Field Notes Journal Entry
A Note on Sharing
A short note on how the material in Field Notes Journal is shared, and what matters in its use.
Over the past few days I have made a small change to the way material on this site is licensed. It is not a change that alters the appearance of the work, but it does alter, quietly, what that work is for once it leaves the page.
The Question
The question that prompted it was a simple one. What do I actually care about when I share something?
There are several possible answers. Control, perhaps, or the prevention of certain kinds of use. But when reduced to its essentials, my own answer turned out to be more limited, and more straightforward.
What Matters
First, that the work should be credited. The observations, photographs, and datasets gathered here are the result of time spent in particular places, often over long intervals. It seems reasonable that this should be acknowledged.
Second, that the material should be as easy as possible to use. If an image, a note, or a dataset proves useful elsewhere - in a piece of writing, in a small publication, or in some form of study - then it is better that it can be taken up without difficulty or uncertainty.
And third, that I do not, in practice, have a strong interest in restricting commercial use. Once the work is properly attributed, the distinction between commercial and non-commercial use feels less important than the question of whether the material continues to be used at all.
The Change
These considerations led me to change the licence under which the site’s content is shared. The material is now released under the Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 licence, which permits reuse, adaptation, and redistribution, including for commercial purposes, provided that appropriate attribution is given.
In practical terms, this is a small adjustment. The structure of the site remains the same. The observations, images, and datasets are presented as before. But the conditions under which they may be taken up elsewhere are now simpler and more permissive.
A Consistent System
The change also brings a certain consistency. The software that supports parts of this project is already released under a permissive licence, and the same now applies to the photographs shared alongside it, both on this site and via Pixelfed. Aligning the treatment of code, images, and data produces a more coherent whole: material that may be used, modified, and carried forward, provided that its origin remains visible.
A Note On Use
For a project of this kind, that seems the appropriate balance. These notes are, in part, a record - of place, of season, and of change over time. But a record has value not only in being kept, but in being used. If it can be taken up elsewhere, cited, adapted, or extended, then it becomes part of something larger than the site on which it first appeared.
Closing
The change, then, is a modest one. But it alters, in a quiet way, the direction in which the work points: not only inward, as a record of observation, but outward, as material that may continue to travel.
For details of the licence and suggested attribution, see the Licensing and Use page.