The American Atlas

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1. perl4everMay 2018
   I once ran across a book of changes over time to local time zones, I believe for historical research. It was the size of a phone book.

   Ah yes, American Atlas: United States Latitudes, Longitudes, Time Changes and Time Zones 5th Edition by Thomas G. Shanks 448 pages.

   Covers probably well over 100K locations each with its own history of timekeeping.

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2. acqqOct 2011
   The relevant quotes in tzdata are in the files (tzcode and tzdata are public domain):

   northamerica:

     # From Paul Eggert (2006-03-22):
     # A good source for time zone historical data in the US is
     # Thomas G. Shanks, The American Atlas (5th edition),
     # San Diego: ACS Publications, Inc. (1991).
     # Make sure you have the errata sheet; the book is somewhat useless without it.
     # It is the source for most of the pre-1991 US entries below.
   

   europe:

     # From Paul Eggert (2006-03-22):
     # A good source for time zone historical data outside the U.S. is
     # Thomas G. Shanks and Rique Pottenger, The International Atlas (6th edition),
     # San Diego: ACS Publications, Inc. (2003).
   

   As far as I know, even if the book is copyrighted, the raw information contained in it shouldn't be?
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3. jezaOct 2011
   You can vote for the second review here.... ;-)

   http://www.amazon.com/American-Atlas-Expanded-5th/dp/0935127...

   edit: whoops direct link should be: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2BNKSLH3PYOCR/ref=cm_cr_dp_per...

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4. jerfOct 2011
   "The American Atlas (the work under debate) divides Indiana into 345 different areas"

   And the timezone file in question does not, unless I am very much mistaken. So even if we stipulate your point, which I don't, it wouldn't apply because the timezone isn't a copy of that aspect, and again, you can't copyright facts. Even if the timezone file used the same divisions, what would be protected is the Atlas' textual description of them, their textual history, whatever cute anecdotes are written up, not the fact of existence of 345 different areas in Indiana which have at some point had some sort of time zone difference.

   You can take whatever facts in the world you like from whatever source, write them up in your own words, and the original author of the facts has zero copyright claim on your words. Copyright protects expressions, not facts. If you're managed to stretch your definition of copyright to the point that it says you can actually own facts, you have, by definition, in fact exceeded the domain of copyright. Nobody owns those 345 different areas of Indiana, only the words creatively used to describe them.

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