Is it ok to use materials that are not copyrighted?

[newbies]

Hello,

I found some text on a govnerment site which says "This text on this page is not copyrighted. We encourages users to duplicate and distribute as many copies as desired."

Is it OK to use this text on my site (certainly I will give citation)?

Thanks.

Newbies

[bufferzone]

If they directly encourage people to duplicate and distribute the material, it will be OK. I world always quote the original material and link back to the destination of origin and as a precautionary measure; I would e-mail the “owner” with the link.

[newbies]

Thanks, bufferzone.

It's interesting that they ENCOURAGE duplication. I think this situation is not common even for government site.