Linked by Thom Holwerda on Tue 20th Dec 2011 11:27 UTC
I'm guessing Apple is getting desperate, since its software patent lawsuits aren't doing particularly well. Moving on from software and design patents, the company is now suing Samsung over... Patents for mobile phone and tablet cases (more at The Verge). I think Apple has more offensive lawsuits than products now, so technically, "patent maker" is more accurate than "gadget maker" or "device maker". Fun times.
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RE[11]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?
by Alfman on Fri 23rd Dec 2011 23:18
in reply to "RE[10]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?"
Member since:2011-01-28
rhavyn,
"And to take away the massive investment that companies like Netscape and Apple made to take what was, for all intents and purposes, a good idea and turn that into a desirable product, well, you can go back to Lee's internet, pre-iPad tablets and pre Mac GUIs and let us know how much you enjoy it."
I wonder if there's an objective way to make determinations about how other timelines would evolve if variables were tweaked here and there. Often times people claim that things would be worse if X hadn't happened. All can say for sure is that things would be different, but for all we know other time lines may actually be better than ours.
RE[12]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?
by rhavyn on Sat 24th Dec 2011 00:36
in reply to "RE[11]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?"
Member since:2005-07-06
rhavyn,
"And to take away the massive investment that companies like Netscape and Apple made to take what was, for all intents and purposes, a good idea and turn that into a desirable product, well, you can go back to Lee's internet, pre-iPad tablets and pre Mac GUIs and let us know how much you enjoy it."
I wonder if there's an objective way to make determinations about how other timelines would evolve if variables were tweaked here and there. Often times people claim that things would be worse if X hadn't happened. All can say for sure is that things would be different, but for all we know other time lines may actually be better than ours.
"And to take away the massive investment that companies like Netscape and Apple made to take what was, for all intents and purposes, a good idea and turn that into a desirable product, well, you can go back to Lee's internet, pre-iPad tablets and pre Mac GUIs and let us know how much you enjoy it."
I wonder if there's an objective way to make determinations about how other timelines would evolve if variables were tweaked here and there. Often times people claim that things would be worse if X hadn't happened. All can say for sure is that things would be different, but for all we know other time lines may actually be better than ours.
Just to be clear, I'm not trying to make a claim that someone else couldn't have done what, in this discussion, Netscape and Apple did. What I am saying is worshipping the inventor and minimizing the ones who see the promise in the invention and then make it into something useful is incredibly shortsighted. Seeing promise in a technology and making it useful and usable in everyday life is at least as important as the original invention.
RE[11]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?
by tupp on Sat 24th Dec 2011 07:52
in reply to "RE[10]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?"
Member since:2006-11-12
Unfortunately you make a really good point, but you obviously don't see it. Tim-Berners Lee might have "invented" the world wide web,...
No quotation marks needed -- Tim-Berners Lee invented the World Wide Web, period.
... but Netscape made it what it is today.
No. The web would have been what it is today, regardless of which browser was popular at which time. There were other graphical browsers when Mosaic was catching on.
Xerox might have made a GUI based computer, but Apple took that and introduced overlapping windows, menus, etc. and made it into what people now associate with a computer.
No.
Prior to Apple's Lisa and Mac, the GUI was already very close to what people now associate with a computer.
Apple didn't invent overlapping windows nor menus -- those features were already included in the Xerox Alto years before Apple existed, and overlapping windows and menus were also already featured in the GUIs from other companies, long before Apple demonstrated them.
Here are overlapping windows on the Alto: http://toastytech.com/guis/altost1.jpg
Here are floating menus on the Alto: http://toastytech.com/guis/altorainbow.jpg
Don't add the qualified claim that Apple invented "drop-down" menus, because drop-down menus are merely floating menus stuck to the bar at the top of the window. Furthermore, the Three Rivers Perq had "drop-down" menus on the side of some of its third-party GUI apps, before the Lisa and the Mac.
Engelbart might have invented the mouse, but to get from there to the ball mouse that eventually shipped with the Mac was a massive change.
No.
The "ball mouse" was invented in 1968, at least eight years before Apple Computer existed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouse_(computing)#Variants
Note in the page linked above that, Bill English (the guy who built Englebart's first mouse) created a ball mouse at Xerox Parc, later in 1972, and ball mice were manufactured for Xerox, starting in 1975 (one year before Apple existed) by The Mouse House.
At any rate, there was no particular advantage to the ball mouse. So, even if Apple had invented it or "popularized" it, it really was inconsequential.
"Inventions" that are little more than tech demos are largely useless.
If it weren't for the tech demos what would Steve Jobs and Bill Gates have had to copy?
No. Tech demos are notorious for having far-reaching consequences in the computer world.
And to take away the massive investment that companies like Netscape and Apple made to take what was, for all intents and purposes, a good idea and turn that into a desirable product, well, you can go back to Lee's internet, pre-iPad tablets and pre Mac GUIs and let us know how much you enjoy it.
Everything that Apple and Netscape did was being developed before, during and after Apple's and Netscape's work. All of that was already happening elsewhere while Apple and Netscape were doing their thing.
RE[11]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?
by MOS6510 on Sat 24th Dec 2011 08:50
in reply to "RE[10]: Does anybody here think Samsung did not copy Apple?"
Member since:2011-05-12
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/13/13 14:35 UTC
The third and final WWDC product I want to talk about is - of course - OS X 10.9 Mavericks. While iOS 7 was clearly the focus of this year's WWDC, its venerable desktop counterpart certainly wasn't left behind. Apple announced OS X 10.9 Mavericks, the first OS X release not to carry the name of a big cat.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/11/13 17:07 UTC
We already talked about iOS 7 yesterday (after a night of sleep, it's only looking worse and worse - look at this, for Fiona's sake!), so now it's time to talk about the downright stunning and belly flutters-inducing new Mac Pro. As former owner and huge, huge, huge fan of the PowerMac G4 Cube - I haven't been this excited about an Apple product since, well, I would say the iMac G4. This is the Apple I used to love.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/10/13 23:13 UTC
Apple held its big keynote event thing at WWDC earlier this evening, but since I was away with friends I've had to read up on it later in the evening. The company announced iOS 7, OS X 10.9 Mavericks, and they gave a preview of the new Mac Pro. Especially the Mac Pro impressed me, and while iOS 7's new Holo/Metro-inspired theme looks messy and garish to me, I do commend Apple for finally breaking the mold. This news item will focus on iOS 7 - I'll dive into the Mac Pro and OS X 10.9 tomorrow (it's late here now).
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/08/13 14:57 UTC
And yes, the PRISM scandal is far, far from over. More and more information keeps leaking out, and the more gets out, the worse it gets. The companies involved have sent out official statements - often by mouth of their CEOs - and what's interesting is that not only are these official statements eerily similar to each other, using the same terms clearly designed by lawyers, they also directly contradict new reports from The New York Times. So, who is lying?
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/07/13 11:40 UTC
This story is getting bigger and bigger. Even though most Americans probably already knew, it is now official: the United States government, through its National Security Agency, is collecting the communications and data of all American citizens, and of non-Americans using American services, through a wide collaboration with the large companies in technology, like Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and so on. Interestingly enough, the NSA itself, as well as the US government, have repeatedly and firmly denied this massive spying on Americans and non-Americans took place at all.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/04/13 12:45 UTC
Ah, patents - the never-ending scourge of the technology industry. Whether wielded by companies who don't actually make any products, or large corporations who abuse them because they can't compete in the market place or because they're simply jerks, they do the industry a huge disservice and are simply plain dangerous. According to The Wall Street Journal (circumvention link), president Obama is about to take several executive actions to address patent trolls - which may seem like a good idea, but I am very worried that all this will do is strengthen the positions of notorious patent system abusers such as Apple and Microsoft.
Linked by nfeske on 05/31/13 10:12 UTC
With version 13.05, the developers of the Genode OS Framework take measures to ensure that Genode continues to scale well with a growing number of users and the steadily broadening platform coverage. Further highlights are the improved SoC support for Exynos 5, OMAP4, Raspberry Pi, i.MX, and new components for realizing headless systems.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/29/13 16:59 UTC
At the D11 conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook once again took the stage to be interviewed by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. While most of the interview can be replicated by picking and reading 10 random Apple fanblog stories - there were still a number of very interesting things that warrant some closer scrutiny.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/24/13 17:26 UTC
So, the Xbox One disaster continues. Microsoft's policy for dealing with the used games market has reportedly leaked - and it's a clear and direct attack to destroy the used games market. Prices for used games will be set at the retail value of a new game, and retailers have to hook into Microsoft's computer systems and comply with Microsoft's terms and conditions.
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!More Features »
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Member since:
2005-07-06
Applying this to the current situation:
Who invented the smartphone, IBM, or Apple?
Who invented the graphical user interface, Xerox, or Apple?
Who invented the mouse, Douglas Engelbart, or Apple?
Who invented the tablet, GRiD, or Apple?
See what I mean?
Unfortunately you make a really good point, but you obviously don't see it. Tim-Berners Lee might have "invented" the world wide web, but Netscape made it what it is today. Xerox might have made a GUI based computer, but Apple took that and introduced overlapping windows, menus, etc. and made it into what people now associate with a computer. Engelbart might have invented the mouse, but to get from there to the ball mouse that eventually shipped with the Mac was a massive change. "Inventions" that are little more than tech demos are largely useless. And to take away the massive investment that companies like Netscape and Apple made to take what was, for all intents and purposes, a good idea and turn that into a desirable product, well, you can go back to Lee's internet, pre-iPad tablets and pre Mac GUIs and let us know how much you enjoy it.