Summary

This encyclopedia covers legal issues relating to information technology and the Internet.

Using key events to illustrate major issues, Internet and the Law: Technology, Society, and Compromises explores such significant legal battles as A&M Records v. Napster and Apple Computer v. Franklin Computer , allowing readers a look into stories of trade secrets, music theft, and industrial espionage.

As information technology grows and the Internet's global reach strengthens, it is becoming more difficult to define rules to regulate it. Governments have tried, for various reasons, to restrict Internet content but have not succeeded, in part because the international nature of the Internet makes enforcement difficult. Internet and the Law focuses on laws relating to intellectual property and freedom of expression, and presents information in a clear and concise manner, making it easily accessible to students and others researching the intricacies of Internet law.

* Over 140 A-Z entries including biographies of key people involved in the development of Internet legislation

* An expansive glossary of technical and legal terms cross-referenced for easy access to information

* A detailed chronology of major developments illustrating changes in legal issues relating to computers, information technology, and the Internet

* A comprehensive index for quick reference to the numerous topics covered

Choice Review

The inherent risk of any book about the Internet is that it will be less current and comprehensive than the Internet itself. Take this encyclopedia's entry for Project Gutenberg (CH, Oct'11, 49-0598), the world's oldest digital library, which says the website consists of some 40,000 texts. That was a year or two ago, when this book was being assembled. The number now is 42,000, according to the Gutenberg website and to Wikipedia, which also covers the project's history and collection scope (including a nifty graph), as well as addressing common criticisms of the project. For other topics, however, this book by Schwabach (Thomas Jefferson School of Law) is head and shoulders above Wikipedia (e.g., on international copyright and patent protection). This second edition (1st ed., 2006) features numerous entries of interest ranging in length from 500 to 5,000 words. Other criticisms--e.g., tracing the beginning of the Internet back to the ninth-century print trade is not anyone's definition of "information technology"--are just nitpicks. Like the best reference tools, what this book has to offer is quality control. Summing Up: Recommended. High school, public, and general academic libraries; general readers and undergraduates. A. C. Aycock North Carolina Justice Academy

Library Journal Review

Schwabach's (law, Thomas Jefferson Sch. of Law; Intellectual Property: A Reference Handbook) second edition of a 2005 work provides an overview of key issues in the development of computer and Internet law, including content originating in other countries, freedom of expression online, and intellectual property rights. The introductory materials provide guidance on reading legal citations (based on the Harvard Bluebook and modified slightly for nonattorney users), tips on how to find a relevant law, when it might be best to have the assistance of a law librarian, and a chronology relating to events from 868 to 2013. The 500- to 5,000-word entries cover such topics as click-wrap agreements, hacking, and file sharing; they are organized alphabetically and feature information from legal sources, cross-references, and further reading suggestions. Back matter consists of a thorough and easy-to-use table of authorities by subject and, a bibliography that includes reference works and material by trade legal publishers; the appended selected documents feature court decisions and relevant code sections. VERDICT An excellent reference tool and college-level go-to with no need for users to have in-depth legal knowledge.-Beth Bland, Milwaukee (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.