Nowadays software engineers not only have to worry about the technical knowledge needed to do their job, but they are increasingly having to know about the legal, professional and commercial context in which they must work. With the explosion of the Internet and major changes to the field with the introduction of the new Data Protection Act and the legal status of software engineers, it is now essential that they have an appreciation of a wide variety of issues outside the technical. Equally valuable to both students and practitioners, it brings together the expertise and experience of leading academics in software engineering, law, industrial relations, and health and safety, explaining the central principles and issues in each field and shows how they apply to software engineering.

This book was first published in 2005. Copyright 'exceptions' or 'users' rights' have become a highly controversial aspect of copyright law. Most recently, Member States of the European Union have been forced to amend their systems of exceptions so as to comply with the Information Society Directive. Taking the newly amended UK legislation as a case study, this book examines why copyright exceptions are necessary and the forces that have shaped the present legislative regime in the UK. It seeks to further our understanding of the exceptions by combining detailed doctrinal analysis with insights gained from a range of other sources. The principal argument of the book is that the UK's current system of 'permitted acts' is much too restrictive and hence is in urgent need of reform, but that paradoxically the Information Society Directive points the way towards a much more satisfactory approach.

This book was first published in 2005. Copyright 'exceptions' or 'users' rights' have become a highly controversial aspect of copyright law. Most recently, Member States of the European Union have been forced to amend their systems of exceptions so as to comply with the Information Society Directive. Taking the newly amended UK legislation as a case study, this book examines why copyright exceptions are necessary and the forces that have shaped the present legislative regime in the UK. It seeks to further our understanding of the exceptions by combining detailed doctrinal analysis with insights gained from a range of other sources. The principal argument of the book is that the UK's current system of 'permitted acts' is much too restrictive and hence is in urgent need of reform, but that paradoxically the Information Society Directive points the way towards a much more satisfactory approach.

Nowadays software engineers not only have to worry about the technical knowledge needed to do their job, but they are increasingly having to know about the legal, professional and commercial context in which they must work. With the explosion of the Internet and major changes to the field with the introduction of the new Data Protection Act and the legal status of software engineers, it is now essential that they have an appreciation of a wide variety of issues outside the technical.
Equally valuable to both students and practitioners, it brings together the expertise and experience of leading academics in software engineering, law, industrial relations, and health and safety, explaining the central principles and issues in each field and shows how they apply to software engineering.
Key Features:
* new and updated edition of a highly successful textbook for students and professional software engineers
* most other books on the subject look at specific languages in software engineering - this looks at specific issues in the context of software engineering
* covers the major changes that have occurred in recent years in the field
Professional Issues in Software Engineering covers all the key issues that students and professionals should have to think about. These include:
* commercial and financial frameworks
* the effect of new technology on employment
* the safety and reliability of computer systems
* health and safety in the workplace
* intellectual property rights in software
* computer contracts
* computer misuse