Law Library: Masturbating, Fired, and Jailed

Here's all the crime that happened in and around libraries,  library environments, or tech that probably will or have involved the courts in some way:

Librarians in Conway Public Library file grievance against restructuring that could get them sacked.  Let's hope more paperwork will fix the situation.

St. Elmo ex-librarian steals $50,000 worth of materials and gets little jail time.  Because, hey, it's only a library.

65-year-old former library employee arrested for stealing $800,000 worth of books.  She took one page a day for her entire life.

Some guy called a library asking about '50 Shades of Grey" and made it his own sex line.  This is why I do not read books to people over the phone.

New York woman tracks down stalker through Google, sues him.  This is why I do not read books to people over the phone, too.

Author Torrent's His Book, Google Disables His Ads

Google disables ads on blog after author Cody Jackson linked to a torrent on his blog to his self published book.  Jackson gives away the book, Learning to Program with Python, in both ebook and paperback editions and uses ad revenue from Adsense to generate income.  Google felt the link violated their terms of piracy of copywritten material, so they disabled his ads.  The case has since been resolved, but the issue raises interesting questions about Google's customer service policy.

On one hand, you can not blame Google for having a catch all policy about copywritten material.  They handle millions of accounts every day and can not police all of them personally.  However, it would be nice if the company could put some folks to work answering the phones.  I just hope by writing about this, my own ad space is not threatened, but I guess that would be evil which is also against Google's policy.

Google disables ads on author’s website for torrenting his own book

Google Play Books App Thingamajig Updates

The Google Play Books Android App has updated to include now standard features of other ebook reading apps.  Matching the Kindle App and... other ebook apps, Google Play Books now allows highlighting and commenting of content, features that have been available only on the desktop version in Google's Chrome browser.
Finally, no longer staring with futility at electronic text, wishing you could tell that book what you really felt.  No more sleepless nights unable to remember that one sentence of Twilight that really pissed you off.  Google has once again liberated the masses, offered the ability electronically that any asshole with a pen could do with a normal book.  Halelujah, we are saved.
Also, the Apple version of the app has not been updated with these features, so they can suck it.  If you are reading this on an iPhone/iPad, I of course do not mean you. 
Google updates Android books app to match rivals - CNET (blog)

Google Combines Digital Libraries into Google Play

Google yesterday combined their Books, Music and Movie stores into one big market for Android called "Google Play."  This consolidation of services hopes to rival such entities as Amazon and iTunes.

Well, poopie, there goes my productivity.  I felt so productive every day, checking for deals at each section but now all that is lost.  Just one website?  Man, I won't know what to do with myself.  It's like they moved a Wal-mart right in the middle of my library.  This just breaks my soul at how unbusy I feel right now.

Okay, this article sucks, but they all can't be winners.  I'm watching a spider crawl on my coworker right now.  She is oblivious.

Where Google Is Going With 'Google Play,' New Online Store And Library - TPM

Google Offers $1 Million in Rewards to Hack Chrome

Internet browsers are taking all types of scrutiny lately about their lack of security, so Google has decided to step up the competition by offering $1 Million in prizes for anyone who can hack their Chrome Browser.  Funny enough, Google itself plans to claim the prizes as it combines your search and usage data on all its services March 1st.

I don't really want to put Google down.  This honestly will cost them less in the long run as hackers across the world will scramble to find all the errors in Chrome for free and then tell them about it.  Who knows what all that testing would cost?  That along with the publicity (which we can all agree that this little start up needed) will give the company a charge in development that you cannot pay for.

Google Will Offer $1 Million In Rewards For Hacking Chrome In Contest

Google to Sell Internet Glasses This Year

Google apparently has invented a way to stream information into eyeglasses as a heads up display. 

1)  I wear glasses.  What is Google gonna do for me?  No offence, I trust you with my email and documents, but I will not be adopting Google Lasiks.
2)  I hate those people that talk to the thing in their ears when I am helping them.  How am I going to deal with some asshole watching Breaking Bad on Netflix while trying to talk to me?
3)  Driving.  See #2
4)  Uneven sidewalks.  See #2
5)  Despite all this, I really want some. 

Bits Blog: Google to Sell Heads-Up Display Glasses by Year's End

Google Denies Former Senator Rick Santorum

Former Senator Rick Santorum is still upset about the 2003 google bomb that was put against him by Dan Savage after Sen. Santorum made some comments that some most all saw as derogatory against homosexuals.  Savage created a website that links Santorum to a site named spreadingsantorum.com that defines the word "santorum."  (I will let you click on the link yourself if you wish to read the definition.  Hint: NSFW.)  If you were to do a search in Google right now, guess what the first site that pops up will be?  Santorum recently told Politico magazine that he has reached out to Google to change the search results but was met with a "no."  He then gave some reasons as to why he thinks the company with the slogan "Don't be evil" would be so mean to him:

“I suspect if something was up there like that about Joe Biden, they’d get rid of it,” Santorum said. “If you're a responsible business, you don't let things like that happen in your business that have an impact on the country.” politico

Why in the greased poop would a search link to a goofy, possible-failed presidential candidate have any impact on the country, other than to rally us all together with a common goal to destroy one man?  Is he trying to be the Ozymandias from Watchmen in the dumbest way possible?  Only time will tell.

Google to Attempt Take Over of English

Google is set to launch it's Google eBooks store simultaneously in the UK, Canada, and Australia.  Both Canada and Australia have seen massive book and ebook system drops in the last year with the collapse of companies such as Borders, and this will be a welcome addition.  No date has been set for the launch of the service, but Google hopes to have it running by the end of the year.  GoodEReader

And so it came to pass, the mighty Google put out its hands and grasped the empires of old.  "Care to Feel Lucky?" the diety said, casting his head back in laughter.

Update Thursday: Cause We Do That

Update:  A mother who went to trial after being asked to leave an Atlanta library because her baby was laughing too loud was found guilty of obstructing a police officer by the jury after a two hour deliberation.  Police had video of her altercation with officers outside the library where she is clearly seen causing a public disturbance outside the library.  She was sentanced to 12 months probation, anger management classes, and parenting classes.  The mother, Donnetta Foster, had this to say:

"I definitely feel like I stood up for myself today... I spoke out against what I felt was wrong." CBS Atlanta

While I sympathize with Ms. Foster feeling wronged, I have the feeling she was led astray into going to trial.  This all seems like she and her lawyer somehow felt this would shift blame and put the library on trial like a Hollywood movie twist when in fact all that was in question for the courts was if she did or did not yell at a police officer.  There were many avenues she could have taken both on that day and after, but instead she chose to act rashly and now has a criminal charge on her record.

Update:  In other news, the Author's Guild is getting many fingers waggled at them for suing universities for allowing Google to digitize their library's "orphaned" books.  Orphaned books are books where the copyright holder cannot be located, and the universities felt that it had an obligation to keep these items in the public mind through digitization, many belonging in the HathiTrust.  So far the Library Copyright Alliance has stepped up to call the Guild's lawsuit 'deplorable" while the Author's Guild has fired back that many of the claimed 'orphaned books' are not orphaned at all but the author's can be tracked down with a simple Google search.   That's ironic in that many if not all of the items in the HathiTrust were scanned during the rocky Google Books project.

Author's Guild Sues Universities

With the suit against Google about digitizing libraries on hiatus, Google has pushed forward with various libraries to continue digitize certain media.  The Author's Guild will have none of that and has now also sued the universities participating over digitization rights.  arstechnica

Can't we all just- Ow... Okay, who threw that cliche shoe?  What the hell?!  So here we go again with the law suits and the blah blah over digitizing libraries.  Honestly, I don't see what all the fuss is about.  It's just copyright and intellectual property.  That stuff's for nerds.  Let's see 'um try to digitize the defensive line at [big'um football school], right!  That's what matters!  Go [mascot]!

Google Going All Jungle View

Google is looking to expand its Street View project to major waterways and remote destinations.  The first on that list: The Amazon River!  Boom, there goes the dynamite.  Seriously, isn't that how they fish down there?  With dynamite?  Anyway... from BBC News:

Google will train local people to collect images, and will leave behind equipment so work continues long-term... Pictures will be stitched together so users can explore 360-degree panoramics of the area.

So, not only are they co-opting the river itself, but using the people there to do it.  I bet those folks don't get invited to the Googleplex for a 5-star meal.  Nope, just malaria and piranhas.  Good times.

BoingBoing via Fark via BBC News

Google Buys Motorola Mobility, Does What It Does Every Night

For 12.5 Billion United States Dollars, Google has set forth plans to purchase Motorala Mobility.  With this purchase, Google will give itself weight in the cellphone wars by claiming over 17,000 patents as well as put forth a platform to design and implement a stronger line of phones.  Google representatives claim they will not run the company and keep it as a separate business. Wired

Yeah, I believe that.  Two years, in two little years we will all be buying Googarola phones and sticking them in our skin, marking ourselves for the beast before they condemn us to the information purge.  Or there's gonna be some kick-ass, cheap phones a'comin.  Allz I know is 2012 is around the corner and John Cusack has not been seen in weeks.

Harry Potter eBooks Pick Google over Amazon

Google Books has confirmed that they will be an ebook hub for the Harry Potter books through the Harry Potter reading website Pottermore.  Customers will be able to buy copies of the ebooks and then read them on any Google Book device, such as the Nook, Story HD and the Google Book internet platform.  This is big news for the search engine giant as it gives them a major lead over their competition, including Amazon.

Oooo, Amazon got burned!  They were all like, "J.K. Rowling, let's light the eliterary world on fire with your $15 billion dollar empire.  Light it with a Kindle." And J.K. was all, "Eh, you sell weird stuff and are all groady and old.  I like Google now.  He's hot and has a big search engine and is all about not being evil." And Amazon was like, "Rowling, why are you doing this to me! You are tearing me apart!"  And then Amazon shot itself and a kid o.d.'d or something.

[ZDNet]

Behave on Google+ Or Lose Everything,

Google announced this morning that it's new Google+ social network is taking applications for businesses to tryout the site, but that's not the good stuff.  The good stuff is this article about a 10 year old that tried to violate Google+ 13 year old age limit and got smacked down.  Turns out, you break those little "Agree"-ments you make with Google and they will delete you.  Well, not delete, delete you, but everything you worked so hard on will be gone.  Gmail, Docs, Calendar, probably that Angry Birds Chrome app they have, you will be locked out of them all.  So be good on Google+ or no more Farmville for you.
[ComputerWorld]
[TheOnion]
[BusinessInsider]

Google+ Becomes Google-

Will you be my friend?

The new social network service Google+ has been forced to shut down access to new members.  The service started up just a while ago with and "invite only" policy and quickly became overwhelmed with requests. 

I have just one question:  how come noone invited meeeee?  I'd totally be your friend and play Farmville with you and help you attack another mob and stuff.  I mean, Facespacester is just so yesterday.  My mom's on it, you guys.

But to be not so serious, how come this seems a little like a social experiment to me?  This is Google we are talking about here.  Are you telling me they do not have the resources to handle this kind of traffic?  I think they just did this to see how fast something online would spread.  They put the plague of social network out there just to see how fast it would spread, am I right?  I would not be shocked to learn they were working with the CDC on this to invent a cure for another blue social network that will not be getting a Facebook group.  [computerworld]

What's in Your Google Wallet?

So yesterday Google announced their new service, Google Wallet.  The no-touchy hands-off payment system works like a credit card but instead of getting frustrated because your card will not swipe you can get frustrated waving your phone at check out line.  I image a scene where a dozen people are in front of the Wal-Mart check out waving their hands like they are trying to Jedi mind trick a damn machine.  "Seriously, these are the Doritos I was looking for"  The service will also send you coupons, finally turning spam emails into those annoying newspaper-like things in my mail that I use for wrapping paper.

Also, Paypal sued Google over this service.  Yep.  Apparently when you leave one company to go work at another that oddly starts making nearly the same product, that's grounds for a lawsuit.  But do you think Paypal will win?  I doubt it.  The idea is pretty common and Google's been looking to break in to this market for years with services like Google Checkout and attempting to buy Groupon.  As long as I can get my BOGO coupons for my Zima, who cares?

Google To Offer Free Home Internet Service

Google, the world's largest search engine, has announced they will be the first to offer free wireless broadband service to all.  By becoming an ISP, this allows all the power of Goolge to be at your fingertips, from every corner of your house.

I really hope this works because I am seriously tired of my local provider dropping signal.  It really gets me down in the dumps.  My whole day is gone when my Internet connection is in the toilet.  What a load of crap.

Simply go to the Google TiSP Beta web site and register to start now or watch the video demonstration.

eBook News That's Fit to ePrint II: Electric Bookaloo

Welcome to another installment of the eBook News.  Sometimes, so much news comes in we just have to shove it all at you at once.  Here we go:

The courts turned down Google's big settlement over digitizing books from the nations libraries.  The federal judge in the case said giving Google the right to continue would exploit copyrights.  Ouch.  I mean, man that had to really hurt.  And I love Google, but man that really had to hurt.  New York Times

Amazon shuts down the eBook lending site cleverly named Lendle.  Citing a concern for their book owners, Amazon got all Mean Joe Greene and blocked their asses.  I just made a sports reference that fit.  Guardian

Best-selling author Barry Eisler turned down a $500,000 contract with a major publisher and instead self publish online.  Yep.  I will never see that kind of money outside of it blowing the hell up in a Michael Bay movie.  techeye

EbscoHost is using the service NetLibrary that it bought from OCLC a while back to give previews of eBooks.  And you thought they were just for peer-reviewed journal articles.  So did I.  Neato.  prweb

And that's it for today.  Sorry I did not take the time to comment on each and every one of them in all the glory that they required, but I did not want to.  I am busy, what can I say?

Google's Mixed Media Might Murder MiTunes!

The Android Market, Google's current online application store, might be getting an upgrade of music and movies.  As the website thinq tells us, recent URL's for android music and movies have been showing up, directing for now to the Android Market.  One can only put two and two together to see that Google is going for four and taking it to the man, which in this case is Itunes.

If Google can do this right, they can be the first to trump that fruity company in mobile entertainment.  Honestly, I just can't look towards Microsoft for that anymore.  Microsoft and Apple are like divorced parents at this point, while Google seems like that cool older cousin that lives in a van in the driveway that knows Kung Fu.  At this point in my electronic endeavors, I wanna know Kung Fu.

Google Vs Apple Publishing: Let's Get It On!

The goo vs the i: how do we contain the rage?

Google announced today that they will attempt to undercut Apple's publishing contract by 20%.  At least that's what I got from this article in USA Today.  The Internet giant is poising to face off against the computer giant in a war of the publishing rights price points.  Apple, currently taking about 30% from publishers on their App Store, can kiss my butt if they think they are getting any more of my money.  Google announced that the program "One Pass" will take about 10% of from publishers, a move that I think is great because they have given me lots of cool toys over the years and never really asked for money.  Add to that their Android market does not tell me what is good for me and the devices I paid good money for and I think I have a hat for this ring.

Who will win this War of Fruity Aggression?  Only time will tell.