Lucille Busse Retires  

California Opinions 1850-present
CA published opinions from 1850 are now available free of charge. Opinions may be retrieved by party name or citation, or users can do natural language searching with the ability to limit by date. For a small fee the case may also be Shepardized using the Make Sure Your Case is Still Good Law feature.

Electronic Access to Criminal Files
A study by the Federal Judicial Center is summarized in the article, Few Negatives Reported on Electronic Access to Criminal Files, which was recently published in The Third Branch, the federal courts newsletter.

Medical Research
Researching Medical Literature on the Internet, an LLRX.com article, has just been updated. For those who occasionally need to research medical topics, this informative guide provides a useful overview of reliable medical websites and databases. Additional links to health-related topics may be found on WSLL's Medical Law page

Taping Conversations
Can We Tape? A Practical Guide to Taping Phone Calls and In-Person Conversations in the 50 States and D.C. is prepared by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. It includes a state-by-state guide to wiretapping and eavesdropping laws, a chart Tape-Recording Laws at a Glance, information about interstate phone and cellular or cordless phone taping, citations to court cases, and more.

With the Holidays coming...
…many of us will be shopping online. If you're looking for product reviews, you may want to start with ConsumerSearch. This resource reviews products and services, analyzes other reviews, lists top-rated products, and provides where-to-buy information. Categories include: Automotive, Computers, Electronics, Family, Health & Fitness, House & Home, Kitchen, Lawn & Garden, Office, Personal Finance, Photo & Video, Sports & Leisure.

Additional product review and gift suggestions are available at Consumer Reports, PCWorld, and Cnet.com.

You might also find our Consumer Law page useful. See especially the section on Internet Shopping.

Wireless portability: Is it for you?
Now that the great mobile phone switch is underway, you may be asking whether a switch in cell phone providers is right for you. Consumers have been bouncing from carrier to carrier for years but with each switch, they were forced to get a new cell phone number. The new rules (at 68 FR 43009 and 47 CFR 52) allow you to keep your cell phone number when switching carriers. This is expected to entice thousands of customers into new contracts with new providers. The new rules also allow consumers to move a landline phone number to cellular service. The first barrier for most Wisconsin consumers is that only two areas in our state are currently eligible for wireless portability. The first phase of implementation, which began in November, involved the top 100 markets in the United States. See this map for the locations of those markets. The rest of the country will have to wait until May 24, 2004 to be eligible.

What should you consider when switching cell phone carriers? Experts suggest consumers first study their current plan and contract. Is there a termination fee? Generally, termination fees range from $100-$250, with some as high as $1000. If you decide to switch, experts say you should take a recent phone bill along with your contract to your new provider. The new provider completes all the work related to the change. Expect to purchase a new handset. Experts also say you should not cancel your current service until the new service is working. The FCC expects wireless providers to complete the switch within 2 ½ hours but unforeseen problems could lead to delays, which could lead to missed calls.

What about switching a landline phone number to a wireless phone? Industry observers believe this option holds fewer benefits for consumers. One problem is that wireless phones are less reliable than traditional phones. In addition to “bad cells,” Emergency 911 service is not perfected for wireless phones. Telemarketers who have your home phone number will follow you to your cell phone and Internet users who rely on a dial up connection or high speed DSL will still need a landline phone. Changing a landline number to a wireless number may take up to four days or longer. Nonetheless, phone number portability from landline phones to wireless will be possible, which puts local phone companies on notice. They may have to start competing for your business.

Overall, the new wireless portability rules are expected to bring better pricing plans, better service and more flexibility for consumers. For more information on the wireless portability rules, see the FCC’s Number Portability page. See also cellupdate.com, a consumer advocate site for cell phone users, and easyporting.com, a website managed by the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association.

Send your suggestions for future Tech Tips to the editor.

Test Your Digital IQ
And while we’re on the subject of technology, you can find out what your Digital IQ is by taking this brief MSNBC Digital IQ Test (takes about 5 minutes).

Data, Data, and More Data
Winter Corporation, a database consulting company, recently conducted a survey to identify the world’s largest databases and has released its Top Ten lists. France Telecom currently has the largest database, with 29,232 gigabytes, or expressed differently, 29.2 terabytes. That’s equal to about 30 million books. And you thought you suffered from data overload?!

Notables for December

Dec. 10: Birthday of Melvil Dewey, born 1851. He developed the Dewey Decimal Classification System used by many libraries, and was a founder of the American Library Association.

Dec. 15: Bill of Rights Day
Officially signed into practice in 1941, it marks the anniversary of the signing of the Bill of Rights in 1789.

Dec. 22: The Winter Solstice occurs at 1:04 a.m. CST, marking the beginning of winter. Here’s some information on Solstice celebrations, both past and present .

Dec. 24, 25, 31, and Jan. 1: WSLL is closed for holidays