For those of you that still haven’t updated to IE7, be prepared as it will be forced out in the critical updates on Feb. 12.
January 2008
Google Health is coming
Google Health is coming soon. Phil Bradley posts this screenshot of the page. Kinda of creepy that Google (sorry, the all knowing one) is moving in this direction. It’s still about making information accessible , as outlined in this post, but I’m not sure I’d want Google to be the one doing this.
Kindles can’t be lent!
According to Rochelle , who talked to Amazon customer support, libraries that are lending out Kindles (Amazon’s ebook reader) to patrons are in violation of the terms of service. She makes some compelling points on questions that Amazon needs to answer, such as ways to disable people from downloading without disabling the account.
If It’s Bought Online, It’s Probably a Book
Nielsen Online recently surveyed the cyberscape that is online shopping and arrived at a lovely conclusion: Books are the most popular thing to buy online.
While South Korea far outpaced the United States in terms of online book sales, this could be chalked up to the fact that South Korea is considered an emerging market in the online business field.
Then again, buyers in the UK also purchased more books than the US. Oh well.
Court Says You Can Copyright A Cease-And-Desist Letter
Back in October, we wrote about a law firm that was claiming a copyright on the cease-and-desist letters it sent out, and insisting that it was a violation to repost them. It’s long been believed that cease-and-desist letters that have no new creative expression and are merely boilerplates are likely not covered by copyright. On top of that, preventing someone from copying a cease-and-desist letter or posting it on their own website seems like a pretty severe First Amendment violation. The group Public Citizen hit back against this law firm’s claims, but surprisingly, a judge has now agreed that you can copyright cease-and-desist letters.
A Violation of Both the Law and the Spirit
Imagining that late December night of long darkness, you can almost hear these youths of Vermont tramping up to the isolated farmhouse to intrude upon the sanctuary stillness. The break of snow beneath their feet would be the least of it.
They had driven or walked a half-mile up a snow-covered lane called Frost Road, then trudged past a large blue sign that explained the historic significance of the farmhouse and the cabin beyond. And now they were entering the coldness of an uninhabited place, carrying with them cases of beer, bottles of rum and a store of ignorance about things that matter here.
Over the next several hours, more than 30 teenagers and young adults toasted their post-adolescence with liquor carrying the added kick of illicitness. By early morning they were gone, leaving a wounded house watched over by winter-stripped birches and sugar maples.
Freed From the Page, but a Book Nonetheless
Article in the NYT that primarily discusses the Kindle but also comments on Apple, Steve Jobs, and reading in America.
Scientology Writes; Gawker Rises
“If Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah’s couch was an 8 on the scale of scary, this is a 10,” Nick Denton wrote on his media and gossip Web site Gawker.com on Jan. 15, when he posted an internal Church of Scientology video in which Mr. Cruise rhapsodizes about his religion. The page has been viewed over 2.3 million times, a record for Gawker.
At Scientology’s request, YouTube and other sites took down the copyrighted video, but Gawker refused, instead posting and mocking the reproachful letter sent by a Los Angeles lawyer representing the church.
It’s Never Too Late to Read Walden
Tom Slayton, 66, a retired longtime editor of Vermont Life magazine, was a Thoreau buff for years, but admitted to never reading “Walden” cover to cover until three years ago.
Once he did, he was drawn to Walden Pond and soon afterward decided to visit the author’s other haunts and make a book of it. Battling an arthritic hip and wearing out a pair of hiking boots, he traipsed all over New England in a three-year quest to find Thoreau, nature and a bit of himself. He’s written Searching for Thoreau, (here reviewed in the Sauk Valley News) which pairs analysis of “Walden” and other lesser-known Thoreau works with step-by-step descriptions of visits to the places that inspired Thoreau.
The resulting 240-page paperback, illustrated by Slayton’s 36-year-old son, Ethan – draws heavily on “Walden,” “Cape Cod,” “The Maine Woods” and Thoreau’s journals, describing in lyrical detail the flora, fauna and sometimes-treacherous paths Thoreau walked more than 150 years ago and that Slayton followed.
White House Signals Intent To Strip Critical FOIA Funds From OGIS
Senator Patrick Leahy Says funds for the Office of Government Information Services, a component of the National Archives and Records Administration, authorized under the newly enacted OPEN Government Act will be shifted to the Department of Justice, according to White House aides. The move is contrary to the intent of Congress when it passed the OPEN Government Act — bipartisan legislation championed by Leahy and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). The legislation unanimously passed the Senate and House in December. Leahy this week outlined an agenda for the new year to continue to press for more openness and transparency in government.
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