Last week, Microsoft announced that it would be offering its Ultimate version of Office 2007 to any college or university students for 60 bucks (or $64 Canadian). In a nod to the reasons underlying their decision, they call their offer “The Ultimate Steal“.

Many students commenting over at digg.com suggested they had already perpetrated the ultimate steal and wouldn’t even be interested in paying the low price of $60 for a properly licenced version. Others wrote that Microsoft already had deals with their schools to provide low-price or free access to Office (of course, they typically pay hefty . . . [more]

Nothing remotely serious today. Which means a game.

Bloxorz is a game for those who like spatial puzzles. Essentially, you move a block around with the arrow keys until, by the right combination of flips and flops, you cause it to drop down the target hole. Make a mistake and your block falls off the edge of the universe. In case this all sounds way too simple for you, let me tell you that there are 35 stages you can be led through, involving hard bridges, soft bridges… But never fear, there are also highly detailed instructions — which some . . . [more]

On Thursday, August 16, the Chancellor of the University of California at Irvine offered Duke University constitutional law scholar Erwin Chemerinsky the job of dean at UC-Irvine’s brand new law school. Less than a week later he called Chemerinsky to withdraw the offer. It seems that the short-term dean’s politics were too left for the regents of the university, something they seem to have discovered only after the reaction by some conservative elements (donors?) to an op-ed piece by Chemerinsky in the Los Angeles Times criticizing the Bush administration.The Washington Post has the story.

Who of any scholarly merit . . . [more]

A new study has found that workers freed from the constraints of the office environment by working from home are more satisfied with their work than those who do all their work from their desks. This may come as no surprise, but the study found that tele-commuting workers are also more “proud to tell people I work for my company”, feel that there is more “open, honest two-way communication”, believe that senior management values their contribution more, and are less likely to be considering leaving their employer.

In light of all this, the most surprising finding may be that only . . . [more]

I’m finally figuring out some things when it comes to ‘talking’ once and ‘publishing’ many. Ok Matthews, what are you going on about? 2.0 of course! Facebook, Blogging, RSS feeds and Twitter to be exact.

One of the awkward things about all these 2.0 applications is deciding where to publish. Where do I put my thoughts online? Do I blog, linkblog, twitter, or facebook? Well, I *think* I have a solution!

• Step 1 is to decide where to publish. And the answer is not Facebook or Twitter. I’ve come to the conclusion that both should be considered content destinations

The concept of “net neutrality” was in the news a lot earlier this year, and was the subject of a few posts at slaw.

In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission is currently working on developing new regulations for broadband internet providers. The Federal Department of Justice recently filed submissions with the FCC arguing in favour of a “non-neutral” internet where internet providers could charge content providers for faster or more reliable service.

Their position is clear: “The Department submits… that free market competition, unfettered by unnecessary governmental regulatory restraints, is the best way to foster innovation and development . . . [more]

In an article in TQ, the Globe and Mail’s quarterly biz-tech glossy insert, David Komaromi, technical services manager at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP, talks about the new internet phone system the firm has introduced. He says,

[I]t’s the video that’s the killer app. Practising law is about communication, and video on the desktop makes communication all that more clear.

It turns out that one of the ways in which video clarifies things has to do with the fact that, in Komaromi’s words, “There’s no place to hide,” and so you have to pay attention, or appear to at least. . . . [more]

I think September is the true New Year’s. Campus, the city, and life in general feel completely different than they did a few short weeks ago when Simon F. and I chatted about starting a legal education and technology column in Slaw. Since that chat the topic has been on my mind, and as I found myself back in class beginning my second year of the law program at Queen’s, I’ve been noticing that the intersection of these two concepts is a rather large, intriguing, and often humorous one. And that is why I’m kicking off this series with a . . . [more]

This doesn’t have anything to do with any of legal research, legal information or legal technology, but there’s a marginal connection with legal miscellany.

I wrote the reflection, below, in July of 1991. I haven’t changed the text, just cleaned-up up the typing errors and added the image. The context? Last week, I went back to school – LLM grad school, so there’s my “legal miscellany” connection – for the first time in 32 plus years. Other than that it was a different school in a different millennium, it was as if I’d never left. I’m sure that means something. . . . [more]

Never let it be said that your intrepid reporter doesn’t dig deep enough for the story — even if, as in this case, he digs by proxy. What you are looking at (click on the image to see a larger version) is the drainage system that lies somewhere beneath the Supreme Court of Canada. This photo and many others of drains elsewhere beneath this fair land are the work of Andrew Emond and are gathered together in a subset, Underground, of his site Worksongs.

And just in case you think that Mr. Emond has a unique interest, I’m . . . [more]

This morning I went to the College Park box office for the Toronto International Film Festival to pick up my 25 tickets for my daypass to the festival this year. Saw a lineup of over 300 people snaking outside the building and almost gave up. Fortunately, there was a separate line inside (with no lineup) for people like me merely picking up their packages. I got 25 out of 25 of my film selections; my wife only got 21 of 25.

On movies and their connection to law: if you Google “law-related movies”, I am the first hit! Well, . . . [more]

For the next few hours, Slaw will be in a state of disarray as I upgrade our WordPress, introduce a new design, new categories and a bunch of new features — all while juggling a beach ball on my nose.

Expect to see strange objects, no objects and all manner of error message. Do not adjust your sets. The problem is temporary (with any luck).

Come the morning, a bright new Slaw should appear, about which I’ll have more to tell you when that comes to pass. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at the new design via a . . . [more]