Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 6th Apr 2010 18:32 UTC
And thus our true colours reveal. IBM made a patent pledge in 2005, promising not to sue open source projects over a list of 500 patents the computer giant holds. Today, however, IBM has threatened to sue TurboHercules, a French open source software house which provides support for the Hercules open source s390 mainframe emulator. Some of the patents in question are on the 500 list.
Thread beginning with comment 417702
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
RE[9]: Captain Obvious strikes again
by lemur2 on Thu 8th Apr 2010 10:10
in reply to "RE[8]: Captain Obvious strikes again"
Member since:2007-02-17
The EU statement is essentially a special-case for computer programs. It does not disambiguate algorithms from processes by virtue of their definition, it just rewrites the definition of invention to exclude computer programs.
This doesn't answer the question of how a process and an algorithm are different. Algorithms are not the same as computer programs, btw.
This doesn't answer the question of how a process and an algorithm are different. Algorithms are not the same as computer programs, btw.
Is there a better way to define that which should be patentable, and that which should not? What exactly is wrong with naming things which should not be patentable?
If "mathematical methods" in general should not be patentable, why is there even a need for the EU to mention "programs for computers"? If the EU had not mentioned the special case of "programs for computers", then software would STILL not be patentable under the exclusion of "mathematical methods".
At least this way it is perfectly clear, software should NOT be patentable.
As for the more esoteric WHY of it, that comes down more to the case of the particular economic circumstances surrounding software development. These are, in part:
(1) patents have a chilling effect on software development,
(2) software development has a low cost of entry, and it makes no sense to build artificial barriers to entry into a market, as that would just inflate prices for no good reason,
(3) the term for patents is way too long for software,
(4) it is all too common in software for the same method to be independently arrived at by any developer who sets out to achieve a particular task, (i.e. true "invention" in software is rare)
(5) software development is accelerated by healthy competition, and it stagnates completely wherever there is an artificial monopoly of supply,
(6) in software, patents are used far more to eliminate competition, erect barriers to entry for new players in the market, extract exorbitant ongoing profits, and REDUCE the need for ongoing improvement to products than they are used as incentive for more development,
I'm sure there are other factors. All of these particular economic circumstances of software development make it highly unsuitable as subject matter for patents.
So why not just name software as being unsuitable for patents? What could be simpler?
Edited 2010-04-08 10:14 UTC
RE[10]: Captain Obvious strikes again
by saynte on Thu 8th Apr 2010 11:28
in reply to "RE[9]: Captain Obvious strikes again"
Member since:2007-12-10
If "mathematical methods" in general should not be patentable, why is there even a need for the EU to mention "programs for computers"? If the EU had not mentioned the special case of "programs for computers", then software would STILL not be patentable under the exclusion of "mathematical methods".
Why is an algorithm a mathematical method and a process is not? What happens if I hard-code my algorithm to a circuit instead of a computer (which is essentially a dynamic circuit) ? To me, this is an incredibly fuzzy area.
Edited 2010-04-08 11:32 UTC
News
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 23:22 UTC
"Ilja van Sprundel, a security researcher with IOActive, has discovered a large number of issues in the way various X client libraries handle the responses they receive from servers, and has worked with X.Org's security team to analyze, confirm, and fix these issues."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 22:04 UTC
"Google is facing a new antitrust probe by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission into whether the company is using its leadership in the online display-advertising market to illegally curb competition, people familiar with the matter said." Sucks to be Google today, apparently.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 22:01 UTC
"In the midst of the major press blitz surrounding its annual I/O Conference, Google dropped some unfortunate news about its instant messaging plans. In several places around the web, the company is replacing the existing 'Talk' platform with a new one called 'Hangouts' that sharply diminishes support for the open messaging protocol known as XMPP (or sometimes informally Jabber), and also removes the option to disable the archiving of all chat communications. These changes represent a switch from open protocols to proprietary ones, and a clear step backward for many users." That's why I always say: only suckers trust companies.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 17:52 UTC
"The wave of departures is a sign of internal struggle, but amidst all the bad news, there is a glimmer of hope. According to an anonymous HTC executive cited by WSJ, the crucial HTC One is selling 'pretty good so far'. The executive revealed that HTC sold about five million One units since launch, a performance that is deemed encouraging. However, sales have been limited by the persisting supply issues that still plague the production of the HTC One." Finally some good news for HTC. Five million units amidst supply constraints is very impressive.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/22/13 22:23 UTC
"Sony gave the PS4 50% more raw shader performance, plain and simple (768 SPs @ 800MHz vs. 1152 SPs & 800MHz). Unlike last generation, you don't need to be some sort of Jedi to extract the PS4's potential here. The Xbox One and PS4 architectures are quite similar, Sony just has more hardware under the hood. Weâll have to wait and see how this hardware delta gets exposed in games over time, but the gap is definitely there. The funny thing about game consoles is that itâs usually the lowest common denominator that determines the bulk of the experience across all platforms. On the plus side, the Xbox One should enjoy better power/thermal characteristics compared to the PlayStation 4. Even compared to the Xbox 360 we should see improvement in many use cases thanks to modern power management techniques." AnandTech does its usual in-depth thing.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/22/13 13:38 UTC
"The Verge has learned that HTC's Chief Product Officer, Kouji Kodera, left the company last week. Kodera was responsible for HTC's overall product strategy, which makes the departure especially notable on the heels of the global launch of the make-or-break One. It's not just Kodera. In the past three-odd months, HTC has lost a number of employees in rapid succession." I really hope HTC pulls it together.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/22/13 13:30 UTC, submitted by JRepin
"It is with huge pleasure that the Debian GNU/Hurd team announces the release of Debian GNU/Hurd 2013. This is a snapshot of Debian 'sid' at the time of the Debian 'wheezy' release (May 2013), so it is mostly based on the same sources. It is not an official Debian release, but it is an official Debian GNU/Hurd port release." Important note: 75% of Debian packages are supported bu Debian GNU/Hurd. Impressive.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 22:06 UTC
"The first killer app was VisiCalc. This early spreadsheet turned the Apple II from a hobbyist toy to a business computer. VisiCalc came with room for improvement, though. In addition, a new architecture and operating system, the Intel-based IBM PC and MS-DOS, also needed a spreadsheet to be taken seriously. That spreadsheet, released in early 1983, would be Lotus 1-2-3, and it would change the world. It became the PC's killer app, and the world would never be the same. On May 14, IBM quietly announced the end of the road for 1-2-3, along with Lotus Organizer and the Lotus SmartSuite office suite. Lotus 1-2-3's day is done." Impressive 30 year run.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:45 UTC
"There's a disconnect between how Apple CEO Tim Cook sees his company's tax strategies and how some members of the US Senate view it. That became clearer than ever today after Cook and two other Apple executives testified before Congress, explaining why they're holding most of their international income in Irish subsidiaries like Apple Operations International, which declare no tax residency anywhere in the world. AOI hasn't filed a tax return anywhere in the world for the last five years, yet it earned $30 billion in income from 2009 to 2012, according to a Senate report released yesterday." Just because something is legal, doesn't mean it's just. Apple, Google, Microsoft, and many more - these companies might not be breaking any laws, but it's obvious to anyone that what they are doing is scummy.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 15:53 UTC
The new WebKit Opera for Android has been released. "Opera 14 for Android is built on top of Chromium 26, with a total overhaul of the UI in native code, making it fit well with the latest Android design guidelines. Go get the build from Google Play or point your browser to m.opera.com, and give it a spin!"More News »
Sponsored Links
Member since:
2007-12-10
The EU statement is essentially a special-case for computer programs. It does not disambiguate algorithms from processes by virtue of their definition, it just rewrites the definition of invention to exclude computer programs.
This doesn't answer the question of how a process and an algorithm are different. Algorithms are not the same as computer programs, btw.