Trying out BlogSkins. Kind of fun. They promise eventually to be able to integrate existing links and other template customizations, which should go a long way toward getting us outside more often.

"Blawg" addition: LawMeme, a blog maintained by Yale Law School students, provides a wealth of current legal news and commentary.

Wow.
Houston, we have Mac. And they say the new car smell is good. So far (about ten minutes into my life as a Mac user) I am dazzled and amazed. The setup on these things is effortless. OSX immediately recognized and used my less-than-conventional ISDN connection, which I was pretty sure would take futzing about with. I'm off to connect more peripherals -

Finally had to say goodnight to the iMac, but it was a sorrowful parting. Apple's got this down. Even the packing and packaging for these things is clean, simple, effective and visually pleasing. I can't get it to see a Belkin 4-port (F1U200) switch and the USB peripherals attached to it, but the "genius" at the Mac store told me that probably would happen (I am not being facetious - that was his Title). Ah well, gotta have something to troubleshoot. Oh, and the Blogger interface loses some editing buttons in the Mac version of IE, for some reason. Otherwise, all systems G-O.

What is it? And Blogging the Law.
Computing tool, or bobbing bird toy? Whatever, it's still in the box at the moment. Will let you know if it actually fires up.

On a different note, I seem to be one of the only "out" lawyer/bloggers in the State of California. Let me break that down - I mean lawyers who admit to blogging, and bloggers who admit to lawyering. This is surprising, since California has one of the highest per capita lawyer populations in the U.S. The lawyer-blogging divide won't last long, and I'm afraid I may be speeding its demise (before I tell you the next part, please move away from any blunt instruments - thanks). I'm nearly done with an article on how blogging could transform legal institutions, for the Daily Journal (California's legal newspaper). This is bound to get more lawyers - and maybe judges - blogging, and while you are free to disagree I tend to think this is a good thing, entirely in keeping with Cluetrain-y oaths and visions.

As demonstrable evidence, I submit some new "Blawg" additions to the Menage. First, there's Law and Everything Else, an informative, comprehensive and clever blog maintained by Burt Hanson (who seems to hail from beyond the U.S., based on his spelling preferences and global focus?). In light of our Kelly v. Arriba discussions, Frank will appreciate his link to an article about the Ninth Circuit's record of Supreme Court reversals, and the old joke: "Judge, I'm appealing a ruling from the 9th Circuit, but I have other reasons as well." (Fang will also appreciate Mathilda.) Second, there's Instapundit, the blog of law professor and music enthusiast Glenn Reynolds, who tags himself (via PRAVDA) as "The New York Times Of Bloggers." Glenn's example is particularly powerful. Legal institutions - courts, law schools, large firms - traditionally have been locked down and inaccessible. The University of Tennesee's law school now is less so, thanks to Professor Glenn: "For me, it's an enjoyable way to get thoughts out that don't merit a 20,000-word law review article but that I think are interesting. And it offers immediate feedback -- and I mean immediate. Sometimes e-mails come in within 30 seconds of a post going live." (From the Minneapolis Star Tribune article noted by Doc yesterday.) Links from Glenn's blog include Overlawyered, a critical look at the legal system's myriad excesses and gaffes. Finally, there's Organized Anarchy, a blog maintained by solo-practitioner Chuck Hartley in San Diego. (Chuck also suffers from the widespread blogger-canine obsession - not sure what all this means, but Rand no doubt has a study in the works.)

So, beware - the lawyers are here and more are coming. There is solace in the fact that "I can get you One Million Dollars!" will not make for particularly linkable blog-fodder.

- Update: another blogging law professor, David E. Sorkin, of the John Marshall Law School in Chicago. Also Larry Staton, Jr., who fuses "law, economics and technology" with a firm grasp on all three, and Kentucky lawyer moved left-coast C. Dodd Harris, IV.