USPTO Rejects SBC Browser Patent

theodp writes "Remember that dicey 1996 SBC Structured Document Browser patent that Slashdot readers immediately called BS on back in 2003? Two-and-a-half years later, a USPTO Director-ordered reexam reached the same conclusion, and a final rejection was quietly issued last month."

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[anonympa]

I have bad news for you all. A final rejection just means that the claims have been rejected for the second time. It's not over yet...!

And here's the link..

[ThyPiGuy]

Method to improve peri-anal hygiene after a bowel movement:

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PT O1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm &r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6520942.WKU.&OS=PN/6520942&RS=PN/ 6520942

Re:And here's the link..

[DrSkwid]

they tend to only use the left hand for wiping

the right hand is preserved for eating and shaking

note to rich westerners : toilets and bathrooms with drainage let alone hot water, soap and towels are an unobtainable luxury to millions of people

SBC patent invalidated by... Micro$oft !!

[indaba]

sorry to ruin the party, but this SBC patent was basically invalidated by invoking the prior art of another patent , assigned to Micro$oft, applied for in 1995.

United States Patent 5,877,765 ; Dickman , et al. March 2, 1999
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PT O1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm &r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=5,877,765.WKU.&OS=PN/5,877,765&RS =PN/5,877,765

which has the catchy title Method and system for displaying internet shortcut icons on the desktop
and yes, from a quick look, it's every bit as obvious as it sounds.

Now, I assume Apple and Sun have taken out licences (or swapped some other IP) for the right to use this patent, but how about :

- KDE ?
- Gnome ?
- you ? - yes, YOU the /.'er right there running distro "X" with icons on your desktop pointing to URL's in VLAGRANT violation of :

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the display of the visual representation of the shortcut object on the virtual desktop includes a graphic for identifying the shortcut object as a shortcut to the resource.

Does anyone else despair of this patent madness, where this rather obvious extension i.e icons pointing to an INTERNET resource is considered patentable, as it's such a VAST improvement (yeah right) over the basic icon to LOCAL resource ?

eg, the Apple Mac in 1984, 1983 Lisa, even earlier Xerox Star etc etc...all had icons - right ?

Re:I work for SBC Knowledge Ventures

[Anonymous Coward]

And no, that isn't why it was created. In fact, it didn't even exist when the deliberations on this patent started. Our prime job is to make sure that we make money off of our intellectual property, but not from stupid crap like the patent mentioned above. While we looove making money from patents which we think we deserve money off of, one of the jobs of the KV team is to make sure fiascos like this don't happen again, which means that BECAUSE Knowledge Ventures exists now, patents like these which are "obvious" won't get filtered through our systems, and if it doesn't get filtered, it won't raise stinks like this one.

Again, I work for KV and I also know that secretly, most KV personnel are happy that this patent is being reexamined.

Re:Hooray for the Indians!

[Anonymous Coward]

Check it out Penn of Penn and Teller has a patent on a hot tub, dildo arrangment see http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PT O1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm &r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=5,920,923.WKU.&OS=PN/5,920,923&RS =PN/5,920,923