Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 5th Jul 2011 22:12 UTC
"One of Microsoft's hottest new profit centers is a smartphone platform you've definitely heard of: Android. Google's Linux-based mobile operating system is a favorite target for Microsoft's patent attorneys, who are suing numerous Android vendors and just today announced that another manufacturer has agreed to write checks to Microsoft every time it ships an Android device. Microsoft's latest target is Wistron Corp., which has signed a patent agreement 'that provides broad coverage under Microsoft's patent portfolio for Wistron's tablets, mobile phones, e-readers and other consumer devices running the Android or Chrome platform', Microsoft announced." That's the reality we live in, folks. This is at least as criminal - if not more so - than Microsoft's monopoly abuse late last century. After the Nortel crap, it's completely left the black helicopter camp for me: Microsoft, Apple, and several others are working together to fight Android the only way they know how: with underhand mafia tactics. Absolutely sickening. Hey Anonymous, are you listening? YES I WENT THERE.
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RE[6]: Patents are patents
by lucas_maximus on Wed 6th Jul 2011 00:15
in reply to "RE[5]: Patents are patents"
Member since:2009-08-18
Gambling is legal too in many juisdictions, but people still get ripped off.
Nobody forced them to gamble ... they didn't get ripped off ... most Casinos even explain the odds of you winning at any particular game ... if they still continue ... knowing that the odds are stacked against you ... that is their fault.
It is perfectly legitimate for people to complain against gambling, and try to get it banned, because it harms people. One could argue that this is the only humanitarian, moral thing to do.
If you are talking about the problems of addiction they are too complex to talk here ... but ...
Many things in life one can get addicted to and it can be harmful ... Food, Alcohol, Sex, Drugs etc etc ... should we ban them all?
Every adult is responsible for theirselves ... Children should be protected from these things ... but adults make their own choices ... and everyone has a choice how much they want to indulge in these things, if at all.
Just because they system allows big business to rip people off is no reason why people should not complain about it and try to get it (example gambling) made illegal, or at least heavily constrained so that people are not harmed, as it should be.
No-one is forcing anyone to go into a casino, bookmakers or sit at a fruitmachine ... much like nobody forces an alcoholic to go to the off-license.
Nobody is ripping anyone off.
Quite a good parallel exists with software patents
No it doesn't.
Edited 2011-07-06 00:23 UTC
RE[7]: Patents are patents
by lemur2 on Wed 6th Jul 2011 00:45
in reply to "RE[6]: Patents are patents"
Member since:2007-02-17
Nobody forced them to gamble ... they didn't get ripped off ... most Casinos even explain the odds of you winning at any particular game ... if they still continue ... knowing that the odds are stacked against you ... that is their fault.
Most people have a regretably limited understanding of mathematics. Even some people who are reasonably good at arithmentic are still susceptible to the illusion that they might win at gambling. I am still amazed that people can walk in to a magnificent, opulent, extravagant casino and be impressed, somehow utterly missing the fact that it is gambler's money that pays for the extravagence. "Voluntary taxation" is how I like to think about it.
But anyway ... people can, and do, complain about gambling, even though as I pointed out, it is legal in many jurisdictions. This is the main point to take away ... one should not moan and complain that some people campaign against legal gambling, because there is good reason for those complaints, and many people are demonstrably harmed from the gambling industry.
The parallels with software patents are pretty clear. There is an alternative software industry called FOSS that pays programmers, produces innovative world-class software and reduces costs for everyone. The potential economic benefit to the entire economony is absolutely enormous. Software patents could kill this golden goose ... yet there are people still who somehow champion software patents. That is rather like barracking for the casino bosses and saying "ha ha" to the gamblers who suicide ...
In order to counter the argument that software patents are an economic burden rather than an economic boon (as some people like to pretend), you must read, understand and make intelligent comment on these topics:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_scarcity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadweight_loss
Until you demonstrate a point against these concepts, you have NOT established any case for software patents.
Edited 2011-07-06 00:51 UTC
RE[6]: Patents are patents
by Flatland_Spider on Wed 6th Jul 2011 00:27
in reply to "RE[5]: Patents are patents"
Member since:2006-09-01
I think the analogy is backwards.
What we're talking about a prohibition on the use of ideas. Once something is prohibited, only the criminals and the corrupt benefited, and that is what we are seeing with software patents. The big businesses form cartels to collect money for the right use ideas, and they use fear and implied litigation to keep competitors off of their turf. All of this is fueled by a prohibition on the use of ideas. Take away the prohibition, and you take away the tools the cartels use to hold on to their market share.
You can't legislate human nature, but you can tax it and make a mint off of that golden goose. Legalizing gambling takes it out of shady backrooms where the proprietors know the law is on their side, and puts it into crappy casios which pay taxes.
RE[6]: Patents are patents
by BluenoseJake on Wed 6th Jul 2011 09:13
in reply to "RE[5]: Patents are patents"
Member since:2005-08-11
RE[7]: Patents are patents
by JAlexoid on Wed 6th Jul 2011 15:48
in reply to "RE[6]: Patents are patents"
Member since:2009-05-19
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:38 UTC
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/20/13 11:29 UTC
The day has finally come! Jolla has finally announced the launch device for its Sailfish operating system - and by god this is a looker. It's decidedly different from other phones out there, but it has good specifications and carries a relatively reasonably price tag - EUR 399, and it's up for pre-order today, shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 21:33 UTC
Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
Linked by David Adams on 05/16/13 4:23 UTC
OSNews is a sponsor of this year's O'Reilly OSCON in Portland, Oregon, USA. A lucky OSNews reader will win a free three-day pass, including two tutorials days. To win the pass, post a comment on this story saying something about Open Source Software or OSCON. We'll pick a winner at random next week. If you don't have an OSNews account, you may email us your entry. Part of the conference is the 9th annual Open Source Awards, and today the 16th is the deadline for nominations. If you'd like to nominate an outstanding open source contributor, do it here. Read on for more information about OSCON. Update: The 20% discount code for OSNews readers is "OSN."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/11/13 21:41 UTC
"Windows is indeed slower than other operating systems in many scenarios, and the gap is worsening." That's one way to start an insider explanation of why Windows' performance isn't up to snuff. Written by someone who actually contributes code to the Windows NT kernel, the comment on Hacker News, later deleted but reposted with permission on Marc Bevand's blog, paints a very dreary picture of the state of Windows development. The root issue? Think of how Linux is developed, and you'll know the answer.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/08/13 14:22 UTC
This is one of those news items that's fun to write, fun to read, fun to comment on, and where no one will be able to say anything unkind. It's all just one big ball of awesome fluffiness. TuneTracker, the BeOS radio automation software, has just released something very special: TuneTracker System 5, the first version designed entirely and specifically for Haiku. In fact, it actually includes Haiku in the software package. Better yet, TuneTracker also unveiled several system-in-a-box products - which have Haiku and TuneTracker pre-installed.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/02/13 15:28 UTC
Exactly twenty years ago, a document was published that played a huge role in establishing the web as we know it today. Twenty years later, and this simple and straightforward document is proof of an irrefutable fact: while closed technologies can change markets, open technologies can change the world.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/29/13 21:06 UTC
Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
They're here! Whether that excites you or not remains to be seen, but the Galaxy S4, which will most likely become the best selling Android smartphone of the year by a huge margin, has been reviewed by all the major sites, and there's lots of interesting conclusions in there - although I think most of you will get the gist.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/18/13 11:21 UTC
Nokia has posted its quarterly results for the first quarter of 2013, and just like the quarters that came before, there's not a whole lot of good news in there. The rise in Lumia sales still can't even dream of making up for the sales drop in Symbian phones, and when broken down in versions, the sales figures for Windows Phone 8 Lumias in particular are very disappointing. In North America, Nokia is getting slaughtered.More Features »
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2007-02-17
Gambling is legal too in many juisdictions, but people still get ripped off.
It is perfectly legitimate for people to complain against gambling, and try to get it banned, because it harms people. One could argue that this is the only humanitarian, moral thing to do.
Just because they system allows big business to rip people off is no reason why people should not complain about it and try to get it (example gambling) made illegal, or at least heavily constrained so that people are not harmed, as it should be.
Quite a good parallel exists with software patents.