The New York Times: Well, you've been waiting for it, and Jay Goultz wants to deliver. What am I talking about, you ask? I'm pointing you in the correct direction to check out the very first post at the new You're The Boss blog entitled Introducing: Thinking Entrepreneur. Here's just a sample of what's in store for you, dearest constant reader:

"One thing I’ve noticed over the years is that small businesses are widely misunderstood. There are millions of small business owners out there who are struggling with similar issues. There are things that keep them up at night. There are things they need to know but have no way of knowing: how to hire, how to fire, how to find new customers, how to keep old customers, the difference between cash flow and profits, the difference between doing what you want because you own the business or because you’re being a jerk." It's the knowing that counts and such knowledge only comes with time and effort. My Dad tells me experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted and it's invaluable stuff, that. Be sure to add the You're The Boss blog to your daily "must read" list and learn from someone who's been there, and done that.

Big trouble for Jammie Thomas-Rasset! From a recent APNews piece, Jury rules against Minn. woman in download case, we learn details of the outcome of her retrial, and it's not good news at all: "A federal jury ruled Thursday that Jammie Thomas-Rasset willfully violated the copyrights on 24 songs, and awarded recording companies $1.92 million, or $80,000 per song. Thomas-Rasset's second trial actually turned out worse for her. When a different federal jury heard her case in 2007, it hit Thomas-Rasset with a $222,000 judgment." Holy inflated damage judgments, Batman! ArsTechnica.com's Nate Anderson has more to add on this travesty of justice: "A new lawyer, a new jury, and a new trial were not enough to save Jammie Thomas-Rasset. In a repeat of the verdict from her first federal trial, Thomas-Rasset was found liable for willfully infringing all 24 copyrights controlled by the four major record labels at issue in the case. The jury awarded the labels damages totaling a whopping $1.92 million. As the dollar amount was read in court, Thomas-Rasset gasped and her eyes widened." I hope Kiwi Camara, Thomas-Rasset's superstar lawyer, can convince the judge that such a massive judgment is unconstitutional and unconscionable. Check out more of Anderson's coverage in Thomas verdict: willful infringement, $1.92 million penalty.

Intellectual property auction giant Ocean Tomo is pulling the plug on its unprofitable sale of IP and passing on the baton to British interdealer broker ICAP for $10 million, according to a recent piece at the Chicago Tribune. The company is penning a partnership deal with ICAP stipulating that Ocean Tomo's IP specialists stay in their respective offices in Chicago, Florida and Connecticut. For more details, read Ocean Tomo sells intellectual-property-rights division.

In other IP news, Venture Beat's Camille Rickets reports that "Conformia Software, maker of software used to manage software cycles end-to-end, has sold its intellectual property assets to Oracle for an undisclosed amount. The company, which specialized in drug development processes, appears to now be defunct. Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Oracle, on the other hand, plans to merge this technology with its existing Oracle Agile Product Lifecycle Management product, which also assists and monitors drug development from beginning to commercialization." More details in Conformia sells intellectual property to Oracle, disbands via The Industry Standard.

IPWatchdog.com: Gene Quinn has some thoughtful comments on President Obama's selection of David Kappos as the next head of the US Patent and Trademark Office in his recent topical piece. Quinn shares with us a few of his musings: "...I am not exactly sure what to make of the White House announcement today.  Exactly what does it mean when the White House announces  President Obama intends to appoint Kappos to be PTO Director.  Is this an announcement that an announcement of Kappos as PTO Director is forthcoming?  I don’t know, but it seems as if Kappos is heading to the PTO, which means Alfred E. Neuman once again will not hold a position within the US government." If you don't know much about Mr. Kappos, Quinn offers this summation of some of his accomplishments as released by the White House Press Office today: "He has held various previous leadership positions in intellectual property law associations in Asia and the U.S. He has spoken widely in Asia, Europe, and the U.S. on intellectual property topics. Mr. Kappos received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of California Davis in 1983, and his law degree from the University of California Berkeley in 1990. He joined IBM in 1983 as a Development Engineer and has served as an Intellectual Property Law attorney in IBM’s Storage Division and Litigation group, as IP Law Counsel in IBM Software Group, as Assistant General Counsel in IBM Asia/Pacific, IBM Corporate Counsel and as Assistant General Counsel prior to his current position." Find out what Senator Orrin Hatch has to say about Mr. Kappo's nomination by reading the rest of Quinn's President Obama Intends to Appoint Kappos as PTO Head.

Bonus piece of the day: 5 Lifelines for Your Startup by Amy Reinink at Entrepreneur.com.