Sources close to a certain Jed Schmidt are reporting that the man has come up with a clever way to copy and paste text from the iPhone's Safari to Mail, but also between web pages. The hack doesn't require any software installation, making it completely legal to use, reports indicate.

“Unlike other approaches, it works with the two apps that matter most, Mail and Safari, and gets around Apple’s onerous App Store terms through a clever combination of javascript bookmarks and web services,” a description over at Gizmodo goes. According to the report, Pastebud doesn’t require anything to be installed. Therefore, the service doesn't need to pass Apple's rigorous tests for a spot in the App Store.

Pastebud works using two bookmarks in Safari, one of which prepares and loads the page you are viewing, standing by for you to select the text. By accessing the second bookmark you can copy any text you want. You can even switch pages and the clipping stays. According to Jed Schmidt, the creator of Pastebud, he and his fellow developers have been testing it for about a week now. Currently, they are “putting the finishing touches on the web site before launch.”

Cut & paste / copy-paste iPhone has been (and still is) one of the most requested features on the iPhone, since its debut last year. Apple has rolled out numerous software updates adding ever more functionality to the device, most of which has rubbed off on its media-playing sibling, the iPhone touch. However, both devices have been in desperate need of copy-paste functionality, if we are to go by mile-long threads on Apple's Discussions forum.

Once the service is out, we'll make sure to post an update letting you in on the big news. In the meanwhile, watch the video demonstration below, and use the comments to let us know how badly you want copy-paste functionality on your Apple handset, or if you don't care all that much for this feature.

Copy and paste on the iPhone