Archive
Category: Weblog
Random assortments, selected for semantic content.
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Do Not Call Register legislation introduced
The Do Not Call Register Bill 2006 and the Do Not Call Register (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2006 will facilitate a national register allowing individuals to opt-out from receiving unsolicited telemarketing calls. According to ICT Minister Helen Coonan, the Bills are an important step towards maintaining Australians’ privacy: ‘This [Bill] gives those who dislike the intrusion… Read more →
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Seagate Nears Completion of Maxtor Acquisition
Seagate Technology, manufacturer of storage computer hardware, has almost completed its acquisition of Maxtor Corporation, a one-time competitor in consumer and enterprise hard disk drive market. Apparently, the merger — announced late last year — has now been approved by shareholders and will close within the week. The deal is valued at around US$1.9 billion,… Read more →
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Microsoft Announces Additions to Office Dictionary; W C Minor Turns in Grave
With Microsoft Word 2007 due for release later this year, the development team has recently been finalising the list of locale-specific words to be added to the default spelling dictionary. For this version, Microsoft has decided to expand the global lexicon, recognising such delightful (ahem) ‘Aussie’ slang as ‘bogan’, ‘sheila’, ‘bonza’ and ‘sickie’. Whether such… Read more →
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Casinos Decry Online Gaming Prohibition
It seems the United States gaming industry is unhappy with an old statute that has the effect of preventing electronic gambling. ‘It represents an enormous opportunity’, said Alan Feldman, spokesman for US-based MGM Mirage, the world’s second-largest gaming operator. ‘And it is an opportunity that is being completely handed to foreign companies right now.’ Standing… Read more →
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Injunction to Restrain Alleged Patent Infringement by eBay Denied
The Supreme Court of the United States of America has unanimously rejected an application by MercExchange seeking a permanent injunction against eBay to restrain its conduct of online auction services allegedly in contravention of MercExchange’s patents. The case concerned the following facts: At issue are two patents filed for in 1995 by MercExchange, which began… Read more →
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Lawyers Pose Health Risk: Study
Saw this chuckleworthy piece over at Overlawyered: A team of researchers led by Richard Gun, visiting research fellow at Adelaide University, ‘has found patients who engage a lawyer after receiving their injury are five times less likely ever to return to work.’ They also appear to suffer more pain and for longer periods than accident… Read more →
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Hacker Faces Criminal Liability for Identifying Security Flaw
After pointing out a hole in the security of a USC database, a computer expert finds himself on the short end of the legal stick. McCarty allegedly dug into the USC database and retrieved seven personal files, which he then anonymously passed along to SecurityFocus.com. That site contacted the university, which shut down the server… Read more →
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Apple Computer v Apple Music: Two Bad Apples or Apples of Our Eyes?
Apple Computer (maker of the Macintosh computer systems) and Apple Corp (the music publisher founded by The Beatles) have been fighting over the right to use the Apple name and logo since about the mid 1980s. At the time, the companies reached a settlement that permitted Apple Computer to maintain its name and logo, providing… Read more →
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Class Action Initiated against ATI over HDCP Interoperability
According to The Inquirer, United States lawyers have just filed pleadings in a representative suit against ATI Technologies, a manufacturer of computer graphics hardware, in connection with claims made about the interoperability of its graphics cards with HDCP technology. The claim is founded in breach of warranties implied by consumer protection legislation, and alternatively negligent… Read more →
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Wal-Mart Seeks Trade Mark over Yellow Smiley Face Logo
According to BBC News, Wal-Mart has applied for a trade mark in respect of the ‘smiley face logo’ popularised by folk music in the 1970s and presently adorning its employees’ uniforms and other promotional material. However, its application has been opposed by a Massachusetts graphic designer, who claims to have invented the iconic symbol back… Read more →