A *great* way to get past the hyperbole on the Internet and learn a lot about Intellectual Property is to read “Intellectual Property, The Tough New Realities That Could Make or Break Your Business” by Paul Goldstein (Penguin Group ISBN 978-1-59184-177-7).  Here’s a useful link where you can buy your own copy if you’d like:

If ad blockers are nixing the graphic the text links is: Intellectual Property: The Tough New Realities That Could Make or Break Your Business

This book is easy to read.  Patent Law in particular can be tough to grok, but this book makes it very approachable with well-chosen case studies.  I found it an excellent way to fill in gaps in my knowledge of IP issues.  I’ve filed probably 30 applications and spent countless hours talking to patent attorneys.  Yet this book was still very useful for me.  I highly recommend it.

Note that this book does not cover the recent flurry around software patents.  The Supreme Court Bilski Argument is extremely interesting.  And if you really want to understand that case you need to understand patents in general.  This book is the best way I can think of to get that in a few hours.  Buy it and read it on your next plane flight or lazy snowed in afternoon.  You won’t regret it.