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Google Patents Displaying Patents
theodp writes "Google has actually managed to patent displaying patents. The USPTO issued US Patent No. D603,866 to six Google inventors for their 'graphical user interface for display screen of a communications terminal.' Among the six inventors is the guy who introduced Google Patents. Ironically, Google Patents can't seem to find the new Google patent for Google Patents."
Didn't the Patent Office figure out and implement the displaying of patents first? Like... oh, maybe a century or two ago?
In other news, I just sent in an anonymous patent patenting posting anonymous comments!
They got a design patent. That's something complete different from a regular patent.
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It's a design patent. Please learn how the patent system works before posting patent stories.
Yo dawg, herd u liek patents, so I put a patent on displaying patents so now you can violate my patent while ur lookin at patents.
I've tried to figure out Google's stance on software patents, but it's never clear.
The brief they signed for the Supreme Court Bilski case does seem to argue against software patents, so that's the main thing.
On the other hand, they're stockpiling them. But do they use them aggressively? Have they ever argued *for* them being generally allowed by the USPTO?
(I know they support "patent reform", but that's only important for massive corporations, it's got little to do with anything of importance to software developers or users)
Here's what I have so far:
Please help publicise swpat.org - the software patents wiki
I thought you'd like to patent viewing your patent, so we patented viewing your patent viewing your patent!
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
Be yourself no matter what they say
Reforming patents, promoting innovation: "Google and other technology companies increasingly face mounting legal costs to defend against frivolous patent claims from parties gaming the system...Low-quality patents and escalating legal costs are currently hurting the ability of U.S. companies to compete globally, and that in turn hurts U.S. workers and consumers."
Not be slightly evil.. I guess google needs some sort of balance..
Jeff Bezos already has a patent on patenting patents.
I wish to patent the patenting process. I also want to patent patenting the patent process. Ad infinitum.
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That is a lot of googles in one paragraph. Read it out loud and it is a word twister.
Enough is enough! A good corollary would be a tax on paying taxes. No, Google, is not to blame but the system and the lobbyists that built it should be blamed. Software patents are anti-competitive and end up hurting innovation. Software patents are going to cause the computing industry to go the way of manufacturing - the US will no longer be a leader in development.
that things are getting to be ridiculous right about now.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
Glad to know you agree with us all on that... ...but the question was on a different topic.
I've given the highlights of Google's patents moves. Today's story adds another crumb of info, this time about design patents on software. The question is: anyone else got new pieces to add to help make the picture of Google's stance on software patents?
Please help publicise swpat.org - the software patents wiki
Google isn't "patenting displaying patents", they are getting a design patent on the look of Google Patents. Design patents are harmless; they just mean that if you display patents, it should be visually different from Google.
This is a design patent; design patents are harmless.
Does this make google evil now?
Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
Seriously - Google is a bigger Monopoly now than Microsoft ever could be. Be careful out there, no matter who you are backing, your enemys enemy will prove to be, more than often than not, just another enemy.
Ford Seeks to Stop Imports of Replacement Car Parts: Ford Motor Co., the second-biggest U.S.-based automaker, filed a trade complaint to block imports of replacement parts for Mustang cars, saying they impermissibly copy its patented designs..."The car companies are intentionally looking to wipe out competition and using the ITC and the patent system," said Eileen Sottile, the coalition's executive director. "This is going to hit consumer pocketbooks."
"It's a coffee table book... about coffee tables!!!"
Science advances one funeral at a time- Max Planck
damn.. I'm going to patent the patents. Everyone patenting something should pay me with his first son.
Not irony. It would be irony if it caused the Google Patents to not display unintentionally. This is technically called Alanis irony, where there is no irony, merely potentially humorous contrast.
re: "Google Patents can't seem to find the new Google patent for Google Patents."
If it did, the gates of hell would be flung open and chaos would reign.
sig has been sent away for a few small repairs...
Design patents don't cover software. They cover the visual design of something. Like a trash can or a page layout. In this case it happens to be a page layout of the display of a patent.
This is just another instance of the absolute lack of knowledge of the patent system by the editors of slashdot. Nothing to see here, move along.
Congrats there! You have just fucked my brain.
Boredom is bliss.
Not as such, but then again, all it needs to say is "on any one of a multiplicity of communication channels including, but not limited to, the internet" it then isn't an algorithm as such and therefore patentable!
I don't believe you. Google certainly helps me find stuff, much more than Bling, Altavista or even Lynx, if they're still in business. I haven' checked in for like 10 years. Even Fast with "All the Web", or any other competitor doesn't seem to be able to give as good search results as google, and haven't been able to touch Google's quality in how many years now. With Google, you mostly get results you can trust, especially at the top rankings.
Only thing is link-building / advertisement sites and net catalouges. Google is subject to heavy "google bombing", and it is possible to make enough strange inter-linking, so that Google will still boost your ranking. This happens, but not too often. However, Google have now declared war on net catalouges, which is a good thing IMHO (they're just dilluting the power of a google search). So I guess they have a clue and want to provide quality service.
With Google I can almost trust that whatever is given top ranking, is good quality and safe.
If they stop providing this service, and instead cater to business-paid top rankings and other questionable activity, I and thousands of other people are out like crazy though. They HAVE to keep delivering, and keep the quality somehow.
So advertisement (adsense and adwords) is the money-generating part, among other things, but they also have to keep delivering quality search results, which is paramount to their success for the whole chain.
I don't know if Google's businessmodel of "try everything and keep what works" will succeed. It's certainly a big gamble on talent and hopes for innovation, but their core service, searching, still has got me at hello at least. And they have a good chance of actually providing something useful and innovative, although it's a big gamble to try to "produce it", instead of just buying up successful competitors like Microsoft does.
http://www.debunkingskeptics.com/
The more you know about patents, the more liable you can be for breaking them. If you read about the patent beforehand, you can be awarded triple damages by the brilliant patent system. Innovation at work I guess..
So it's best to know LEAST about patents, and not learn from anything else than free sources of information (which is prior art).
So please don't give more information about patents, because they're a BIG liability!
http://www.debunkingskeptics.com/
What we need now is for someone to figure out a clever, original way to prove the entire patent system is broken and being abused. And then patent that method.
The reason that Google Patents cannot find this document is that the database is not as up-to-date as it could be. The latest patents they seem to have in the database were issued in October 2009. They are about a month behind, and the USPTO publishes issued patents once a week. Although the system is better than the USPTO's patent search in many ways, USPTO is better for patents issued in the last month or so.
This has gone way to far, become way out of control, it’s starting to decompose our rights, the world and our country. Shouldn’t the government start investigating outrageous, abusing the use patents?
Isn’t the patent office also regulating who gets a patent and what the patents are for? Can't the government regulate what the patent office’s do?
I thought the government should work for the people, protect our rights, and pursuit of happiness, and the right to succeed, which is starting to be forgotten
It should be against the law abuse patents, as people are doing, what Google has done, and another person patented podcasts.
I thought the government enforced it, same with the patent office which obviously they're not doing. This can hurt the people of the United States, and keep people from being able to succeed.
*****If anyone in the government who reads this has any influence or able to revoke patents could you please, please try to do anything, anything at all about people/corporations/organizations who abuse the use of a patent or copyright for that matter, this is going too far, can’t someone try to stop these outrageous patents? Please, please try to do something, Why let someone tarnish what all people can do, try to succeed in life, not by taking the rights of others for their own personal, business gains.*****
the climb to power of google is throguh there massive inventory of patents, ranging of all varieties of methods of searches to be done on the internet, creating a monopoly that no competetor could stand up to.
Ever wonder why they are well known?
Try looking up their patents, see the trolls of the internet.
I hope the government can bring them down, as they have an iron grip on the internet.
Totally unfair tactics, abusing patents to dominate others, while driving other companies out of buisness.
Why can big corperations like google and microsoft use patents to drive out other buisnesses, I'd consider that as unfair buisness tatics wouldn't you? All they have to do is threaten to have a company prosecuted for violating one of their patents. Is this right, I mean now especially with the economy in such bad condition.
Their patents allow the iron grip of Google on the internet, giving them the power to inimidate any competetors.
THIS is WRONG The must be brought down, for their wrong practices.
So I agree with anyone its Google Fault
Dont get Me started with Microsoft, they are equal or worse than Google, with all the patents they have giving them the power of intimidation, and the power to put others out of buisness.
It seems the only people who can bring them down is the governmements of the world.