countries, and it is beneficial for international commerce to do so. That means Daytona International Speedway can sue a company in Europe for using their logos. Piracy is taking a a software program that was written by someone else, and either claiming that it was written by the pirate, or distributing it for free, thereby bypassing the income that is legally due to the company or individual that wrote it. Here at NPN, we also consider freeware part of piracy, as someone else can steal an author's work and claim it as their own. For an even more detailed explanation of what is and what isn't considered piracy or copyright violations, read this.

Why are you trying to stop people from posting tracks? We aren't, only trying to stop people from posting them illegally. There is a proper way to post tracks, and one that doesn't breach copyright or piracy rules, you can see that in a question below. We are not out to spoil everyone's fun. However, we are trying to increase awareness as to the proper way to display or post such projects, and help people who would like to do so. At The Pits we've been at the forefront of trying to bring racers new and realistic ways to race, and we'll do it legally.

What are the fines associated with copyright violations? Anywhere between $200 and $100,000...check out the law as to what it really says.

Aren't driver, sponsor, and track logos copyrighted? Why aren't you doing anything about that? Yes they are...but we do not bother with them for one simple reason...the companies don't seem to care about logos being distributed and posted. There are several reasons for this, one of them being that this is really free advertisement for a sponsor, track, or race team. So why bite the hand that feeds you, especially when it comes to free advertisement?

I've heard that you can post tracks...how can I do that legally? You can post tracks on the internet, however, they need to follow one simple format...that copyrighted Papyrus code is not being distributed as well. You can distribute everything in a package, so if you decide to change a track from one to another, instead of posting the entire finished product, you need to distribute it as a 'kit', that creates the new track using your new files, and the copy of the track that can be found on the user's hard drive. That way, you are not giving someone a way to get software which they originally did not purchase. This goes for all types of software, not just tracks.

I've written a program for a racing sim, and would like to copyright it...how can I do that? Go to the US Copyright Office, and take a look through here...this site will tell you how, and give you the forms to do so.

Who do you think you are? The net police? No, we're not, nor do we intend to be. We are merely advisors, and we attempt to help others learn the rules, so that they know the right and wrong way to post software on the internet. We are concerned only with racing software, not anything else. If you have any questions about copyrights, piracy, or how to properly create a legal software patch, please feel free to ask any of our members.