Old gamma world modules

[Kefrem]

I'm tryin to track down the original gamma world modules....alpha factor,etc in a pdf form. Everywhere I go they list they existed but theres no way to buy and/or download them.

I don't like backwater sites...usually have malware. Anyone got any links they can point me towards?

[LordEntrails]

Not sure what edition "alpha factor" is, but I assume you checked Drivethru? https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?keywords=gamma+world&x=0&y=0&author=&artist=&pfrom=&pto=

[Kefrem]

yea..they didn't have it. These are REAL old adventures for the GW 2nd edition game from in the late 70's early 80's.

[TriOpticon]

I think Alpha Factor was 3rd edition? Or, did they have one for 2e?

[Kefrem]

not sure...its been sooooooo long.

[Trenloe]

Please only discuss and recommend 100% legal sources on these forums please!

[Andraax]

Why do you think that Scribd is not 100% legal?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scribd

[Moon Wizard]

I've seen lots of illegal copies on Scribd for quite a bit of RPG material. I think Scribd doesn't perform any checks for copyright material, and requires the license hold to find and request removal.

Regards,
JPG

[damned]

I have zero doubt that scribd is not 100% legal.
There is massive amounts of material posted there by people who have no rights to the material they are posting.

Kefrem Im not aware of any legal source for that content.

[Andraax]

Then I'm wondering why companies including Bloomsbury, Harlequin, HarperCollins, Penguin Random House, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Lonely Planet, Macmillan, Perseus Book Group, Simon & Schuster, Wiley, and Workman all have deals with scribd. You'd think they would try to put it out of business if it was not up to snuff...

[Topdecker]

Scribd is one shady place.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Piracy/comments/1bjnlm/why_you_should_hate_scribd/

[Topdecker]

BTW, OP, if you are not aware, Mutant Crawl Classics might help you get your dose of radiation

[Andraax]

Yeah, I'd still have to wonder why the largest publisher in the world - Penguin Random House - would do business with (and even host their titles) on such a shady platform. Guess their legal department is not up to snuff like the random people who post on reddit are...

Scribd, Piracy, and Why You Can’t Always Believe What You Read Online (https://the-digital-reader.com/2014/03/10/scribd-piracy-cant-always-belive-read-online/)

I mean, the government even sued them a couple years ago because they weren't ADA compliant. I guess the government wants to make sure that the disabled have access to illegal content as well... (Instead of shutting them down).

[damned]

The validity of the bulk of their content, agreements with publishers, a subscription model etc does not mean that all content on scribd is legally permitted to be there.
I have many times found content on scribd that has no valid license.
If the ip owner does not challenge the content being on scribd and does not do it according to scribd's required format then the content will stay.
The Wizards would see content ad have it removed quickly.
The rights holder to a long out of print product may never become aware of the infringement or may not have the time or will to challenge its availability on scribd.
That does not validate the content being there.

[Andraax]

The original distribution rights for TSR (Wizards) Gamma World stuff was Penquin Publishing in the US, and Random House in Canada. The two publishers have since merged. Penguin Random House is a publishing partner with Scribd. So, I would assume that any Gamma World titles on Scribd are there legally, with the knowledge of the IP owner.

[Moon Wizard]

That’s a big assumption, and I wouldn’t take that bet into court.

We try to do our best to follow laws and do good by our publishers. We don’t police, unless it’s FG content.

Cheers,
JPG

[Andraax]

Well, all I got to say at this point is that Scribd has been taken to court - several times - and the result has always been the same; charges dismissed or the complainant dropping the suit. The only one they settled was the ADA one, where they had to provide their services to the disabled. Even the two class action suits against them were dropped. So, either they're doing nothing wrong, or they have a legal defense team that's better than the legal teams at the largest publishers on the planet...

Oh, and as an aside, similar claims were brought against Amazon back in the early 2000s. Just because random people make claims on the Internet doesn't mean they're actually true.

[damned]

Charges/claims can be dropped for various reasons.
They can be dropped for cost. They can be dropped because a settlement has been reached. They can be drooped because an undertaking has been agreed to.
Hopefully scribd are better at their jobs today than they were in the past and hopefully they continue to get better.

As to Gamma World - it was uploaded by the following user: https://www.scribd.com/user/27386068/The-Lyon

Looking at the other content uploaded by this entity I would suggest they are not acting on behalf of either of those publishing houses. I would suggest they do not have the legal right to upload that particular piece of content to scribd either legally or by scribds terms and conditions. Of course - these are assumptions on my behalf.

[OTG_Wraith]

Why is this thread here at all at this point?

It's like we're saying it's ok to post pirated materials sites as long as we argue about it.

[Bidmaron]

Well, I can see both sides. The OP would have gone to a legal source to purchase if there had been one. On the other hand, an IP owner has no obligation to publish his material (at least that I know of).

It sucks that folks have to police the entire internet to protect their rights, but this is not a new phenomenon. The US Navy regularly conducts freedom of navigation exercises to sail through excessive offshore claimed water that is not in accordance with international law. This is because if you don't do that, the waters eventually become the property of the claimant.

In most states, a landowner has an obligation to protect his land. After a varying amount of time, a squatter can claim the land solely because the property owner failed to evict the squatter.

The point is that what Scribd might be doing is not that unusual in the world of property, both real and intellectual. I am not defending any of this, just saying it is not very unusual. Even real property can be legally stolen by someone in most of the world if the owner fails to enforce his rights.

[damned]

What scribd is doing is allowing people to upload content that isnt theirs and then charge people for access to it.
Now 99% of their content may be legitimate (Im not going to guess at the %) but everytime I search for something and it shows up on scribd Im highly doubtful.

[Trenloe]

Why is this thread here at all at this point?

It's like we're saying it's ok to post pirated materials sites as long as we argue about it.
I totally agree.

[Full Bleed]

Why is this thread here at all at this point?

It's like we're saying it's ok to post pirated materials sites as long as we argue about it.
I think it's here because regardless of whether some people are offended by some of the content on the site, blackballing a "legit" site isn't the solution (and it seems like that is what might have been where things were going earlier in the thread before Andraax started pushing back a bit.)

*EVERY* file share site on the internet has instances of copyright infringement. It comes with the territory. But you don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. YouTube anyone?

Early Gamma World editions, for example, probably fall into the same category as Star Frontiers. And for over a decade WotC allowed "Remastered" and unofficial pdf's of it to be widely distributed. It's only once they started offering "official" PoD versions of the property in the last year that they changed course and asked the remasters to be removed from public consumption. I'd pause before assuming that early, out-of-print, and unavailable editions of GW sit in a more protected class than Star Frontiers did (pre-PoD availability.)

[Kefrem]

darn..i had hoped somewhere might have it...tried drivethrurpg.....hoped I could buy it there...darn. Not sure what to do now? how old does something gotta be to be like abandonedware...or does that not work with pnp stuff?

[Trenloe]

how old does something gotta be to be like abandonedware...or does that not work with pnp stuff?
https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ15a.pdf

[LordEntrails]

Trenloe's link details it, but for quick reference, it's a minimum of 70 years.

[Patou]

I'm tryin to track down the original gamma world modules....alpha factor,etc in a pdf form. Everywhere I go they list they existed but theres no way to buy and/or download them.

I don't like backwater sites...usually have malware. Anyone got any links they can point me towards?

Hi Kefrem,

I'll check my stuff but I think i purchased that back in the day and actually own it... the physical copy. I'll do some digging tonight and let you know.

[Patou]

This is all I got.. sorry.

[Patou]

Sorry.. unable to post picture.

* Treasures of the Ancients
* The Rule Book (4th printing)
* All Animals Are Equal

I don't have what you're looking for.

[Nylanfs]

Trenloe's link details it, but for quick reference, it's a minimum of 70 years.

Thanks Disney! </sarcasm>

Seriously, the original 28 years with a single 14 year extension was perfectly fine.

[Moon Wizard]

For our forums, we plan to remove links to content that is not officially published by the publisher who owns the license, as a general business decision to protect our publishers, either current or prospective. Going to go ahead and close this thread, instead of continue the debate, since it won't change our company position.

Regards,
JPG