Bar Exam Malfunctions
Want to take the bar exam in the state of New York but are a Mac user? Not so fast says the New York State Board of Law Examiners. While laptops have been allowed to compose bar exam essays on since February 2003, the Board does not approve use of the bar exam software on Mac laptops. But that seems to be the least of the problems for those who are taking the exam. The specialized software used to lock the user’s laptop down so that it will only operate the exam software (no going to wikipedia for your essay answers!) also has some major issues, and the Board offers this disclaimer to those who are taking the exam:
Technical difficulties may include hardware or software malfunctions, data saving or retrieval problems, operator errors, upload or download problems, or the loss of electrical power at the examination facility. In the event any technical difficulties occur during the bar examination, you must handwrite your essay answers in the answer books provided and no additional time may be allowed. 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.
Malfunctions of the software have been known to happen, such as last summer when a malfunction set hundreds of users back valuable amounts of time when they found previously answered essays blank. The board was able to salvage most of the work, but 47 essays went missing. Is your future worth chancing on a piece of technology? Some don’t seem to mind, but it leaves an amazing amount up to chance.
