Intellectual Property Law

Free CLE (webinar) on how the ethical rules apply to life online

Posted on April 03, 2009
Joshua King at Avvo sent me a link to a free CLE he is putting on in June.  Sounds like a good one! This webinar is designed to help lawyers and law firms understand the professional ethics rules and other state bar regulations governing advertising, particularly advertising online...

Overwhelmed at work? Need more time in the day?

Posted on April 01, 2009
If you’re a little overwhelmed at work right now, take a break (10 minutes) and listen to this audio clip (podcast) by Merlin Mann at 43folders.com.  It is probably the best advice I’ve heard lately. Link:  43f Podcast: Gangs, Constraints, and Courageous Blocks | 43 Folders...

Software recommendation: Evernote

Posted on March 31, 2009
I used to keep a handwritten list of passwords, software keys, important information, notes, etc.  Eventually, I started using “Notes” in Microsoft Outlook for that same purpose.   Then web 2.0 rolled around…and having remote/home access to my notes was important...

No patents = more investment in research and development?

Posted on March 30, 2009
Reading:  the Patentability blog on “Energy Secretary: Drop IP Protection To Promote Greentech?“  (by the way…great new blog, worth following). Is there any evidence (perhaps in another country’s IP system) that taking away (or not giving in the first place) patent rights somehow encourages development of technology? Related posts:Advent Product Development sued for fraud, improper and deceptive [...

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How to effectively use Twitter to build business relationships (and make friends at the same time)

Posted on March 27, 2009
I’ve been using Twitter for quite some time now (I am @nipper)…and my blogging (volume) here at The Invent Blog has suffered because of it. Sorry. I thought that some of my readers here would find useful an explanation of my system for effective use of Twitter...

Reality TV Show looking for a family of inventors

Posted on March 26, 2009
I heard from a casting director yesterday for a reality TV show that is looking for a family of inventors (two-parent home (ideally both are inventors) with at least one child between the ages of 6 and 17 living at home full time).   If you know of anyone that “fits the bill,” let me know...

Twitter/Facebook Tool Recommendations

Posted on March 25, 2009
If any of you are using Twitter or Facebook, a couple tools I recommend: OutTwit - Microsoft Outlook plugin that lets you post to Twitter from Outlook. Also lets you pull in some/all/none of the tweets of the people you follow into an Outlook folder (I use it to pull in tweets from few close [...

Summer Camp for Inventive Kids

Posted on March 24, 2009
If you have kids (or grandkids) going into 1st grade to 6th grade, you really should consider sending them to Camp Invention.  The program is excellent and is done in partnership with the USPTO. My daughter is a previous attendee, and my two boys will be attending this year...

CLE/webinar on The Plant Variety Protection Act

Posted on March 20, 2009
There is an upcoming CLE (webinar) put on by the Idaho State Bar’s Intellectual Property Law Section you might be interested in:  “The Plant Variety Protection Act” by Attorney Jacque Palmer, of Syngenta Seeds, Inc.  Ms. Palmer will discuss how to obtain a PVP certificate and the protection it affords to plant varieties...

Everything you ever wanted to know about Adobe Acrobat digital signatures

Posted on March 18, 2009
PDF for Lawyers blog on Digital Signatures - Advanced Class Related posts:How to set up Adobe Acrobat to make EFS and the USPTO happy Excellent information from the Acrobat for Legal Professionals blog (”PDF...Patent Lawyers, Engineers, CAD Files and Adobe Acrobat???? I previously called Adobe Acrobat 8â?¦A Must Have Tool for...

Top Trademark Firms Survey - Due April 9, 2009

Posted on March 12, 2009
If you want your Firm to be included in IP Today’s list of the “Top Trademark Firms,” you need to turn in your survey by April 9, 2009.   IPToday.com - Intellectual Property Today - Top Trademark Firms Survey Form. Related posts:IP Today survey of Top Patent Firms Every year IP Today magazine (a great resource) surveys [...

EFS-Web & Acrobat 9/Acrobat Reader Security Vulnerability

Posted on March 11, 2009
Advisory 20FEB2009: Adobe has announced a critical security vulnerability with Adobe Reader 9 and Acrobat 9 and earlier versions. This security flaw is unrelated to USPTO eCommerce systems. The vulnerability may cause the Adobe application to crash and could potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system...

IgniteBoise|01 Speakers/Topics Announced

Posted on March 09, 2009
I’m jazzed by the great speakers/presentations we have on tap for IgniteBoise|01.  See the IgniteBoise blog post”:  Without further ado? « Ignite Boise | Boise?s best ideas in 5 minutes, 2 0 slides. Included in the speaker list is my law partner Bob Shaver (aka the bicyclepatents...

CAFC Opinions and Amazon Kindle

Posted on March 09, 2009
Matt Buchanan over at the Promote the Progress blog has a neat new feature…the ability to read CAFC opinions on your Amazon Kindle:  New Promote the Progress feature - Read patent law opinions on your Amazon Kindle. Related posts:Searching Federal Circuit Opinions on the Fly… Matt over at FedCirc...

TinEye Reverse Image Search

Posted on March 09, 2009
TinEye Reverse Image Search Interesting tool.  Lets you upload an image (such as a client’s logo or copyrighted work) and the tool searches the Internet for similar photos/images.  [Examples] Related posts:Google Image Labeler … Community Intellectual Property Cops? Google has a new “product” in beta...

Recommendation ? The LexThink: Innovate (un)Conference

Posted on March 04, 2009

Worries about our patent system

Posted on March 04, 2009

Patent Changes Coming?

Posted on March 03, 2009

Top Legal Blogs List

Posted on March 02, 2009

Printing only the first page of an email - Outlook 2007

Posted on February 26, 2009
Sounds like the “February 2009 Cumulative Update” for Outlook 2007 fixes one of the biggest issues I’ve had with Outlook, namely the inability to ONLY print the first page of an email. SWEET! Plus performance tweaks! If you are an Outlook power user…you’re in for a treat when the Office 2007 SP2 update comes [...

The Credit Crisis

Posted on February 22, 2009
This is the best explanation of what caused the credit crisis (without pointing the finger at any political party) that I’ve seen thusfar: The Crisis of Credit Visualized. Related posts:Need MCLE credit? Use your .mp3 player. For those of you whom need MCLE credit before February,...

The Fine Print of the Web

Posted on February 21, 2009
Excellent 5 minute video presentation at Ignite Portland 5 by Aaron Hockley entitled Reading the Fine Print: You Gave Yourself Away reminding us all to pay attention to the fine print in the terms of use we all to often click through without reading (e...

In Boise? Going to Ignite Boise 1?

Posted on February 20, 2009
I’m helping set up an event in March that I think you’ll be interested in (those of you whom live here in Boise, Idaho): the “Ignite Boise” conference. What is “Ignite Boise“? It is a conference where an inspiring and unexpected blend of thinkers from business, art, technology, government and academia will be putting [...

Spyware, malware and Trojans

Posted on February 18, 2009
A colleague asked for my help dealing with a Trojan horse infection on his home PC. I though I’d share with you the links I gave him (bookmark these two step-by-step guides for future reference): MajorGeeks.com’s READ & RUN ME FIRST Malware Removal Guide BleepingComputer...

Recent blog posts/web pages I found interesting

Posted on February 15, 2009
Using Screencasts to Share Knowledge Inside a Company from The Evolving Worker Law Firm Productivity with Remember the Milk from Legal Andrew A productivity tip to avoid forgetting to answer or read an email (gmail and iphone) from The Evolving Worker PDF redaction gone awry from PDF for Lawyers Creating a central binder for your home from Unclutterer Finally: Google Sync Comes to iPhone and [...

Microsoft Outlook Tips

Posted on February 14, 2009
LifeHacker on the Top 10 Outlook Boosters - http://lifehacker.com/5151771/top-10-outlook-boosters Other articles on Outlook I’ve bookmarked in the last few years (ala http://delicious.com/jurisnipper/outlook): Quick Tip: Easily See How Much Space Your Outlook Mail is Using :: Mysticgeek?s Realm MessageSave for Outlook — Easily save email messages outside of Outlook for archiving, backup, document management, sharing, legal compliance, and much more...

RCE Fees to get ?Jacked??

Posted on February 13, 2009
Rumor has it that the PTO is planning on jacking up Request for Continued Examination (RCE) filing fees in the coming months (one rumor I heard had it around FOUR times the current amount ($810)).  F-O-U-R.  Rumors don’t always turn out to be true, but it is something to keep in the back of your [...

LegalZoom sues itself?

Posted on February 11, 2009
LEGALZOOM.COM, INC., a Delaware corporation v. LEGALZOOM.COM, INC., a Delaware corporation http://dockets.justia.com/docket/court-nvdce/case_no-2:2009cv00273/case_id-64319/ Related posts:Invention Promotion Scams and other articles Interesting article up at LegalZoom:  Invention Submission Companies: Scams or...

Dual Monitors Are a Bad Idea

Posted on February 06, 2009
I’ve seen mention of a couple studies that show that dual monitors increase productivity [20-30% increase; 44% increase].  Note:  how much would your productivity need to increase to go justify going “dual”? As the title implies, I’m currently of the school that believes that dual monitors are a bad idea, even though I use them (I [...

Web Tip ? Customize Gmail?s ?Web Clips?

Posted on February 06, 2009
If you use Gmail…did you know that you can customize the “web clips” of information at the top of the screen? What is a web clip?  It is the little snippet of information at the top of the page: Such customization could include, for instance, deleting things you are not interested in or adding RSS feeds you [...

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