Introducingthe URL
http://www.groklaw.net/First ContactI came across
Groklaw when I was reading an article at the
heise.de newsticker about SCO sueing several companies (it's an emo topic, so I'll stop here). Said article referred to
groklaw. Upon going there I was overwhelmed by long articles, not interrupted by ads. My first read took two hours, because I wasn't familiar with a lot of the terms and the comments were interesting to read too.
What it is AboutGroklaw is about helping non-lawyers understand whats happing in a trial or during other legal procedures. It is focussed on the USA legal system. The person behind Groklaw, PJ, is not a lawyer herself but a journalist. They sit in court and at hearings and later report about them. Also they try to get hold of public material of such court sessions. Groklaw is very accurate, precise, and extremely informative. If you want to LEARN or UNDERSTAND what's afoot in the covered legal battles, groklaw is the place for you. Here you can find
Groklaw's mission statement which is much better than anything I could write
Among others the following cases are covered:
- SCO vs IBM, the biggest "case"
- SCO vs Autozone
- SCO vs Novel, very important as well
- State of Massachussetts adopting ODF, and MS not liking that
Why I go thereI am honest: What interests me most are cases where either MS or SCO are... uhm being slapped across the face, in a figurative manner. I exclusively use Linux and opensource software; on my PCs (one workstation, one file server) there runs not one piece of software I couldn't get the source code for if I wanted. SCO wants me to
pay for using Linux. Since I am poor, I do not find this such a great idea. MS has been The Enemy since always.
My "workflow" goes like this: I check
my favorite newsreader for new headlines at
groklaw's newsfeed, and read the articles; sometimes I follow links to external sites when they cover things in greater detail. After working my way through all those law-talk I take a short break and then go at the comments.
Worthwhile CommentsThe comments are sometimes funny, sometimes off-topic but never trollish. PJ does not like it when people become abusive or insulting. It is more like a top-quality (moderated?) forum. Most comments deal with the matter at hand, ask questions or provide further information, sometimes about only remotely related topics. But still it doesn't run wild; or maybe I don't want to see it like that. At any rate, Groklaw is about the only site I can spend several hours a day, reading articles not in my native language an using terms I do not fully comprehend.
Worldwide InfluenceI have been reading Groklaw for two, three years now and it is still appealing; in fact, as I am now getting used to the legal terms more, it is even more enjoyable and educating. I am aware that the U.S. legal system differs from the European or the German system, but the companies "battling" each other are the same on both continents.
One could say Groklaw is slightly biased against SCO, but Groklaw provides you with all the information so you can make up your own mind and express your opinion.
Coming to an End...So far I have not contributed to Groklaw in terms of comments or donations, but I strongly recommend this site to anyone slightly interested in the U.S. legal system; people using Linux, and other
OSS; people who love, hate, work, have been laid off by SCO, IBM, MS, and other "big players"; real-life intriguing exciting "stories"; copyright holders or challengers; patents and their abuse; and in many other cases as well.
Groklaw is *NOT* a playground for all those uncountable flame wars! They seek to inform and maybe even educate, not engage in silly troll-feeding.
I like
Groklaw
and if you don't you better do not tell me so
