Microsoft/Novell

[ted leslie]

On Wed, 2006-11-08 at 14:54 -0500, Scott Elcomb wrote:
> On 11/7/06, ted leslie <tleslie-RBVUpeUoHUc at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> > I am submitting patents now, I know something about the system, and have
> > seen the pathetic things that have been patented, but in working with
> > the lawyers, i got my education.
> 
> I haven't much of an education in Patents per se, but...
> 
> [...]
> > I very much support patents and software patents, you have to be one
> > dumb ass communist bastard not too, but they are given out to lightly
> > and used as such a nasty tool in business extortion.
> 
> I am no dumb-ass communist bastard.  I agree with many of the
> comments/concerns you've expressed in the past year or so, but this
> one I can't.
> 
> I can accept patents on physical systems/devices, but Software Patents
> I have a very difficult time with as a developer.
> 
> The project I'm working on is a web-based OS (like-thingy) - with a
> significant emphasis on learning/teaching CompSci fundamentals.  If
> the project ever gets big enough to attract serious attention, what
> kind of danger am I/we ("the developers") in as a result of the
> patents that M$ and other "Software Manufacturers" have applied for?
> 
> Why the (BLEEP) should fundamental algorythms be pattentable?

They shouldn't, but ones you devote your life to that are innovative,
that would take many man months to re-create, there should be
protection.
As i said 99% of MS patents are pure crap, and wouldn't hold up in court
(if) you had the $$$$ to prove it was straight forward engineering by
professionals in the area of the art. Nothing that is quick straight
forward engineering should be patentable. But the Patent office can't be
expected to dive in deep on each submission,
when i submitted mine, they did a key word search, a brief read,
and gave me 12 "hits" and said to me "you give us a write up on each of
these 12 and why you are not in conflict with them",
and one of them was MS, basically a MS patent for a super version of
Apple's Garage Band,
The MS patent was larger then the other 11 put together. It doesn't
apply to mine, I know that, but I have to understand their shit, to be
able to defend mine :(




-tl

> 
> The only answer I have has been iterated by many others -- to stifle
> innovation and competition.
> 
> IMO Software Patents are exceedingly dangerous.
> 
> (PS - Colin, My understanding is that CIPO has been awarding Software
> Patents in Canada for a while now.  IANAL and all that, but other
> Canadian FLOSS-friendly communities have been having intermittent
> conversations about this for some time - ie on the CLUE and Digital
> Copyright Canada mailing lists.)
> 

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