April 2004
Law School Discussion was down for half of yesterday and half of today. It's back up now. There's something of an explaination here.... more
It’s my last week in the Netherlands, and for a long time I’ve been meaning to do a little mini-series here about some of the things I think the Dutch do well. Thus I bring you: Dutch innovation week. Monday:... more
By now everyone knows the advantages of wireless internet access. For companies like Verizon, wireless is a new market and a new opportunity to make some money. For companies like McDonalds, wireless is a way to get some press attention... more
Remember the marketing campaign for the “high-tech” American Express Blue credit card? The problem was that you really can’t improve much on a credit card, and making it clear and adding a useless microchip didn’t do much to impress. Perhaps... more
Recycling is a good idea, but grinding down glass and re-forming it into new bottles every time someone drinks a beer is far from an efficient system. In the Netherlands, bottles are cleaned out, re-labeled, and re-filled. This is similar... more
The new cnet mp3 service, born from the downfall of mp3.com, is now live. I’m not exactly sure how much of mp3.com cnet actually acquired because today (perfectly timed with the public launch of cnet’s music.download.com) I got an email... more
Marketers use the term “direct mail” to refer to marketing with physical mail (commonly known as “junk mail” to the recipients). In the US at least, the term “opt-out” is gaining ground as a recognized affirmative request not to receive... more
Bicycling is one of the most efficient means of transportation, but the bicycles can only truly be effective when a society builds the infrastructure to support them. While the US struggles to fit bicycles into a transportation system built for... more
The Trademark Blog notes that the Pottery Barn is a little upset that Colin Powell’s misattribution of the “you-break-it = you-buy-it” policy. It seems Pottery Barn’s real policy is simply to write down a record of the broken items. This... more
I might be a little behind the times on this one, but check out Fund Race for gorgeous maps of campaign contributions by address. The link was going around about a month ago and I missed it somehow. Maybe you... more
A few days ago I reported on the launch of lexBlog, a new service for helping lawyers to establish blogs. To me lexBlog’s value is that it gives non-technical lawyers access to an online presence. David Giacalone read a little... more
The internet continues to be praised as a grand new medium for discourse – and rightly so. It erases biases and lets ideas flow nearly unhindered by presentation. It cuts through time zones and allows for calculated conversation. It is... more
I’ve been a laggard in my adoption of cellular telephone technology. My first complaint against cell phones is that they ring at inappropriate times, but I think I can avoid causing any disturbance. My second complaint is the cost. A... more
lexBlog is a new company from Kevin O'Keefe that hopes make blogging accessible to all lawyers. Judging by their site, it’s a service aimed at non-techy lawyers to help them develop blogs as marketing tools. The idea seems to be... more
Google has announced a change in its advertising policy and will now be allowing advertisers to bid on placement for trademark protected terms. They’re not allowing advertisers to use others’ trademarks in the ads themselves, but rather in the machine... more
I continue to be amazed at the sky high prices of some clicks sold through Overture. According to this article, bids for “mesothelioma” are up to $90 per click these days. A search on Overture reveals that, today at least,... more
My opinion on Holding Names Hostage is available today over on De Novo as part of their symposium on Internet, Law, & Culture. Comments on that topic should be posted at De Novo.... more
It’s only fitting that Lexis should reward me with 10,000 points for my efforts in determining the true market value of both the Lexis point and the Westlaw point. Actually, this is really a reward for my tireless daily logging-in... more
I remember seeing this poster when I was a kid standing in line at a movie theatre. I was amused by the contrast between the happy kids with movie-viewing giraffe for the Rated G movie and the dodgy looking unaccompanied... more
I’m happy to see that people like my Competitive Justice t-shirt. Sua Sponte calls it a “must have” and Sapere aude and jd2b have both been kind enough to make announcements. Raymond Chandler and Hear Ye! also approve. Meanwhile, others... more
It’s no secret that musicians are emphasizing live performances and non-piratable merchandise to bolster slumping record sales. I’m intrigued by the concept of selling live recordings of concerts as collector’s items. The Pixies are recording every show on their warm-up... more
Each year my interest in the US News rankings diminishes. I’m not going to analyze ranking importance or anything like that, but to attack US News on a more practical level: Why are they called "2005" rankings when, in fact,... more
I just got back from a long weekend in Munich and Salzburg. Amazingly, it was the first time I’ve left the Netherlands since arriving here in January. What I really wanted to see down there was the Neuschwanstein Castle in... more