Did the Library of Congress forget the United States v. Microsoft

If you have a desire to start a weight loss program, may I suggest going back to the Microsoft anti-trust case and start reading some of those documents and court testimony. I would guess that doing so would allow you to self-induce something close to clinical depression. Anyway, you're sure to lose your appetitie.

Americans must have short memories considering how soon we forget things like the anti-trust trial. I seem to recall that the scope of that action centered around Netscape's Browser and Microsoft's Internet Explorer. So, today when I read the LOC's question regarding the exclusivity of using Microsoft's Internet Explorer I seemed baffled.

So, here is an excerpt I find difficult to believe:

In accordance with the Artists' Rights and Theft Prevention Act of 2005 (the ART Act), Title I of the Family Entertainment and Copyright Act, Pub. L. No. 109-9, 119 Stat. 218, the Copyright Office recently proposed implementing regulations for preregistration of eligible copyright claims. 70 FR 42286 (July 22, 2005). To be eligible for preregistration, a work must be unpublished, in the process of being prepared for commercial distribution, and in a class of works that the Register of Copyrights determines has had a history of copyright infringement.



Section 104 of the ART Act directs that preregistration procedures must be in place by October 24, 2005. 17 U.S.C. 408(f)(1). To comply with this time frame and to facilitate efficient processing of preregistration claims, inter alia, the proposed rule calls for filing such claims by electronic means only. At this point in the process of developing the Copyright Office's system for online preregistration, it is not entirely clear whether the system will be compatible with web browsers other than Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 5.1 and higher. Filers of preregistration applications will be able to employ these Internet Explorer browsers successfully. Support for Netscape 7.2, Firefox 1.0.3, and Mozilla 1.7.7 is planned but will not be available when preregistration goes into effect. Present users of these browsers may experience problems when filing claims.

In addition to the absurd request, the LOC wants us to mail an original and five copies or use a commercial service to deliver the same to a Congressional Courier Acceptance Site. We can't use an overnight delivery service such as Fedex. In you don't understand what this means, I'll explain. It costs a lot of money and if you just mail it, it will get lost in the mail room. How do I know this? I once worked for the Registrar of Copyrights while in college.

I have no intention of mailing my comments or using a ridiculously expensive delivery service. I plan on discussing this with my Congressman's office. You see, I want some explanation as to how the Library of Congress could by-pass the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team recommendation to use browsers other than Microsoft's Internet Explorer because Internet Explorer presents a national security risk. http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/713878.

Just in case you would like to take a look at the NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING, simply click your Firefox browser on http://www.copyright.gov/fedreg/2005/70fr44878.html and read. You may want to scratch your head, smoke a cigarette, drink some bootlegged whiskey and buy a nickle candy bar while you're at it.

Here's looking at you kid!