Dear Doc: I heard that it’s now illegal to put links to photos and videos on your webpages and in social media posts? Really? Won’t that just destroy the entire Internet? Asking for a friend. Signed,Every Internet User, Ever Dear Every: Yup. You heard right, at least as far as New York Federal District […]
Dear Doc: For years, it’s been nearly impossible to do repairs on some kinds of equipment. For instance, unless you had a handheld computer that cost over $4,000, it was impossible to diagnose and fix a GM-Saab automobile. The same is true of John Deere farm equipment. Manufacturers use copyright and trade secrecy laws to […]
Dear Doc: Recently, many companies are sending me long emails with their new “Terms and Conditions”. These are harder to read than hieroglyphics on a pyramid wall, but some parts seem more important because THEY ARE PRINTED IN ALL CAPS. So what is “arbitration” and why do companies want me to consent to it? Can […]
Dear Doc: When some big company just outright steals an inventor’s patented invention and makes zillions of dollars off of it, why can’t the inventor stop them? What gives? Signed, Little Guy Dear LG: The Doc has found a very good answer to your question. The Doc may not agree with everything the author says […]
Dear Doc: What the heck is an NFT and what does it have to do with copyrights? Signed.Dazed and Confused Dear D&C: That is a very good question. Which is why the Doc will provide you with an answer, and also offer you the chance to purchase a unique and priceless version of the answer, […]
Dear Doc: It’s a year into the pandemic, and it seems that most “information workers” are working virtually, while most “essential workers” are still bravely showing up every day. Apart from the unfairness in that, and the fact that if we had all just locked down for several weeks at the start we could have […]
Dear Doc: Me want to protect cookie. How can do that? Signed,A Certain Monster Dear Mr. Monster: A recent case from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals may help you to understand how cookies are protected. More than 50 years ago, Ezaki Glico Kabushiki Kaisha developed “Pocky” – a thin, elongated biscuit partially covered with chocolate. About […]
Dear Doc (hope you’re well and alive): I heard of a case that’s just jive.You can go, but not boldlySaid the judge, rather coldlyFar too Seuss, your project, contrived. Signed,ComicMix Dear CM: I suppose that you are asking about a recent court decision in a dispute about the book “Oh, the Places You’ll Boldly Go!”, a mashup […]
Dear Doc: I’ve heard you say many times that Americans have a right to sue each other for any reason, so lawyers can’t tell their clients that they won’t get sued, only that in a properly adjudicated case, they have a high probability of prevailing. Aren’t there ANY limits on lawsuits? Signed,Fed Up Dear FU: […]
Dear Doc: I have always heard the maxim that the pen is mightier than the sword. But is it mightier than a loaded AR15? Signed,Just Asking For A Friend in St. Louis Dear “Friend”: The maxim that you cite is hoary, indeed, dating in English from Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s 1839 play, “Cardinal Richelieu”. The thought, however, […]