Groklaw is a web site, created by Pamela Jones (posting with the signature PJ) as her personal blog. Groklaw became famous when, soon after being set up, it started providing detailed investigation into SCO Group's litigation against IBM and Linux and providing legal research that might prove helpful. It was designed also as an anti-FUD site. The blog was created in May 2003 and quickly became the focal point for efforts from people not directly involved with the participants of the lawsuits and people not associated with established actors such as the FSF. It became a web site in September 2003, when its popularity caused it to outgrow the blog software.

Groklaw focuses on fact-finding. Because the group is made up of programmers as well as lawyers and paralegals, as well as the general public, the combined effort makes it possible to find esoteric technical information and evidence that otherwise might be missed by those with a less technical background. By explaining what is happening in the legal process, Groklaw attempts to make it possible for those with technical skills to know what evidence might be legally useful, so they can then provide it. Groklaw prepared, on the web site, a group Open Letter to SCO from the free and open source community it represents. The letter has been credited as impacting on SCO's threats to mail invoices, and shortly after the letter was sent, SCO announced that they would not be mailing invoices.

In court filings in December 2003, IBM for the first time recognized the effort of the Groklaw community, by citing them. The media also has taken an interest and Groklaw has been cited in numerous articles covering the court case and is a resource for journalists. Groklaw will provide answers to journalists who need information about the case and don't know where to look to find it.

Groklaw derives its power from voluntary efforts of dedicated individuals in a community effort. The efforts of Groklaw are directed at dismantling SCO's allegations, and thus the community is not neutral or NPOV in the sense Wikipedia strives to be. Nevertheless it is not sponsored by any of the interested parties or by anyone else. It is a volunteer effort. Hosting is provided by Ibiblio.

Anticipating further legal threats against GNU/Linux and the open source community, Pamela Jones launched Grokline, a Unix ownership timeline project, in May, 2004.

Groklaw's name derives from Robert Heinlein's neologism 'grok', roughly meaning "to understand completely", which had previously entered geek slang.

See also

• SCO-Linux controversies
• Weblog

External links

• Groklaw
• Grokline
• Linux Online interview with Pamela Jones
• Open letter to SCO
• An accompanying research document for the Open Letter