The above links are only three of the very useful primers available through a site maintained by the Library of Congress in conjunction with the U.S. Copyright Office. Most of these documents are also available for download in PDF format. The full list of Circulars and Factsheets is available at: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/circs/
Copyright Tutorial Series - North Carolina State University Libraries
A series of easy to understand, step by step tutorials on U.S. copyright law
aimed at faculty, staff, and students:
http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scc/tutorial/
When Works Pass Into The Public Domain
A simple chart explaining the relevant U.S. Copyright law in relation to the age of a work. Created and updated by Laura N. Gasaway, Director of the Law Library & Professor of Law, University of North Carolina. Incidentally, this is one of the most linked-to web pages on the Internet for copyright information.
http://www.unc.edu/%7Eunclng/public-d.htm
NELINET Digital Library Resources on Copyright
A very good collection of sites with brief annotations on linked sites, page also includes links to sites on Digital Watermarks. NELINET is a non-profit membership cooperative of libraries on New England.
http://www.nelinet.net/digital/resources/copyright.htm
10 Big Myths about copyright explained
After you feel fairly comfortable with copyright lingo, here's an
entertaining essay on ten misconceptions.
http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html