What this article boils down to is this: All software is exactly the same, so you may as well use Microsoft software. All software is written in C/C++, so you may as well use Microsoft software.
What this bullshit actually means is: Microsoft is really scared shitless!!!
.
The first step in enforcing the law is knowing what the law is. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, a patent is "the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling". Therefore, a patent does not take away anyone's rights, it confers a right to the patent holder. It is up to the patent holder to decide whether to enforce or waive that right. Again from the USPTO, "If a patent is infringed, the patentee may sue for relief in the appropriate federal court."
The maker of the Magic Cube did not violate any law, since their right to produce there product was NOT denied by law. The right to deny their product belongs to the patent holder, not the government. Therefore, even if the Rubic's cube patent was still active, the appropriate action would be for the patent holder, NOT any branch of the govt. to (optionally) file a law suit, and optionally an injuction to prevent the sale of the Magic Cube while the suit is being settled. If a judge approves that injuction, then the product may lawfully be required to be pulled from the store's shelves. Aside from the fact that the patent was expired, there was already absolutely NO legal basis for what the government personnel did.
I've worked as a design engineer in the telecom equipment field for many years. Time after time, I've seen AT&T jerk around telco equipment makers.
They always have some special requirements, that are completely different than all the other carriers. They always promise some huge order, if you'll just spend months developing customized equipment just for them. Then later on, they say "Oh, never mind, we've changed our minds. We don't want that anymore".
The first time it happened, I thought it was the company I worked for that somehow screwed up the deal. Then it happened again, then again at a different company. Then I talked to engineers at other companies, and they had all had the same experience! This looks like AT&T just wants to jerk that chain again.
My alltime favorite search problem was the company where a woman visited their website, typed in "confidential" and the search engine dutifully brought up every confidential document in the company! Now that's a really helpful search tool!
If Linux is trying to become more like windows, it seems it is not quite there yet. I haven't been able to create the blue screen of death on my Linux box! Get to work on this all you lazy Linux developers! Only with the BSOD can Linux claim to be just like windows!
Apparently this patent was wordsmithed by a thirteen year old girl:
"displays a group button that contains the like application files and removes the like taskbar buttons from the taskbar"
You are a manufacturer of sound cards. You decide to offer a driver for Linux. M$ tells you they will no longer include a driver for your card on their disk. They revoke your right to put "XP Compatable" on your box. Windows users stop buying your product. You go out of business. It's called a MONOPOLY folks!
Slashdot Mirror
Mozilla 1.6, Kernel 2.4.21
What this article boils down to is this: All software is exactly the same, so you may as well use Microsoft software. All software is written in C/C++, so you may as well use Microsoft software. What this bullshit actually means is: Microsoft is really scared shitless!!! .
The first step in enforcing the law is knowing what the law is. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, a patent is "the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling". Therefore, a patent does not take away anyone's rights, it confers a right to the patent holder. It is up to the patent holder to decide whether to enforce or waive that right. Again from the USPTO, "If a patent is infringed, the patentee may sue for relief in the appropriate federal court." The maker of the Magic Cube did not violate any law, since their right to produce there product was NOT denied by law. The right to deny their product belongs to the patent holder, not the government. Therefore, even if the Rubic's cube patent was still active, the appropriate action would be for the patent holder, NOT any branch of the govt. to (optionally) file a law suit, and optionally an injuction to prevent the sale of the Magic Cube while the suit is being settled. If a judge approves that injuction, then the product may lawfully be required to be pulled from the store's shelves. Aside from the fact that the patent was expired, there was already absolutely NO legal basis for what the government personnel did.
I've worked as a design engineer in the telecom equipment field for many years. Time after time, I've seen AT&T jerk around telco equipment makers. They always have some special requirements, that are completely different than all the other carriers. They always promise some huge order, if you'll just spend months developing customized equipment just for them. Then later on, they say "Oh, never mind, we've changed our minds. We don't want that anymore". The first time it happened, I thought it was the company I worked for that somehow screwed up the deal. Then it happened again, then again at a different company. Then I talked to engineers at other companies, and they had all had the same experience! This looks like AT&T just wants to jerk that chain again.
My alltime favorite search problem was the company where a woman visited their website, typed in "confidential" and the search engine dutifully brought up every confidential document in the company! Now that's a really helpful search tool!
If Linux is trying to become more like windows, it seems it is not quite there yet. I haven't been able to create the blue screen of death on my Linux box! Get to work on this all you lazy Linux developers! Only with the BSOD can Linux claim to be just like windows!
Apparently this patent was wordsmithed by a thirteen year old girl: "displays a group button that contains the like application files and removes the like taskbar buttons from the taskbar"
If the hardware really has improved so much, shouldn't Windows now boot in like .001 seconds?
You are a manufacturer of sound cards. You decide to offer a driver for Linux. M$ tells you they will no longer include a driver for your card on their disk. They revoke your right to put "XP Compatable" on your box. Windows users stop buying your product. You go out of business. It's called a MONOPOLY folks!