If you write it and put your name on it, there is a de facto copyright attached.  It
is incumbent on anyone using your work to seek your permission which you may or may
not grant with or without conditions.  It is my understanding that the jury is still
out on whether publication (posting) in various forums on the internet is the
equivalent of publishing in print.  The reality is that it's harder to control what
you put on the net.

All of that having been said, one should always credit the source.  It is the honest
thing to do and serves as a defense if the author takes exception to your use of his
material.  And unless the material quoted is relatively short and a small portion of
the original work, permission must be obtained.

Allen Dick wrote:

> > It would be very bad form though to quote a private conversation in a
> > public forum without letting you know I was quoting you first...
>
> > I've exchanged emails with researchers privately that I thought offered
> > some very good information or raised important points that i wanted to
> > discuss with b-eel subscribers, but when asked, they said no...
>
> For publications, as I understand it, there are legal rules in place as to how
> much one can quote without attribution or permission.  Context is important too.
> However, most of us are not too worried about the legal aspects compared to the
> moral questions, and usually making a good moral call leaves us on the safe side
> of the law.  Not always, but usually.