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From the LexisNexis press release: “LexisNexis will provide a legal research option on Microsofts new Research Task Pane featured in Microsoft Office Outlook® 2003, Microsoft Office Word 2003, Microsoft Office Excel 2003, Microsoft Office PowerPoint® 2003, and Microsoft Office Access 2003.” (thanks Donna).
Music Industry Wins 871 Subpoenas Against Internet Users: “The music industry has won at least 871 federal subpoenas against computer users suspected of illegally sharing music files on the Internet, with roughly 75 new subpoenas being approved each day, court officials say.” See also this RIAA press release, Recording Industry To Begin Collecting Evidence And …
Amazon Plan Would Allow Searching Texts of Many Books. “Executives at Amazon.com are negotiating with several of the largest book publishers about an ambitious and expensive plan to assemble a searchable online archive with the texts of tens of thousands of books of nonfiction, according to several publishing executives involved.”
The Death Of Privacy–Again: “The world around you is being flooded with intrusive technologies, with camera phones as the tip of the iceberg, and the very concept of privacy, especially in public spaces, is going to be radically overhauled as a result.”
News.com reports that the “Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School is the new keeper of the specification for a popular Web log tool. The Berkman Center took over ownership of the Really Simple Syndication (RSS) 2.0 specification this week after UserLand, a company owned by RSS 2.0 author David Winer, transferred …
From the Seattle Times: “U.S. Department of Labor officials have created two new Web sites aimed at helping small employers learn how to comply with federal law. The FirstStep Employment Law Advisor – available at http://www.dol.gov/elaws – helps employers determine which laws apply to their business and provides information on how to comply. The Employment …
Accusations of Abuse in Report on USA Patriot Act: “A report by internal investigators at the Justice Department has identified dozens of recent cases in which department employees have been accused of serious civil rights and civil liberties violations involving enforcement of the sweeping federal antiterrorism law known as the USA Patriot Act.” Report to …
Informational Briefing on the kids.us Domain: The Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will host an informational briefing regarding the launch of the new kids.us domain, Tuesday, July 22, 2003, at 3 p.m.
New Plain-English Jury Instructions Adopted to Assist Jurors in California Courts: “In another jury reform, the Judicial Council of California today officially adopted new civil jury instructions that emphasize plain, straightforward language, to provide an alternative to often confusing legal terminology that has been used in California trial courts for the past 70 years.”
GPO Holds a Clearance Sale as It Closes Bookstores Because of Web’s Growth: “It’s the Internet,” explained GPO spokesman Andrew M. Sherman. “Our online operation has just killed the retail end of this business. The mainstay of sales at our stores was principally regulatory information — tax rules, international trade, the Code of Federal Regulations. …
On June 2, EPIC sponsored a conference, Privacy and Technology Looking Back, Looking Ahead. They only recently provided online access to resources associated with the presentations, which took themes from George Orwell’s writings in honor of the 100th anniversary of his birth: Selections from EPIC Advisory Board and Essays by EPIC Staff.
As I previously posted on June 18, Consumer WebWatch is encouraging websites to implement privacy and content credibility guidelines, and recently added 25 more sites committed to upholding the guidelines. A pdf of the current list is here.