New York Bar Association to would-be lawyers: No Macs Allowed

The New York State Board of Law Examiners says:

"We do not support Apple products in any form including Intel-based laptops running Boot Camp - no exceptions."

Today, as eager lawyers-to-be finish the New York State bar exam, those using laptops to write their essays won't be running Macs. The NY board, which has allowed candidates to write essays using laptops since 2003, has a strict no-Mac policy in place. They will not be exploring Mac-friendly options until at least February of next year.

Before you react in outrage, be aware that according to the NY Times, computer support for Windows laptops remains so buggy that many candidates prefer to stick to pencil and paper. After a series of software exams gone wacky, the legal warnings and disclaimers now read: "If you choose to continue to use your computer to write your essay answers after experiencing technical difficulties, or when you have been instructed not to do so, you do so at your own risk." The exam software is designed to lock out all other applications on the laptop, so that test-takers can't leverage reference materials or crib notes on their machines.

Amusingly, the article points out that many candidates have little or no experience writing out essays by hand as law school exams are "routinely administered on laptops." Presumably, a good percentage of those laptops are manufactured by Apple.