Is it ever ok to carry outside the pocket?...with clip?

[bld522]

And in a lot of cases, he takes you too! Lol!

And so could cops in a lot of jurisdictions other than NYC if they feel like it. Some States including California don't specify whether clipping a folding knife in such a way that the clip is visible constitutes "displaying" the knife. If it does, it falls under a much more restrictive set of rules in many jurisdictions than knives that are carried completely concealed. The question of which set of rules to apply is left up to the officer to decide.

For what it's worth, I consider displaying a knife clip equivalent to displaying the knife itself. YMMV.