Copyrighted Text Documents

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  • brian Rupnow
    Senior Member
    • Mar 2008
    • 12904

    Copyrighted Text Documents

    This is a strange question, and its not a question I even know how to ask properly. Sorry, its not machining related, but there is such a large pool of talent on this forum that someone may be able to help me. My wife has started her own home business doing resumes and career change consulting. Her customers give her the information about their background, work experience, etcetera, and she does up a professional resume for them. Now, here's the rub. She emails someone the resume for their approval. In theory, they suggest a change here or there OR they accept the resume as is---and in THEORY they pay for the work. However, they may well choose to keep and use the resume and NOT pay for it. This happens very easily if it is sent as a Word document. If it is saved and sent as a pdf, there is now free software that will convert the pdf to a word document. I think that there is probably something available that can be electronically "stamped" with my wife's company name in large block letters across the face of the "sheet" that are a light semi-transparent color, with the actual resume printed in normal type face on the same sheet. It must then have the ability to be emailed so the customer can review it, but not be editable in any way. That way, the not so honest folks out there won't be able to copy it, nor edit it, nor save it as something else that will get rid of my wife's company name and logo stamped across the front of it. I know that won't stop the really crooked people from simply retyping it, but as least it would be a good deterrent. Does anyone know of something like that? If so, it would be a great help to my wife's fledgling company.---Thanks---Brian
    Brian Rupnow
    Design engineer
    Barrie, Ontario, Canada
  • John Stevenson
    Senior Member
    • Mar 2001
    • 16177

    #2
    Brian,
    Adobe can do this but a more cost effective program, cheaper and quicker is Foxit, do a google on it.
    .

    Sir John , Earl of Bligeport & Sudspumpwater. MBE [ Motor Bike Engineer ] Nottingham England.



    Comment

    • wierdscience
      Senior Member
      • Jan 2003
      • 22085

      #3
      I don't know how it's done,but I recently reviewed a bid from a vendor at work that had a neat security feature.They sent a link to a webpage that displayed the bid,but wouldn't allow it to be printed.Only after the bid was accepted would they send a printable version via e-mail.
      Maybe something similar would work?
      I just need one more tool,just one!

      Comment

      • Mike Burdick
        Senior Member
        • Jan 2003
        • 2008

        #4
        Brian,

        Your wife needs to have her clients sign a "work order" or a contract stating what work she will provide or do BEFORE SHE DOES ANYTHING. This way she''ll have legal standing against them in court should she need to go that route. A resume is such a small document that retyping it to get off the water mark is no big deal. As for a "protection scheme" on a document she sends via email or "special" web page - the "Prnt Scrn" button on every computer will defeat that!
        Last edited by Mike Burdick; 12-30-2013, 11:04 PM.

        Comment

        • sasquatch
          Senior Member
          • May 2006
          • 4957

          #5
          I have seen that , on photograph sites of someones photo, and across the photo in faint but ledgible print is their name.
          This i presume is to deter people who will print off their photo.

          Comment

          • PStechPaul
            Senior Member
            • Oct 2013
            • 8095

            #6
            One simple way to do this is by converting the document to a low-res JPG image, which may also contain the "watermark" background with the copyright notice. You could also replace the person's name with something like <name inserted here> and other deliberate "munges" that are plainly visible and understood to be replaced with the correct information in the final paid-for copy.

            Web pages can be protected using various options, such as Unicode character representation and HTML encryption. I found this:


            And this:


            It may be an interesting case to determine the copyright owner of material that is supplied by a potential customer and the actual intellectual property and item to be protected is the layout and formatting of the document.
            http://pauleschoen.com/pix/PM08_P76_P54.png
            Paul , P S Technology, Inc. and MrTibbs
            USA Maryland 21030

            Comment

            • Boucher
              Senior Member
              • Jul 2005
              • 2130

              #7
              I have encountered some documents that could not be printed. Small portions of the text could not even be highlighted in order to manipulate it. This was from a source associated with publishing books.
              Byron Boucher
              Burnet, TX

              Comment

              • KJ1I
                Senior Member
                • Jun 2013
                • 924

                #8
                Sorry to be the nay sayer, but the $69 software package I have for creating pdf documents will strip watermarks. There are also quite a few utilities to strip security out of pdf documents. If you can read it, you can copy it (either easily or not quite as easily). In reality, the only way to avoid the situation is to require payment up front, with a satisfaction guarantee. Even then, some will be happy and still ask for a refund. (Just see the Everlast {?} at Home Depot thread.)
                Kevin

                More tools than sense.

                Comment

                • gambler
                  Senior Member
                  • Jun 2009
                  • 1093

                  #9
                  Originally posted by KJ1I View Post
                  Sorry to be the nay sayer, but the $69 software package I have for creating pdf documents will strip watermarks. There are also quite a few utilities to strip security out of pdf documents. If you can read it, you can copy it (either easily or not quite as easily). In reality, the only way to avoid the situation is to require payment up front, with a satisfaction guarantee. Even then, some will be happy and still ask for a refund. (Just see the Everlast {?} at Home Depot thread.)
                  that's a smart idea right there.
                  san jose, ca. usa

                  Comment

                  • jep24601
                    Senior Member
                    • Jun 2010
                    • 1148

                    #10
                    Originally posted by PStechPaul View Post
                    One simple way to do this is by converting the document to a low-res JPG image, which may also contain the "watermark" background with the copyright notice..
                    That was my first though also.
                    "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel"

                    Comment

                    • dp
                      Senior Member
                      • Mar 2005
                      • 12048

                      #11
                      Word can save as read-only. That and really crazy type faces or using a line-through can discourage reproduction/editing, and can even stop some scanner/text conversion software from recreating the raw text from a scanned image. And you can also use a screen capture and send the resume as a video. That is built into the Mac. And you can also ask for a PayPal payment before even starting.

                      Comment

                      • Jaakko Fagerlund
                        Senior Member
                        • Dec 2010
                        • 3256

                        #12
                        LibreOffice Writer allows making PDF's with just a couple of clicks and includes the possibility to set passwords and wanted protection level. How effective they are is another thing. That program also can do watermarking if I remember correctly. And the beaty is that it doesn't cost anything
                        Amount of experience is in direct proportion to the value of broken equipment.

                        Comment

                        • Paul Alciatore
                          Senior Member
                          • May 2002
                          • 17491

                          #13
                          It took me a few minutes to figure out how to do this with Microsoft Paint.



                          First I created a background sheet with the "SAMPLE" text in a light color copied several times down the sheet. It could be any text, color, and brightness/saturation. Then I copied some text on a document I was working on for another post here. It could contain photos also. I opened the document in Word (or any other program for that matter) and used the Alt-Prt Scr button combination on the keyboard to copy it. That copies the contents of the current open window on your screen. Then I went to Paint where I changed the size of the canvas to 4000 pixels vertically and selected Transparent Selection in the Selection menu. I pasted it with the Ctrl-V key combination. You need to be careful to position it before clicking outside of the image that is being pasted. It took two such copy and paste actions to get the whole page as I am working on a laptop with a small screen. I pasted the second/bottom half well below the first and then reselected just the part that I needed to complete the page. I ran the selection rectangle mid way through a line of text near it's top so I could exactly match it up with the first half. I dragged it to the approximate position and used the cursor keys to get it exactly positioned.

                          Then the canvas size was reduced to a single page size and I was done. I saved it as a JPEG image for posting but any image format that Paint supports can be selected.

                          It is an image so the text can not be directly and easily edited. Nor can it be copied without getting the watermark. However, it is fairly easy to read. It can be viewed and printed full size with the Windows LivePhoto Gallery program on all Windows computers but the watermark will show either way. A page can be watermarked in this manner with a program (Paint) that is on every Windows PC so no extra expense is involved. And even if they do remove the watermark, which could be done with the paint bucket tool and some effort, it is a JPEG image that is somewhat rough so it is not suitable for presentation to a prospective employer. At least, I wouldn't.
                          Last edited by Paul Alciatore; 12-31-2013, 01:27 AM.
                          Paul A.
                          s
                          Golden Triangle, SE Texas

                          And if you look REAL close at an analog signal,
                          You will find that it has discrete steps.

                          Comment

                          • Blackadder
                            Senior Member
                            • Mar 2005
                            • 199

                            #14
                            Paul
                            Don't use pink as a water mark most/all photocopiers will not see it in BW mode , water mark gone.

                            Of course a colour one will.

                            A better way do a low res img. Photocopy it a few times ,the copy that is in each case thus degrading the img. To a very poor but readable form the next copy will make it unusable and not fit for purpose

                            Stuart

                            Comment

                            • elf
                              Senior Member
                              • May 2011
                              • 2079

                              #15
                              None of the above will prevent the unscrupulous customer from simply retyping the document. A simple signed contract and the willingness to sue is your best option.

                              Comment

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