Privacy in the social media age

I may wander the virtual world, but I also like my privacy and do not want my wanderings tracked without my knowledge.  Enter Privacy Badger - a fellow virtual denizen with origins as a fur-based critter.

Privacy Badger, a project of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, is not an ad blocker.  Rather, if you are using Firefox or Chrome it blocks online services which attempt to track your behavior.

Hat-tip, again, to ProfHacker

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

How To File FOIA Requests

Have you ever wondered what steps are involved in actually making a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request? This handy infographic takes you through the process.


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

When 2¢ = $50

Congratulations to Jennifer Calamia. She is our winner of an Apple $50 gift card for participating in the summer research survey.

Thanks to everyone who participated.


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Organize Your Online Legal Resarch: Lexbox

Lexbox is a free Google Chrome extension that helps you organize and monitor your online legal research.  It enables you to assemble legal information from various online sources, and to create personal alerts

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Women, Business and the Law 2016

How do 173 countries across the globe, including the United States, compare in terms of legal barriers to women's employment and business activity?  The latest Women, Business and the Law report by the World Bank Group provides national comparisons over a wide range of related areas, from restrictions on women in establishing credit, making contracts, and holding certain jobs, to parental leave laws and the criminalization of domestic violence. Released this month, "Women, Business and the Law 2016: Getting to Equal" is an excellent source for comparative law research in business, economic development, and women and the law. Both the full report and a summary of key findings are available here.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

New on Hein Online - State Reports: A Historical Archive

Attention source gatherers looking for old case law.  Hein Online now has the full text of historical state reporters.  Go to the state you want and you can drill down through the titles or search by citation.  Sometimes it is faster to drill down to find your document unless you are very sure of the abbreviation for the title of the reporter.  Historical (Nominative Reporters) are named after the person who collected and compiled the courts' opinions.  It can be tricky.  Have fun!

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Heinonline: Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals Database Coverage Expansion

HeinOnline has recently expanded coverage of the Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals (IFLP) database to include the year 1984. This additional indexing has added 9,700 records including journal articles, collection articles and book reviews. IFLP can be searched by subject, country subject, region, and more.  To learn more about the enhancement and a refresher on how to search IFLP, click here.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat