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Yes
"Doesn't that tell you something?"

It tells me that people are once again reacting in a knee-jerk manner, are letting their emotions control their brains, and are willing to 'throw out the baby with the bath water' or 'cut off their noses to spite their faces' or whatever folksy homily you want to use.

"Software patents have been considered controversial long before MS entered the game."

But they were controversial only on a case-by-case basis (as in your GIF example). It wasn't until Microsoft entered the picture that it became a crusade against software patents in general. Except, of course, for those patents that can be used as weapons against Microsoft.

It's not the call for the elimination of software patents that I'm commenting on; it's the apparent hypocrisy. It's amazing that no one had a problem with software patents being wielded as weapons as long as Microsoft was the target; but let someone else become the target, and suddenly software patents are bad.

And as I've mentioned before, if there had never been software patents, many of the IP infringement lawsuits (what many are so quick to term Microsoft's 'thievery', even though downloading copyrighted music files isn't also considered 'theft') against Microsoft might never have existed. Is that good or bad?

Carl Rapson
Posted by: rapson   Posted on: 07/21/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use
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WTF Happened To The Spyware Story??!  itanalyst | 07/20/05
Yeah  Real World | 07/20/05
Yeah, and Squawkbox and Mikey Cox had ...  Judas I. | 07/20/05
The article is still there (search for antispyware)  Real World | 07/20/05
Please say it isn't so..  Patrick Jones | 07/20/05
Depends on when it was filed...  TheProtector | 07/20/05
I don't know about occasional  voska | 07/20/05
That pretty much covers it...  BitTwiddler | 07/20/05
Correcting the article  voska | 07/20/05
20, not 37  Yagotta B. Kidding | 07/20/05
That's good news then  voska | 07/20/05
Business model  Yagotta B. Kidding | 07/20/05
Ryan, what are you mumbling about?  FirstNLastN | 07/20/05
That was over 200 years ago  voska | 07/20/05
Oh I am sorry 200 years ago.  FirstNLastN | 07/20/05
Here is some trivia  osreinstall | 07/20/05
Thanx  voska | 07/20/05
Court became a trading floor and not a justice place  FirstNLastN | 07/20/05
Mysterious.  Anton Philidor | 07/20/05
Shhh... the illuminati.  TheProtector | 07/20/05
What about the little guys?  Chad_z | 07/20/05
And yet...  rapson | 07/20/05
Excellent Point Carl  No_Ax_to_Grind | 07/20/05
Re: Excellent Point Carl  none none | 07/21/05
Buying Microsoft Propaganda  rjriley | 01/31/06
What is made in the USA.  Anton Philidor | 07/20/05
Less every year  Yagotta B. Kidding | 07/20/05
I agree with this position  xshakes | 07/21/05
I think in order for something to be eligible for patent  Michael Kelly | 07/20/05
All patents must die [nt]  Omch'Ar | 07/20/05
The review process is the key.  No_Ax_to_Grind | 07/20/05
Idea has much merit.  Zinoron | 07/21/05
Software patents  voska | 07/21/05
Hmmm, so old open source patents should be tossed?  No_Ax_to_Grind | 07/21/05
Yep  rapson | 07/21/05
Again, it's a trust issue.  Michael Kelly | 07/21/05
Yes  rapson | 07/21/05
Yes!  Patrick Jones | 07/21/05
So in three years I can take anything I want from Linux.  No_Ax_to_Grind | 07/21/05
That's great, but now you're breaking a license!  CobraA1 | 07/21/05
Problems w/logic  CobraA1 | 07/21/05
Yes, Inventors Can Make Big Biz Cry  rjriley | 01/31/06
Predatory Companies  rjriley | 08/04/05

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