Linux Kernel Maintainer Joins Patent Celebrations 95
wikinerd writes "Linux kernel maintainer Alan Cox was among those celebrating the EU decision to rethink the introduction of software patents in Europe, while Debian developer Wookey says that 'This is a very encouraging sign.' However, Alan Cox adds that 'the battle isn't over.' The EU software patent directive was criticised as anti-opensource and anti-smallbusiness, while the US patent office has granted various controversial patents like the one-click shopping."
Never truer than now (Score:5, Insightful)
You know well they will try again to introduce patents again and again but keep being vigilant and we will keep winning. thank you poland!!
The best mac support on the web [tribbles.org]
Re:Never truer than now (Score:1)
Darn tootin'. The Thank You Poland banner will proudly be displayed on my website until the end of time.
Or until I forget to pay the hosting bill. Whichever comes first...
Regards to Poland.
Don't celebrate yet, it ain't over (Score:1, Interesting)
Hah (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Hah (Score:2)
"let's pretend we actually want to pass a decision one way or another, while we pretend that the beurocracy is this complex, at least until we're out of office so the next guys can get the blame (since at least one side will blame us)."
People have a much much longer memory for *bad* decisions, and often specifically vote against such people. The best politicians have done enough good to be voted onto the list by the party, and not enough controversial stuff to be voted out by the publ
Re:Hah (Score:2)
I guess you missed the election results in the USA last november. basically proves your theory wrong. the best politicians are the ones that can dupe enough people into voting for them. Good and Bad have nothing to do with it, it's all about how gullible the population is.
Re:Hah (Score:2)
Compare; "I think all modes of transportation th
Re:Hah (Score:2)
But you are being that, just so you know. Nothing wrong with that, by the way. :)
this kind of complaint suggests that the whole system as we know it is hopeless.
Many people indeed feel exactly that sentiment.
Without any idea what a system that would work would be like (or at least a vote for anarchy) the complaint is pointless.
Disagreed. A complaint without a proposed solution at least allows other people to (a) debate
Re:Hah (Score:2)
that, or... (Score:2)
Ofcourse, since all sovereign countries will need to agree with new EU laws/directives, it seems higly unlikely that the counsel of ministers will ever be totally dismissed. A bit more realistic and feasable though, would be to limit the power of that counsel somewhat, an
Re:Hah (Score:2)
The decision would have been done by the Council of the European Union while the JURI (who restarted the process) is part of the European Parliament (which is pretty much against SW patents).
Square -1 (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Square -1 (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Square -1 (Score:2)
Re:Square -1 (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Square -1 (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Square -1 (Score:1)
IP law is a very blunt knife when it comes to stimulating inventions. Essenti
Re:Square -1 (Score:5, Insightful)
That system, perfected in the 1800s, is the model for most appropriation of public domain IP by monopolies. The latest example got a tiny bit of publicity when America revised Iraq's IP laws last year to criminalize Iraqi farmers using native seeds now available in GM form from American companies. But the entire IP protection racket is running amok. It is unjust, anticompetitive, and serves innovation only in the shortest terms, for the fewest people.
Re: Square -1 (Score:2, Interesting)
Let me guess: Working in the legal business, are you?
We're bigger, richer, and more powerful than Europe partly because Intellectual Property in all its forms is protected.
You must be confusing 'protection' with 'abuse'.
It's why Europe is so stagnant, and why America really the land of opportunity.
Look again. In economic sense, Europe isn't doing so bad compared to the US. Maybe the Euro-Dollar exchange rates over the last mo
Re:Square -1 (Score:2)
I'm a patent attorney, and we'll always try to stretch the law. Don't forget, if you read the European Patent law you'd think that patenting software is impossible. Yet it happens.
Apart from that there is (already) freedom of innovation when it comes to software. The goal of patent law is to distribute knowledge, facilitating others to achieve the result themselves quicker than having to find things out for themselves. The problem wit
Re:Square -1 (Score:2)
Why, exactly? What's in it for you? Are you not content with the law as it is? Do you 'stretch' other laws as well, or just this one?
Sorry for sounding agressive, but this statement didn't go down well with me... Some professions (sportsmen, engineers, ...) should stretch the boundaries of their field, and others (accountants, attorneys, civil servants, ...) should stay well within them.
The goal of patent law is to distribute knowledge, f
Re:Square -1 (Score:3, Informative)
1) As a patent attorney I work for the interest of my client, who wants to secure a patent.
Laws are written with words, and can't deal with each and every particular situation. So, if the arguments for a patent application are rejected, you try it another way. If you secure that patent, the border may have shifted a bit. That's a starting ground for the next discussion.
And it is apparently in human nature to like winning arguments.
2) A law comes with an explanation why it is there. An yes, that is the
Re:Square -1 (Score:2)
I chose the one-click patent because it is an easy example, but I know of a great many others that are just as silly; some examples are here [ffii.org]. I have also been asking for "good" software patents on slashdot for a while now, and so far have heard of one that might be good (some people disagree strongly): the RSA patent. Some compression-related patents might al
Re:Square -1 (Score:1)
Re: Patent legibility and benefit... (Score:1)
They do not tell you how to reproduce the 'invention'.
They weave and wave in strange tones about this and that, but are not concrete about much of anything. How is that helpful to anyone?
Wasn't the idea that patents would allow the public to use the 'idea' after the monopoly ran out by referring to the patent and reimplem
Re:Square -1 (Score:1)
Patent law is a necessary evil. But its basics are pretty nice. The general idea is: sharing. Sharing knowledge, and you can't keep the monopoly on the knowledge for ever. It will become the property of the society, so the whole society ca
Re:Square -1 (Score:2)
(I think it is unfortunate that the reputation of the patent system as a whole is being tarnished by the abuses in extending it to software. There are abuses in other fields too, but not
And where's the punch? (Score:1)
Don't the events described take place almost every day?
Re:And where's the punch? (Score:2)
I guess it *could* happen every day.. not sure he'd get much coding done though.
Thanks to the Poles (Score:2, Informative)
Well done.
Steve
Re:Thanks to the Poles (Score:2, Funny)
Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
I read this site daily and was not aware of this directive. To classify as a huge publice concerns would seem to be overstating somewhat.
Re:Huge Public Concern? (Score:2)
It certainly has generated public concern. Look at the number of FFII protest signatories, or "Thank Poland" signatories, or the people who protested outside the Parliament. Or any the protectinnovation.org testimony. Or any other of the public feedback on the directive.
If you read slashdot daily, you must be missing a lot of stories
Re:Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
There is no "huge public" concern here. I googled (google news) for "Thank Poland" and got precisely two stories. And one of them was slashdot. How are you suggesting that the "public" found out about this? Slshdot or ZDNET?
What may be a huge concern to you is not a concern at all to the general public. You and I are a small (not huge) part of the public. Heck, it seems that only a few people on slashdot are actually interested in it, given the low
right (Score:2)
But then again, one could say that in general: seldom a political issue generates a truelly 'huge' public concern, not even when it's about jobs or taxes.
The fact that it generated as much concern for such a topic, is really astounding nevertheless.
And, I must say, if you read slashdot daily, and you still managed to miss the EU-patents i
Re:Huge Public Concern? (Score:2)
I've seen nothing about this on the BBC News, ITV News, or in any of our daily newspapers. In fact, the only reason I know about the whole software patent issues is because I read Slashdot. I imagine the situation is similar for a lot of my fellow Europeans.
Re: Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
OVERstating? See this anti software patents online petition [eurolinux.org]. The counter currently stands at 381,846 people/organisations who thought it was important enough to sign their name in protest. There are some more (smaller) online petitions like this. I haven't yet seen ANY online petitions seeking support for software patents.
Then when Poland helped shoot down the proposed directive, a special "Thank you, Poland!" site [thankpoland.info] was started.
Re: Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
Re: Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
With the internet as common as it is today, 'online community' and 'the public' aren't so different, you know. BTW: When was the last time you saw an online petition on ANY subject gather 380,000+ votes?
Re: Huge Public Concern? (Score:1)
However, the general public is still the general public. The key word there is general, distinct from any one specific group. My grandmother doesn't know about this issue or petition petition, nor do my parents. Even if they did, they probably wouldn't care (even if they could understand it). I speculate that if you talked to a random person on the street, the chances are that they wouldn't have a clue what you were talking about.
And that is
Re:Alan Cox is a moron (Score:1, Informative)
As a software developer by profession, I may have to carry insurance in the f
Re:Alan Cox is a moron (Score:4, Informative)
See his open letter [linuxtoday.com], where he says:
"Please, if you were not going to vote, either vote for the UKIP or Green-EFA alliance members."
That said, I personally feel that UKIP showed no real knowledge of the patent debate, opposing it only for being 'European', and thus leaving the door open to a UK patent legislation. The greens had a much better grasp of matters.
I do share the posters concern about voting UKIP - they're a ridiculous bunch of racist scum.
John
Re:Alan Cox is a moron (Score:1, Informative)
Cox not exactly celebrating (Score:1)
Don't shout victory now (Score:4, Informative)
The original news [techworld.com]
Somebody celebrating is news? (Score:4, Funny)
Am I the only one... (Score:4, Funny)
Not that there's anything wrong with that...
The UKPTO carries on regardless (Score:2)
The Patent Office says: "Participants [to a series of workshops] will be shown a variety of definitions for 'technical contribution' and invited to work in groups to test these against a range of innovations. They will also be welcome to propose definitions of their own."
What about publishing these definitions so that the general public can see them? Not in jolly old Blight
Re:The UKPTO carries on regardless (Score:2)
Re:The UKPTO carries on regardless (Score:2)
I would be the last to defend the UK Patent Office's handling of this directive. In this case, however, you are being too harsh. The workshops are open to the public - if you want to see the suggestions, register [patent.gov.uk].
Re:The UKPTO carries on regardless (Score:2)
Re:The UKPTO carries on regardless (Score:2)
Anyway, not patentable: [Section 1.2.(c)] a scheme, rule or method for performing a mental act, playing a game or doing business, or a program for a computer; with the caveat: "but the foregoing provision shall prevent anything from being treated as an invention for the purposes of this Act only to the extent that a patent or application for a patent relates to that thing as such" and "In the main, the exclusions are directed to mental, intellectual, aesthetic or abs
USPTO punting on software patents (approving most) (Score:4, Interesting)
This might be one of the reasons that the volume of patent related lawsuits is going through the roof. See the graph patent lawsuits per year [ieee.org] (from the article A radical cure for the ailing U.S. patent system [ieee.org])
Ben in DC
Change of strategy.... (Score:5, Funny)
You'll have to read the article to figure out what that means ;-)
Computer Implemented Inventions? (Score:1)
You do not patent mathematical proofs no matter how complex which are in essence the same as computer programs. (I.e. they represent the mathematical means to perform said action.) So why do people have the idea software can be patented when ultimately software is just a wrapper for math?
Like math, software evolves based on prior experience and builds on previous "proof" or "algorit
Phew (Score:1)
What exactly is a software patent? (Score:2)
Basically I do not understand which side is to be taken. If software patent is something like 1-click shopping, or the look and feel of the interface, or some crappy new way of solving the same problem, then I am against it.
But if it something like a completely radical new way of designing OS's, or things like RSA, then I will actually side with software patents being a good thing.
Also I am worried about legally distinguishing the two cases above. Can it even be done?
Tha
Re:What exactly is a software patent? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:What exactly is a software patent? (Score:2)
The spirit of the patent law is to allow the inventors of useful devices to earn some money and continue living, so that they can invent more things, and also to encourage them publish the details of their inventions.
I'm sorry, but you are mistaken. Patents were introduced to keep inventions from oblivion; if someone would invent something and keep the secret of the invention to himself, it would die with the inventor. In order to preserve inventions for society, the inventor could get a (temporary) lega
Re:What exactly is a software patent? (Score:1)
The idea behind patents is to give a time limited monopoly to the bright inventor in exchange for revealing how his/her invention works.
In practice in Software (and in Health Care BTW) you cannot make "one invention", but you have to combine whatever invention you made with hundred or thousends of inventions other people have done in the past 20 years (so that is a large chunk of IT history).
So whatever you expect to gain from licencing your inventions has to be offset by what you have to pay to other
Definitely no time for complacency! (Score:1)
All those letters to MEP's are still waiting to be sent, BUT ... this time we could try harder to get the public aware of the threats that software patents bring. Letters ought to be sent to all major newspapers so that the readers know that there is such an issue
Current legal threats and potential patent threats (Score:1, Informative)
For a free exhibit hall pass use the promo code "free" when registering [socallinuxexpo.org] or use the code "NEWSP" for a discount on a full access pass.
"Thank you, Poland!" (Score:1)
The Age of Open Patents (Score:1)