Cyberlaw book FAQ - John Bandler

FAQ for the book on Cyberlaw

By John Bandler

This page provides FAQ and responses regarding my book and online course on policies and procedures.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

1. General FAQ about the book, course, resources

1.1 Where can I buy the book?

Amazon! Paperback is available, hardcover, eBook, and now Audiobook.

Check your school bookstore too (this is a low cost textbook option), or ask at your local bookstore.

1.2 Do you have a main book landing page?

Yes, see this page. Cyberlaw by John Bandler front cover

1.3 Who is the book for?

This book is for anyone interested in learning about cyberlaw.

The primary intended audience is college and graduate level students, and non-lawyer professionals (e.g., information technology, information security, and compliance professionals).

It is also adaptable for other audiences, including law students, lawyers, and capable high school students.

The book does not presume knowledge of law or technology and is well organized and modular so instructors and readers can choose their own adventure. This means some readers go slower at parts, some readers race through chapters, sections, or sentences they are familiar with. See more about who the book is for here Who is the cyberlaw book for? .

1.4 Do you have an online course at Udemy to parallel the book?

Yes I do! In fact, two.

I have an eleven hour paid course, and also a two hour free course.

See my main Udemy page here on this website, check for coupon codes there and elsewhere, and get look for the best deal before you buy.

1.5 Do you have a cyberlaw book resources page?

Yes I do! It has a ton of helpful free resources and references, useful whether you have the book, online course, both, or neither.

The book is well referenced and cited, and these webpages are a place to put all the references and research in one place which was too much to include in the book.

See my cyberlaw book main resources page.

1.6 Do you have a current or sample cyberlaw related course reading list/syllabus for a college course, or graduate level course, or law school course that I could review?

Yes I do, you can see the below, and for your course, consider the audience and how to customize, for example:

Undergraduate, graduate, or law school? The book can work for all.
Some student demographics may already have a foundation in a certain area (law, or technology, etc.)
Some student demographics may be unfamiliar with law, or with technology
Adjust the coverage accordingly. Higher levels are expected to be able to read more and grasp more complex concepts, thus go faster and cover deeper. Lower levels and some students may need to go slower, perhaps gloss over some of the nuances.

See the bottom of this page for links to sample coverage, plus infographics on ways to cover the book:

Who is the Cyberlaw Book For?

1.7 I have the printed version of the book, which means I cannot click on those links in the [paper] book. Is there a quick way to access those links (and the chapter questions)?

Great question.

See the QR code at the end of each chapter, leading you to that chapter's reference page.

Or just click this to start at the main cyberlaw book resources page, which has clickable links to each chapter reference page.

1.8 This book is 500 pages! That's really thick, isn't that too much for me to read?

Not at all, you can handle it and it is all solid content at a very reasonable price, well-organized, and a breezy understandable read. Don't be intimidated by the page count, you've got this.

The word count is reasonable. If you were to read every single word in the book (127,000) at a reasonable speed (200 words per minute) you could get through it in under 11 hours. If you skip footnotes and references, that reduces it by about 25%.

The book has a compact page size (6"x9") with comfortable font, paragraph spacing, margins, many diagrams, and other formatting that leaves room for notes and allows for quick reading. References and vignettes are in the footnotes so you can skip them if you like.

It is longer than I originally planned, covering more areas of law and in greater depth. It is layered, with simple layers up front, and more for the reader is better than less.

Many students and readers need the introductory law material, which I included in the book rather than requiring the purchase of two books.

I have seen many traditional coursebooks and casebooks which are enormous, heavy, and have a lot of unnecessary content. In comparison, this is compact, efficient, readable, and carriable.

In sum, do not be intimidated by the page count, this is a simple, straightforward, modular book you can handle.

1.9 This book has over 40 chapters? Isn't that too many?

Not really, because each chapter covers a discrete topic, and no chapter is very long. You can pick the chapters you want to read (or use for your course) or just read through them all because they are breezy. You may be surprised how quickly the chapters go. Also, I numbered the "back matter" (material at the end of the book) because I like it that way and most publishers don't do that.

Many academic course books are 14 chapters -- one chapter per week of a semester -- but that is often an artificial way to organize a topic, and that means some of those chapters can be very long and covering topics together that might not go well together.

This book is organized just the way I wanted it, nice and modular. You can read it or adapt it for your course knowing the clear organization.

1.10 This book has over 500 footnotes plus other references! Isn't that too many?

Don't worry, you can skip over the footnotes and references if you want. The basic information is there for you in the main text with simple clear writing.

The footnotes allow the reader and researcher to dig deeper into the law, cases, facts and issues (if they want). This means you have the next research and investigation steps laid out for you. It is also a place for me to drop a vignette or aside.

Also note that my footnotes are consecutive throughout the book, they never restart, and that is helpful and you'll never mix them up. Since they are footnotes (not endnotes) the reference is there for you on that same page, no flipping through pages.

Also, there are individual chapter reference webpages, with a compilation of those references, plus even more.

1.11 This book is like three books in one, why didn't you just publish three books?

Better that the reader has all the information at their fingertips. You can choose how fast you cover each chapter, depending on whether you are familiar with that topic or not. Cyberlaw is technology plus traditional law plus data law. I cover it all, you have it in one book, choose your own adventure through it.

1.12 This book doesn't cover X, and it covers Y too quickly

There is only so much I can cover, in a certain level of detail, and fit it into a book. As it is, this book is pretty robust at the practical limit of how long it could be, at about 120,000 words and 500 pages. If you want or need more, start by reading the references cited, or encourage me to write a follow-on book.

Every reader is different, so it is impossible to make the perfect sized book with the right detail for every need.

1.13 This book covers things I already know - or covers things too simply

Every reader is different, coming to the book with different existing knowledge. If some things seem basic for you, I guarantee there is still plenty of material to learn, nuances to conquer, plus the additional references. Also, part of my goal is to break extremely complex legal areas into simple components, so maybe things seem simple on the surface, whereas some other law books might start with the complex.

Don't forget to explore further layers of complexity.

Every reader is different, so it is impossible to make the book perfect for everyone.

1.14 Wow, you took complex topics and concepts and simplified them nicely, and also showed the path to deeper learning

Thank you! That warms my heart.

1.15 This book it better than other books five times it's price, can I send you some extra money, or maybe a car?

Not necessary! Just an expression of appreciation or excellent review will suffice! My goal was to write a solid, affordable book.

1.16 Can I use your Cyberlaw book as a coursebook for my students?

Yes, absolutely. You can tailor the coverage of the book to your course, and your students, covering certain areas quickly, and others in more depth.

It is not a traditional coursebook, and that is good in many ways, and it is priced excellently for student value. All of that is a good thing for students.

Feel free to contact me, including if there are resources I can point you to or build for you, and see this article on who the book is for and how to tailor coverage.

1.17 How does typical coursebook pricing work?

Most commercial coursebooks exceed $100 per book in student cost, no matter what the topic. Cyberlaw books can be several hundred dollars each.

My first two books were priced by the publishers at about $70, and my second book even got more expensive in the hardcover version as time went by (well over $100).

Understandably, a lot of work and expertise goes into building, copyediting, publishing, and marketing coursebooks and I cannot compete with most of that.

But also, this business model is designed to make it easy and free for the instructor but very costly for the student. The student pays over $100 to get the book, and instructors get a free book, free instructor resources such as lesson PowerPoints, canned questions, and the answer keys.

For my teaching and my students, I wanted my own book, covering it the way I wanted, and at a lower price. And I decided to share what I could with the world.

If there is something I can do to make this quality $25 book suitable as a coursebook for you and your class, please let me know.

1.18 I don't know much about technology, is this book right for me?

Yes, absolutely. The book does not presume any expertise and walks you through technology basics (see Part 3: Entering Cyberspace).

1.19 I know a lot about technology, I'm pretty much an expert on that, is this book right for me?

Yes, absolutely. You could skim (or skip) the part that introduces technology, and focus on the law parts.

1.20 I don't know much about law, is this book right for me?

Yes, absolutely. The book does not presume any legal knowledge and walks you through law basics (see Part 2: Introduction to Law).

1.21 I know a lot about law [I'm a lawyer/law student] is this book right for me?

Yes, absolutely. You could skim (or skip) the part that introduces law, and the other introductory sections, and focus on the cyberlaw applications. Just remember this is not a legal treatise geared for experienced lawyers, but a breezy read.

1.22 I don't like to read, can I use an AI tool like Chat GPT to read it for me?

Please don't! No AI tool can make this better or simpler. I cover this in Chapter 3, where I motivate you to practice your reading skills and build your reading stamina. You want to get knowledge into your brain, that means do the reading! The more you read and practice that skill, the easier it will get for you. (Also see my free online course at Udemy about learning and building your skills). Chapter 36 also explores how cyberspace influences us, including with social media and AI tools.

1.23 There is a little bit of repetition in the book, how come?

First, repetition helps with learning. Law and cyberlaw are confusing to many, so repetition helps cement important points into the brain. I ease the reader into complex topics in law such as jurisdiction, the First Amendment, and more.

Second, the book is designed to be modular and for a variety of audiences, and realizes that some readers will not read it straight through.

Thus, there are "preview" sections, "recap" sections, and footnotes or other text so that readers can get acclimatized to important legal concepts little by little, and also have them available at each critical stage. Those quick reminders are helpful for many, and skimmable or skippable for others.

1.24 I like how you break things into categories and parts

Thank you. I know what it is like to be confused or overwhelmed; whether with law, technology, both together, or any complicated subject. To help learn, I find it helps to first break it into simple parts, then layer in details. That's the concepts of layering, laddering, and scaffolding. Part 1 explains this and the cyberlaw learning mindset.

1.25 Do you have a breakdown on word count, chapter difficulty, etc. so I can choose my adventure through the book?

Each Part header page and Chapter header page has a quick bullet point summary of what is inside. Each section is titled so you know what it covers.

Three things are important when assessing how readable something is, or how long it should take to read it: (1) What is the difficulty of the writing style, (2) What is the difficulty of the material, (3) what is the word count.

My page Who is the Cyberlaw Book For? shows how different audiences can choose their own adventure through the book, including for different education levels.

1.26 There is no way I am reading an entire book on cyberlaw: Do you offer cyberlaw learning resources at a variety of input levels?

Yes, whatever your budget for time or money, I offer learning resources on cyberlaw, because cyberlaw is for everyone (just like law is for everyone, not just lawyers).

I offer many ways, including for free. I have a two minute video and a ten minute video, a two hour online course and an eleven hour online course, introductory articles and follow on articles, finally this book, my main work.

See Learning about Cyberlaw.

1.x Your question on the book or my other resources?

If you have a question, let me know.

2. FAQ on cyberlaw - Detailed questions

2.1 You have an interesting definition and concept of what "cyberlaw" is, but it is different from how I have seen some others describe it. Who is right?

"Cyberlaw" is a term with different meanings for different people, including among lawyers. This book explores my understanding of it, and explains why. I present it so that everyone can grasp those first layers of understanding. After you read it, you get to decide for yourself how to think about it.

2.2 That was thought-provoking how you categorized speech and expression. Is that from caselaw? It is different from how other legal scholars have categorized it.

My categories are simple, practical, and real-world based to help understand the basics of speech, expression, and the First Amendment. After teaching this for years, including to law students, I see that simple categories help ensure the first basics can sink in.

I cover caselaw too, including how a court addresses these issues, but that is a very different way to view it. Legal caselaw is important, and helpful for one type of review and learning. But this caselaw starts at a very complex level and can loose many from the start.

My method will help more people understand this complicated area better, including to understand the preliminary basics of speech in the U.S.

2.x Your question on a specific area of cyberlaw?

If you have a question, let me know.

Disclaimer

As you probably suspect, just because a question is listed here does not mean it is really "frequently asked" or that it was ever asked. But it might be asked, and it is fun to pretend someone asked it.

The usual disclaimers too.

FAQ for the book on Cyberlaw

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

1. General FAQ about the book, course, resources

2. FAQ on cyberlaw - Detailed questions

Disclaimer

Links