February 23, 2006


Rethink(IP)

USPTO.gov suggestion: zip the TMEP



by Stephen M. Nipper




The MPEP is provided zipped up in three nice "chunks"...ready for easy downloading. http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/pac/mpep/index.html

The TMBP is provided in a zipped format too. http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/dcom/ttab/tbmp/

However, the TMEP isn't provided like that. If you want a local copy of the TMEP you have to download each chapter one at a time. Argh. http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/tmep/

Suggestion...provide the TMEP in one or more zipped files.

Praise: All appear to be saved in a PDF format with OCR (thus, you can load them into Acrobat/Acrobat Reader and do a text search within them...or, as the post at the EsqGear legal tech blog pointed out this morning you can have a desktop search program (X1, Google Desktop, Copernic, etc.) index it and have the ability to search the MPEP/TMEP/TBMP from your desktop on the fly. Very cool).

One benefit of doing this is that by encouraging users to download local copies...less bandwidth in downloading the same chapters over and over again each time you need it.




Posted to Rethink(IP) by Stephen M. Nipper in categories: uspto.gov feedback
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Copyright 2006 Stephen M. Nipper