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USPTO Awards LOL Patent To IBM
theodp writes "Among the last batch of patents granted in 2009 was one for IBM's Resolution of Abbreviated Text in an Electronic Communications System. The invention of four IBMers addresses the hitherto unsolvable problem of translating abbreviations to their full meaning — e.g., 'IMHO' means 'In My Humble Opinion' — and vice versa. From the patent: 'One particularly useful application of the invention is to interpret the meaning of shorthand terms ... For example, one database may define the shorthand term "LOL" to mean "laughing out loud."' USPTO records indicate the patent filing was made more than a year after Big Blue called on the industry to stop what it called 'bad behavior' by companies who seek patents for unoriginal work. Yet another example of what USPTO Chief David Kappos called IBM's apparent schizophrenia on patent policy back when he managed Big Blue's IP portfolio."
as an IBM employee I use the "Whatis bot" all the time. It is just a chat bot on Sametime chat inside Lotus Notes that allows you to message it an abbreviation and it tells you all the meanings. This is very useful when you get an e-mail from a long time IBMer that knows every abbreviation and doesn't hesitate to use them.
What is slashdot?
Does this win some sort of stupidity award for the most ridiculous patenting of something that shouldn't be patentable? Whats next, patenting the use of punctuation in sentances?
"The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
If a patent application is found to be completely stupid one of your other patents is invalidated by random draw! *wishes*
Shh.
First off, I'm glad someone understands what's going on and that they are not actually patenting LOL.
Second, read the patent; while you are correct, the patent talks about getting the means based on specific context; which is hard to do.
It's nt even about the definition, hell you could create your own definition, big deal. Determining context of a conversation automatically and then know what a abbreviation or Jargon means within that context is awesome.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
How would this be any different than any other kind of grammar/context translation? I mean, fuck, but IBM probably had patents on that sort of thing forty years ago. It looks to me like a back door way of repatenting what's probably expired already.
The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
Yes, but all they have patented is the functionality to look up a given abbreviation and substitute the long form of it. My IDE will let me enter "fore" and have it bring up a list of matching options include "foreach", how is this any different other than its in relationship to communications i.e. "texting" and presumably email? Its exactly the sort of functionality that someone building a message client might think to add - and probably has of course - and as such I think its ridiculous that it could be patentable, or even that anyone would try.
"The first time I got drunk, I got married. The second time I bought a chimpanzee, after that I stayed sober" Arian Seid
However, if you have ever worked for a huge company like Intel, you are swimming in a veritable alphabet soup of unrecognizable acronyms every day. They make an acronym for everything over there. So something like this database would be a godsend in an environment like that.
It's called acronymfinder.com, and it's been there for a long time.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Does your ide include: "receiving, on a recipient messaging device, a text communication sent from a sender messaging device, wherein the text communication comprises at least one shorthand term;"? This the first limitation of the first independent claim.
It might be obvious to add into a messaging device, but the USPTO would need to find a couple of prior art references that contain all the features and then show a reason to combine them. The PTO doesn't get to just say, "it would be obvious to do that, kneener kneener kneeeener"
Since prior art counts for little, has anyone rushed to patent disemvoweling?
Isn't it already part of the bsd-games package? The command is called "wtf"
$ which wtf /usr/games/wtf
$ wtf lol rotfl imho
LOL: laughing out loud
ROTFL: rolling on the floor laughing
IMHO: in my humble opinion
it also incorporates "man -k" (apropos) functionality:
$ wtf service
service: service (8) - run a System V init script
Let's lobby the patent office to create a wiki for lay man ideas. Then everyone normal that can't afford to patent every blog article that they can come up with on a daily basis can then upload their ideas to the database.
This should eliminate all patents for obvious stuff. And only the 10 or so really original ideas are still patentable.
Simple solution, maybe I should patent it...
Damn google is quick to index. I went to search the interwebs to find out what YSISHBIDNL means, and I got 2 hits, both of them you.
Your Story Is Somewhat Humorous But I Did Not Laugh?
Worse, they patented a *BSD classic application's function.
Check http://cvsweb.netbsd.org/bsdweb.cgi/src/games/wtf/
Yes, it is really the "wtf" command. They really need some heads up from BSD guys.
For the longest time I thought lol was just supposed to look like a stick guy cheering.