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July 31, 2008

legal

New York Bar Association continues anti-Mac policy

Posted Jul. 31, ’08, 4:59 PM PT by Cyrus Farivar
Category | Legal

nyc-bar.jpgIt’s not just the FAA that’s hatin’ on Macs these days. The New York State Bar Examination — you know, the one that gives all those attorneys official permission to get their briefs all up in a twist — isn’t allowing Macs for the grueling two-day exam beginning today.

According to The New York Times, the board’s policy is: “We do not support Apple products in any form including Intel-based laptops running Boot Camp — no exceptions.”

This is, of course, despite the fact that last year’s laptop-based portion was disastrous, reports the Times:

Last summer, panic spread through various testing sites when the exam software - which locks down all programs and files except the exam - malfunctioned. Hundreds of laptop users who navigated back to a previously completed essay found a blank screen. In the months following the exam, [John McAlary, the executive director of the New York State Board of Law Examiners] said, the board salvaged all but 47 essays. Some of those candidates passed or failed regardless of their score on the lost essay, leaving only 15 that were given an estimated score. Nine of them passed the bar, six didn’t.

Once this is all said and done, we really, really hope that one of these new hotshot esquires sues for discrimination.

[via Electronista]


3 Comments

David Katz said:

I fail to see the "Anti" or "hatin" part in the board’s decisions. Why would they want Mac's to run on an untested environment. I am sure that they used all of the resources they had in the software development and Mac's would simply add to problems they just might know about.

But your take on what is just an entity that is running PC only software (save, no bootcamp), is just not news and not a mater of hatin.

Please try writing about something Anti- Anti or with out hatin in it.

Well-at least not the made up parts.


July 31, 2008 6:13 PM
Lesser Whark said:

"Discrimination" is right. A MacBook with Boot Camp is a laptop running Windows. I can understand (barely) not writing Mac OS versions of the software, but not treating one laptop running Windows like every other laptop running Windows is stupid. Imagine if they said "We do not support Dell products in any form. No exceptions." Possibly dual-booting can circumvent the lockdown system, but in that case they should exclude EVERY dual-boot machine, not just those made by Apple.

Also, you quoted from the NYT article, not the original exam specification (http://www.nybarexam.org/pc_program_708.htm). Admire the capslock grandeur as it was originally written:

·WE DO NOT SUPPORT APPLE PRODUCTS IN ANY FORM INCLUDING INTEL BASED LAPTOPS RUNNING BOOTCAMP **NO EXCEPTIONS**

July 31, 2008 10:11 PM
Dan Moren Author Profile Page said:

@David Katz: What makes this untenable is the fact that a Mac running Boot Camp *is* a Windows PC. Banning Macs running Windows in that fashion is kind of like the board saying that you can take the test on any PC—unless it's made by HP.

August 1, 2008 8:00 AM

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