The Google Brand

Search engine Google is often the subject of news articles, but the February 15 announcement of the company’s purchase of the popular Blooger software has generated a steady stream of commentary and speculation in the blogging world and in the ‘mainstream’ press. What follows are several recent articles worth reviewing on the growing impact of …

Subjects: Blogs, Freedom of Information, Internet, Search Engines

More on Eldred Case and Copyright

The February 2003 issue of Spectrum (PDF), from the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), published an article, beginning on page 7, “Supreme Court Hears Case on Copyright, Mickey Mouse and Congress.” Please see my previous post here for background on Eldred et al. v. Ashcroft, Attorney General. See also Larry Lessig’s February 20 article …

Subjects: Copyright, Courts, Freedom of Information

Discovery and Electronic Evidence

The ABA Law Practice Management Section recently launched a new e-zine, Law Practice Today, that focuses on “law practice marketing, management, technology, and finance.” From the February 14 issue, an article by attorney Joseph Kashi, Systematic Discovery and Organization of Electronic Evidence, focuses on how “gaining an early, effective, and systematic approach to your electronic …

Subjects: E-Records

Controvery Continues Over Florida State Library Closure

This commentary from the Lakeland, Florida Ledger clearly states the ramifications of cost-cutting plans by the state’s governor which will result in dismanteling a unique and valuable historical library collection developed over the course of 157 years. There is an effort underway to petition the legislature via collecting digital signatures to block implementation of the …

Subjects: Freedom of Information, Libraries

Public Libraries and Internet Access

The Institute of Museum and Library Services commissioned a recently published study from the Information Institute at Florida State University, Public Libraries and the Internet 2002: Internet Connectivity and Networked Services, (PDF) to evaluate the extent of Internet connectivity in U.S. public libraries. The results, gleaned from 1,100 respondents, indicate that almost all public libraries …

Subjects: Censorship, Freedom of Information, Internet, Libraries

FTC Workshops on ID Theft

The Federal Trade Commission is sponsoring two free workshops, Technologies for Protecting Personal Information: The Consumer Experience (May 14, 2003), and Technologies for Protecting Personal Information: The Business Experience (June 4, 2003), according to this February 21 press release. See also the text of the Federal Register notice on these workshops, for which written comments …

Subjects: E-Government, ID Theft, Privacy

Librarians and the Patriot Act

For librarians around the country, concerns about the Patriot Act and patron privacy rights have only increased in the wake of recent news about the administration’s proposed Patriot II legislative initiative. From Sunday’s Ohio Toledo Blade, this article, Libraries fear loss of privacy as FBI searches for terrorists, illustrates the conflicting positions at issue involving …

Subjects: Libraries, Patriot Act, Privacy

AOL and Microsoft Join Forces to Fight Spam

The Washington Post reports that ISP giants and rivals Microsoft and AOL are working together to help craft legislation on the federal and state level to fight the uncontrollable tide of spam that plagues their respective subscribers, which total over 140 million. To provide some perspective on the enormity of the problem, AOL alone claims …

Subjects: E-Mail