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IBM Wants Patent For Regex SSN Validation
theodp writes "What do you get when you combine IBM contributors with the Dojo Foundation? A patent for Real-Time Validation of Text Input Fields Using Regular Expression Evaluation During Text Entry, assuming the newly-disclosed Big Blue patent application passes muster with the USPTO. IBM explains that the invention of four IBMers addresses a 'persistent problem that plagues Web form fields' — e.g., 'a social security number can be entered with or without dashes.' A non-legalese description of IBM's patent-pending invention can be found in The Official Dojo Documentation. While IBM has formed a Strategic Partnership With the Dojo Foundation which may protect one from a patent infringement lawsuit over validating phone numbers, concerns have been voiced over an exception clause in IBM's open source pledge."
Are you fucking kidding me? Did they just really patent the format "###-##-####"? I didn't RTFA because I didn't want my head to explode.
this is my sig
^\d{3}-\d{2}-\d{4}$
ahh thats right baby, patent infringement!
I live on the edge...
A persistent problem that plagues Web programmers is the proper formatting of data into text fields. Fixed that for you, IBM.
I wish I could mod this up to "6". "Prior Art so Prior It Hurts". I love it.
Sorry, you forgot to put question marks after the hyphens. Obviously, you'll need to license IBM's patent, because that additional tweak makes it a non-obvious invention.
$_ = "wftedskaebjgdpjgidbsmnjgcdwatb"; tr/a-z/oh, turtleneck Phrase Jar!/; print
We need more overly-broad patents on embarrassingly horrible user interfaces. In fact, someone ought to patent *all* the common mistakes. That way their lawyers could run around suing everyone building crap.
Program Manager: What the hell is happening?! Why is the website down?! ... what are you trying to tell me? This is an emergency, accounting said our money is leaving! ... we could remove it and then it could read back the file after waiting for a few seconds. We would have to hope that more users don't come while we are performing emergency dash extraction.
Web Programmer: It's the users, sir, one of them put dashes in their SSN on the form!
Program Manager: I don't have time for this mumbo jumbo geek jargon
Web Programmer: Well, you see the dashes are inside the string.
Program Manager: Inside? How is this possible?
Web Programmer: Well, the user must have paused to push the dash key, sir.
Program Manager: So if the dashes are inside the string, we have to get them out. Is there someone we can pay for this service?
Web Programmer: I'm afraid it's too complicated for that. But maybe if we had it write to a file and one of us kept refreshing a text editor on that file
Program Manager: Goddamnit! Why didn't testing find this?!
Web Programmer: Well, they did but to fix this bug we just removed the dash keys on their keyboards.
Program Manager: Can we do that to each of the users?
*IBM employee enters with massive box labeled "Enterprise SSN Dash Extractor"*
IBM Sales Rep: Gentlemen, let IBM solve all your SSN problems for a mere $2,000 per site license!
My work here is dung.
Patent Application 973255489
"Method of enhancing sarcasm through the intentional introduction of typographical errors within multiple exclamation marks."
Within a set of not fewer than four (4) and not more than eight (8) Exclamation Marks ("!"), an Erroneous Character from the set of characters [1, 2, @, #, ~, `] is inserted after the third or fourth Exclamation Mark. The Erroneous Character is perceived by the reader as a typographical error consistent with hurried, careless typing, reinforcing any sarcasm contained in the textual comment preceding the Exclamation Marks.
Actually, they're trying to patent "A system for providing real-time validation of text input fields in a Web page comprising:a validation-enhanced text input element configured to contain an attribute for a validation expression for a text field in a rendered Web page, wherein the validation-enhanced text input element is contained within a source code document corresponding to the rendered Web page; andan input text validator configured to validate a user-entered character of the text field against the validation expression in real-time and visually indicate invalid user-entered characters," and "A method for providing real-time validation of text input fields in a Web page comprising:receiving a user-entered character in a text field displayed in a Web page;immediately validating the user-entered character against a validation expression contained within a validation-enhanced text input element associated with the text field, wherein the validation expression defines a set of acceptable characters and character positions for the text field; andwhen the user-entered character is determined invalid, visually marking the user-entered character," and "An input text validator for validating a text field of a Web page in real-time comprising:a partial input expression generator configured to generate an expanded version of a validation expression, wherein the expanded version of the validation expression defines a set of acceptable characters and character positions for a text field of a Web page; andan invalid text highlighter configured to visually highlight a user-entered character in the text field when the user-entered character is determined as invalid for the expanded validation expression."
Remember, patents are all about the claims. You don't know what they're "trying to patent" until you have read and understand the claims.
Today's Sesame Street was brought to you by the number e.
Maybe if we put it in a format IBM can understand:
SOCIAL-SECURITY-NUMBER PIC 99-999-9999
I'd say this was funny, but you got the format wrong.....999-99-9999
Sorry, your post was in ASCII, so we couldn't understand it. Could you try resubmitting it in EBCDIC please?
Thanks,
IBM
I am TheRaven on Soylent News
So if your VCs wanted you to torture puppies to death before they'd give you money, would the "chorus of boos" have any effect on your actions?
I assure you that my company, Puppy Waterboards, LLC, does care about your concerns about our patent, "Method and apparatus for puppy euthanasia utilizing superheated corkscrews", and will direct them to the appropriate staff.
There are many ways to get money. Some of them are right, and some of them are wrong. People with consciences know there's a difference.
On a more serious note, you don't even know what my patent is about, and yet you're positive it's "wrong". People with consciences try to find out the facts before they criticize.
Give a boy a gun and you arm him for a day. Teach him how to make a gun, and the whole metaphor breaks down.
...when you gov ppl were still on mainframes
We're still on mainframes, you insensitive clod!
Aaah. I see my error now. I was responding to your inane publicly-visible post instead of your secret invisible post where you said something insightful. The publicly-visible post just said, "Awww, do you want us to cry because you actually have to work hard to get a patent? Let me call the waaahmbulance for you." Next time, I'll be sure to remotely hack your computer and locate and decrypt "SuperSecretInsightfulPost.html" so I can be sure to respond to all of your brilliant points.
Today's Sesame Street was brought to you by the number e.
Exactly.
Being mostly a Perl hacker now, I'm as guilty as most in trying to find the perfect regex solution to a blindingly simple problem. It's seductive, it's cool, it's mystical, it's insider cant and sacred dweomer and secret handshake all rolled together.
I have, posted on my cube wall, a particularly good quote from Jamie Zawinski:
Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.