LSAT 123 | Section 4 | Reading Comprehension: Q17

RC Question 17 Explanation

DISCUSSION: Before answering this, you should ask yourself what the author thinks about web documents. Generally, we know they think that:

• Linking to web pages should be allowed.
• Owners can restrict access to their web pages if they want to.
• Restricting this access would reduce the openness of the web, but it’s better than changing copyright law.

___________

1. This answer contradicts lines 44-49. The author says that site owners have tools to restrict access, such as passwords.
2. This is pretty extreme. It implies that if even one copyrighted web page is restricted, then the openness of the web is significantly harmed.
3. This contradicts lines 44-49. Passwords do allow you to restrict access to a web page, even if a link to it works instantly.
4. No. The author said we should not change legal codes (lines 50-52), and that there are already methods of protection (lines 44-49).
5. CORRECT. Lines 44-51 show this is true. Sites can password restrict pages if they want (e.g. Wall Street Journal articles are subscriber-only). This does restrict the openness of the web, even though it’s still better than making linking illegal.