Author archives

Google News Alerts

From Research Buzz: “Google is finally offering news alerts, which may finally fill the giant hole left in my life by the demise of Northern Light News and THEIR alerts. You can get to ’em at http://www.google.com/newsalerts. Apparently you will not have to have an account for this. All the site offers is a space …

Subjects: Search Engines

Dept. of Education Proposed Rule on Student Data Privacy

From the Federal Register, July 28, 2003: Statute: The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act FERPA provides that an agency or institution may not have a policy or practice of disclosing personally identifiable information from education records without the “written consent” of the parent or eligible student, subject to specified exceptions. 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1). Current …

Subjects: E-Government, E-Records, Privacy

Future of Federal E-Gov Programs in Doubt, But States Make Strides

On the Federal Side: The administrator of OMB’s Office of E-Government and Information Technology, Mark Forman, has announced plans to join the private sector, according to FCW.com. “Forman was the driving force behind the 24 e-gov initiatives and the enterprise architecture effort.” For related information, see P.L. 107-347, the E-Government Act of 2002, and my …

Subjects: E-Government

Strong Opposition to UCITA Sounds its Demise?

“The Americans for Fair Electronic Commerce Transactions (AFFECT), the national coalition opposing the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA), applauds the decision of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) not to spend any additional resources in promoting state adoptions of UCITA. The proposed legislation has been the subject of considerable controversy …

Subjects: Copyright

New Website on P2P Related Copyright Enforcement

Copywrongs.org is a new website launched August 5 by a non-profit group comprised of techno-experts who have been affiliated with projects at MIT. From the Mission Statement: “copywrongs.org is a clearinghouse and connection point for individuals who are the subjects of P2P-related copyright enforcement actions. We will do our best to provide services that help …

Subjects: Copyright

Quartet of Articles on Gov’t Data Mining Programs

Mother Jones: From FBI and CIA headquarters to small-town police departments, the government is building a massive intelligence network designed to spy on terrorists — and on everyday Americans. Washington Post: U.S. Backs Florida’s New Counterterrorism Database – ‘Matrix’ Offers Law Agencies Faster Access to Americans’ Personal Records. Washington Post: Crossing Lines to Fight Terrorism …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, Privacy

Expert Says CAPPS II Does Not Increase Passenger Safety

Airline Security’s False Hope?: An expert on aviation safety statistics says a new computer system to screen out terrorists may actually make things easier for them, by Arnold Barnett (reg. req’d). “The latest incarnation of security screening for our airports has many friends in high places. U.S. secretary of transportation Norman Mineta described it as …

Subjects: Privacy

Patent Infringement Ruling Against BlackBerry

From ZDNet: “A judge has ruled in favor of holding company NTP in its patent-infringement case against BlackBerry maker Research In Motion, awarding monetary damages and fees. The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Richmond, Va., ruled late Tuesday in the case brought against Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM. It awarded NTP $53.7 million.”

Subjects: Patent and Trademark

Legislation to Restore Public Access to Presidential Documents

S. 1517: A bill to revoke and Executive Order relating to procedures for the consideration of claims of constitutionally based privilege against disclosure of Presidential records (introduced July 31). From the Congressional Record: July 31, 2003 (Senate), “Mr. Bingaman. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleague from Florida, Senator Graham, to introduce a very …

Subjects: E-Government, Freedom of Information, Government Documents

Maryland Establishes Special Court for Business/Tech Cases

Specialized Court for Tech Cases Starts to Operate in Maryland: “Maryland, with the enactment of Rule 16-205, effective on Jan. 1, has become the first state in the country to adopt a specialized court for business and technology cases. This specialized system is an effort to respond to the increased complexity of these cases arising …

Subjects: Courts

Tips and Tools for Saved Searches

Search query saving tips, by Gwen Harris: “Saving a search query for resubmission later is standard practice among users of for-fee information services. With some tweaking, this can also be done on the open Web. Saved searches can be used to watch for pertinent news stories on the major news search engines — Google, Alltheweb …

Subjects: Search Engines