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Microsoft Plans IE Changes Due to Plugin Patent
aWalrus writes "Microsoft has outlined some of the strategies they may pursue for modifying the way Internet Explorer handles plugins (annoying the user may circumvent the patent) if they lose their legal battle against Eolas Technologies (which claims they invented the seamless procedure for running plugins). There has already been a previous ruling against MS which they continue to appeal. This is likely to have repercussions in the Open Source Community too. If MS is found to be infringing the patent, that ruling could be extended to other browsers like Opera and Mozilla. Usability expert Jeffrey Zeldman provides an in-depth commentary on this issue and its implications."
anything that can be done in flash can be done using javascript/dhtml. I made a webapp that completely acts like a windows desktop out of js/dhtml, and it works in any browser that supports the current standards. It would be nice to stop having to add hacks to support IE, maybe this will bring microsoft in line with the rest of the world. Also nice to get rid of all those macromedia junkies. "I use flash" should not be a job description, it's pathetic.
them: so, what do you do?
me: i'm a programmer, how bout you?
them: oh, i use macromedia products.
me: wtf are you stupid?
perl -e '$_="\007/4`\cp%2,".chr(127);s/./"\"\\c$&\""/gees
That's all that this is. If all that they're claiming is the right to plug-ins. Come on, Unix has supported pluggable modules which can be installed at runtime for user benefit for decades. Fonts are a semi-plugin to enhance the user experience, and those have been around since moveable type. So will they start to claim that fonts (and the ability to load new ones at runtime) are applicable under this too?
Seems way too broad to me. I mean, Apache uses runtime module loading. Perl has done this for years. And C has had the ability to dynamically load modules, should they be needed by the end user, for decades.
"one best-of-breed browser"
Thats marketing speak if I've ever heard it. Sounds like Doyle is a money grubbing patent hoarder that never intended to develop anything. He just saw an obvious progression and knew that he didn't have the skills to develop it. So he paid the money to get the patent, and sat on it until it became big enough for him to make some serious money on. Software patents are _evil_
No. Your browser should launch the TIFF files into an external viewer. No longer infringement.