Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 14th Jun 2011 06:31 UTC
Well, the first of the big patent litigations is over. Since this one involves Apple, the big winner is obviously the highly innovative company from Cupertiono, right? The company from which all others copy, right? Well, no, not exactly. The big winner is Nokia.
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RE: Freaking Hypocrite!
by Thom_Holwerda on Tue 14th Jun 2011 13:28
in reply to "Freaking Hypocrite!"
Member since:2005-06-29
Thom, you are such a freaking hypocrite.
Looking at your nickname, this gun' be good.
So, according to Thom, software patents are bad except when used against Apple.
Nokia filed with HARDWARE patents. Apple filed with SOFTWARE patents. Software patents = bad. Hardware patents (generally) good. Simply, huh?
Look at most of Thom's posts, patents bad, patents bad...
SOFTWARE patents are by definition bad. SOFTWARE patents. SOFTWARE. SOFTWARE. SOFTWARE.
Why innovate when you can litigate.
Nokia had done more innovating in its lifetime than Apple has. Without Nokia (and Motorola) no worldwide mobile phone network. Apple innovates white plastics and pretty buttons. Nokia innovates a technology that has changed the world forever, and has allowed people the world over to share knowledge and to organise themselves, improving their lives.
Call me when Apple comes up with something that will change more lives than the lives of people at Starbucks and Hipster cafes.
RE[2]: Freaking Hypocrite!
by Bill Shooter of Bul on Tue 14th Jun 2011 14:19
in reply to "RE: Freaking Hypocrite!"
Member since:2006-07-14
RE[2]: Freaking Hypocrite!
by pantheraleo on Tue 14th Jun 2011 15:39
in reply to "RE: Freaking Hypocrite!"
RE[2]: Freaking Hypocrite!
by kittynipples on Wed 15th Jun 2011 12:29
in reply to "RE: Freaking Hypocrite!"
Member since:2006-08-02
Nokia filed with HARDWARE patents. Apple filed with SOFTWARE patents. Software patents = bad. Hardware patents (generally) good. Simply, huh?
If an inventor comes up with some "new or novel" way of doing something, please explain what is the real difference between it being implemented in software or in hardware as far as patentability is concerned?
Using your kindergarten logic: Inventing a new algorithm to increase video compression by x3 is not patentable, but inventing a new type of drill bit design that can drill through a material x3 more efficiently should be? I guess so, since software patents = bad, hardware patents = good.
RE[2]: Freaking Hypocrite!
by brichpmr on Thu 16th Jun 2011 10:08
in reply to "RE: Freaking Hypocrite!"
Member since:2006-04-22
"Thom, you are such a freaking hypocrite.
Looking at your nickname, this gun' be good.
So, according to Thom, software patents are bad except when used against Apple.
Nokia filed with HARDWARE patents. Apple filed with SOFTWARE patents. Software patents = bad. Hardware patents (generally) good. Simply, huh?
Look at most of Thom's posts, patents bad, patents bad...
SOFTWARE patents are by definition bad. SOFTWARE patents. SOFTWARE. SOFTWARE. SOFTWARE.
Why innovate when you can litigate.
Nokia had done more innovating in its lifetime than Apple has. Without Nokia (and Motorola) no worldwide mobile phone network. Apple innovates white plastics and pretty buttons. Nokia innovates a technology that has changed the world forever, and has allowed people the world over to share knowledge and to organise themselves, improving their lives.
Call me when Apple comes up with something that will change more lives than the lives of people at Starbucks and Hipster cafes. "
This exposes you as a marginally knowledgeable blogger with a weak agenda, dude. Several tens of millions of satisfied users at all levels of computer savvy would disagree with you.
Edited 2011-06-16 10:10 UTC
Member since:2005-07-06
These patents are ridiculous, all of them should have been thrown out, all of Nokia's, all of Apple's, all of them. I'm no fan of Microsoft, but I still can't believe the supreme court let that i4i troll extort all that money from Microsoft based on their ridiculous patent. At least Microsoft produces stuff that people want to buy.
I cannot stand patents, but taking such a harsh stand against anyone suing using them is absurd. To have a functioning free market, you need to limit companies abusing each other. Hopefully the next stage is shorter term patents, and a more watchful eye over licensing agreements from ombudsmen.
I4I attempted to work with Microsoft closely to bring some features to Office, their partner ship fell through but Microsoft still used their shared work. If it were easier to take MS to court for abusing their business partnerships, I'm sure i4i would have gone that route.
Nokia has developed hardware technology for telephony and Apple didn't have a licence. That's just the way the hardware market exists atm.
Member since:2007-04-18
So, according to Thom, software patents are bad except when used against Apple.
from Thom's article:
Nokia presented cold and harsh hardware patents
Software patents are not the same as hardware patents.
I agree with you both that software patents are in general a stupid idea; but protecting actual innovations in hardware, well that is what the patent system was invented for. Now whether these hardware patents that Nokia hold actually are innovative, I couldn't say*, but since they were pretty integral to the creation of GSM I am guessing they have a few innovations up their sleeves
*I am sure there is a list somewhere, but I haven't had the inclination to go through them
[Edit: Damn, I got to be quicker with my comments, Thom's already said all of this while I was still spell-checking and previewing]
Edited 2011-06-14 13:37 UTC
RE[2]: Freaking Hypocrite!
by JAlexoid on Tue 14th Jun 2011 19:57
in reply to "RE: Freaking Hypocrite!"
Member since:2009-05-19
News
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/19/13 23:02 UTC, submitted by M.Onty
"Microsoft has sensationally abandoned its controversial plans to restrict the sharing of XBox One games, and has also removed daily online authentication requirements for its forthcoming console", reports The Guardian. They had no choice. Still a good move.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/19/13 22:28 UTC
"A snippet of code in the Steam digital distribution platform has revealed that Valve may be planning to let users easily share their games with friends in the future. The Verge has verified the code's authenticity, which was originally spotted by a member of the NeoGAF gaming forum; the code references a 'shared game library' and a notification that would alert a user when their games are currently in use by a borrower." This would change the, uh, game.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:33 UTC
Official Apple statement on PRISM and privacy: "Regardless of the circumstances, our Legal team conducts an evaluation of each request and, only if appropriate, we retrieve and deliver the narrowest possible set of information to the authorities. In fact, from time to time when we see inconsistencies or inaccuracies in a request, we will refuse to fulfill it." This is basically Apple re-publishing their earlier statement in a more official manner. You either believe it, or you don't.
Linked by Anonymous on 06/18/13 22:26 UTC
The open source Contiki operating system and its commercial Thingsquare distribution are making strides towards the connected home. According to a Computerworld article, a new LED light bulb manufacturer is putting small computers into their light bulbs. Each computer runs the Contiki OS, which gives each bulb an IP address and allows them to be controlled with a smartphone application. To connect the bulbs to the application, the bulbs use both Wi-Fi and the much lower power IEEE 802.15.4 mesh technology.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 22:25 UTC
"Google asked the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to ease long-standing gag orders over data requests it makes, arguing that the company has a constitutional right to speak about information it's forced to give the government. The legal filing, which cites the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech, is the latest move by the California-based tech giant to protect its reputation in the aftermath of news reports about sweeping National Security Agency surveillance of Internet traffic." Draining the ditch after the cow has drowned in it.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:45 UTC
"I can't find one person who has been using the Nexus 7 for an extended period of time, and hasn't seen a massive downgrade in performance. Just what kind of downgrade are we talking here? I cannot pick up my Nexus 7 without experiencing problems like a lag of ten seconds, or more, just to rotate the display; touches refusing to acknowledged; stuttering notification panel actions; and unresponsive apps." Fully and utterly agreed. My Nexus 7 was blazing-fast and awesome for a few months, and at some point, it just started sucking. Just like that. I've tried loads of ROMs, and nothing helps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/18/13 17:32 UTC, submitted by poundsmack
A new release of the hobby operating system MenuetOS! The release notes are a bit non-descript, but you'll have to take what you can get: "updates and improvements (picview, httpc, ehci, ...)".
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:58 UTC
"The Internet is one of the most transformative technologies of our lifetimes. But for 2 out of every 3 people on earth, a fast, affordable Internet connection is still out of reach. And this is far from being a solved problem. There are many terrestrial challenges to Internet connectivity - jungles, archipelagos, mountains. There are also major cost challenges. Right now, for example, in most of the countries in the southern hemisphere, the cost of an Internet connection is more than a month's income. Solving these problems isn't simply a question of time: it requires looking at the problem of access from new angles. So today we're unveiling our latest moonshot from Google[x]: balloon-powered Internet access." Insane.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/17/13 17:52 UTC
"MineAssemble is a tiny bootable Minecraft clone written partly in x86 assembly. I made it first and foremost because a university assignment required me to implement a game in assembly for a computer systems course. Because I had never implemented anything more complex than a 'Hello World' bootloader before, I decided I wanted to learn about writing my own kernel code at the same time. Note that the goal of this project was not to write highly efficient hand-optimized assembly code, but rather to have fun and write code that balances readability and speed. This is primarily accomplished by proper commenting and consistent code structuring." Just cool.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/14/13 21:03 UTC
Jon Rubinstein, former CEO of Palm: "Well, I'm not sure I would have sold the company to HP. That's for sure. Talk about a waste. Not that I had any choice because when you sell a company you don't get to decide that. Obviously, the board and shareholders decide that. If we had known they were just going to shut it down and never really give it a chance to flourish, what would have been the point of selling the company? I think the deal we had with Verizon really hurt us, but who knew that at the time? These things are all hindsight."More News »
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Member since:
2006-11-19
Thom, you are such a freaking hypocrite.
So, according to Thom, software patents are bad except when used against Apple. Look at most of Thom's posts, patents bad, patents bad... then Apple gets hit by a patent troll, now patents are good, next week, XYZ corp will be hit by a patent troll, then all of a sudden, patents will be bad again.
These patents are ridiculous, all of them should have been thrown out, all of Nokia's, all of Apple's, all of them. I'm no fan of Microsoft, but I still can't believe the supreme court let that i4i troll extort all that money from Microsoft based on their ridiculous patent. At least Microsoft produces stuff that people want to buy.
Why innovate when you can litigate.