Friday fumblings
The IPKat's superbly-updated 'Forthcoming Events' feature, which occupies a large slice of space on the left-hand side-bar of this weblog's front page, currently lists 22 conferences, seminars and events for your delectation. FREE events are listed in a cheerful blue.
Once again the IPKat, feeling a little in awe of the kindnesses shown by his readers, has to express his thanks for their support. November 2008 turned out to be the best month ever for casual visits, with 76,819 browsers coming to the site (not bad for a month with only 30 days, says Merpel). And yesterday the tally of the weblog's email subscribers slipped past the 2,600 mark. Bless you, say the Kats -- and if you keep on coming to read our blog, we'll work even harder to make your effort worthwhile.
Some people collect business cards, others hoard directories, but nowadays we mainly live online and we find one another by computer search. In this context, Patent Buddy offers a convenient way of seeking out USPTO-registered attorneys, agents and their organisations. It also has a cute logo which, refreshingly for the world of innovation, does not include a reproduction of a light bulb.
From the Courier Journal, via Miri Frankel, comes news of some pretty serious goings-on in Louisville, Kentucky. It seems that lawyers for Dr Seuss Enterprises, which owns rights to the Dr Seuss Christmas classic "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", have threatened legal action unless the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau cancels plans to use any part of the book for this year's Light Up Louisville holiday celebration. According to the cease-and-desist letter the convention bureau "has not been authorized or licensed by Seuss to use its protected works. We therefore demand that the (bureau) immediately cease and desist from using any references to or images of Who-ville, the Grinch, or any other name or character from How the Grinch Stole Christmas". Merpel notes, had the Grinch wished to steal Christmas in the United Kingdom, he'd have been too late: this festival has been effectively abolished or neutered by political rectitude (see here and here).
Once again the IPKat, feeling a little in awe of the kindnesses shown by his readers, has to express his thanks for their support. November 2008 turned out to be the best month ever for casual visits, with 76,819 browsers coming to the site (not bad for a month with only 30 days, says Merpel). And yesterday the tally of the weblog's email subscribers slipped past the 2,600 mark. Bless you, say the Kats -- and if you keep on coming to read our blog, we'll work even harder to make your effort worthwhile.
Some people collect business cards, others hoard directories, but nowadays we mainly live online and we find one another by computer search. In this context, Patent Buddy offers a convenient way of seeking out USPTO-registered attorneys, agents and their organisations. It also has a cute logo which, refreshingly for the world of innovation, does not include a reproduction of a light bulb.
From the Courier Journal, via Miri Frankel, comes news of some pretty serious goings-on in Louisville, Kentucky. It seems that lawyers for Dr Seuss Enterprises, which owns rights to the Dr Seuss Christmas classic "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", have threatened legal action unless the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau cancels plans to use any part of the book for this year's Light Up Louisville holiday celebration. According to the cease-and-desist letter the convention bureau "has not been authorized or licensed by Seuss to use its protected works. We therefore demand that the (bureau) immediately cease and desist from using any references to or images of Who-ville, the Grinch, or any other name or character from How the Grinch Stole Christmas". Merpel notes, had the Grinch wished to steal Christmas in the United Kingdom, he'd have been too late: this festival has been effectively abolished or neutered by political rectitude (see here and here).
