Article View: gnu.misc.discuss
Article #74022Re: Patent on a standard-byte order for intermachine communication
From: Skip Montanaro
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1991 05:00
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1991 05:00
17 lines
1529 bytes
1529 bytes
In article <9107131607.AA14833@mole.gnu.ai.mit.edu> rms@gnu.ai.mit.edu (Richard Stallman) writes: US patent number 4,956,809 covers using a single standard byte ordering for transfer of data between machines whose normal byte ordering is different. Unless invalidated (by prior art from mid-1982 or earlier), this patent prohibits the principal means for transfering data between disparate types of computer systems. Surely BSD's hton[ls] and ntoh[ls] functions/macros predate 1982? I got my MSCS in 1981 and BSD2 was all over the place by then, wasn't it? They had networking from the very start, I thought. -- Skip (montanaro@crdgw1.ge.com)
Technical Details
Message-ID:
<MONTNARO.91Jul14010006@spyder.crd.ge.com>Path:
arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!gmdzi!unido!math.fu-berlin.de!ira.uka.de!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!crdgw1!montnaroReferences:
<9107131607.AA14833@mole.gnu.ai.mit.edu>Show Full Headers
Complete Article Headers
X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 1025b4,9a4c815047ed049b X-Google-Attributes: gid1025b4,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 1991-07-14 03:33:39 PST Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!gmdzi!unido!math.fu-berlin.de!ira.uka.de!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!rpi!crdgw1!montnaro From: montnaro@spyder.crd.ge.com (Skip Montanaro) Newsgroups: gnu.misc.discuss Subject: Re: Patent on a standard-byte order for intermachine communication Message-ID: <MONTNARO.91Jul14010006@spyder.crd.ge.com> Date: 14 Jul 91 05:00:06 GMT References: <9107131607.AA14833@mole.gnu.ai.mit.edu> Sender: news@crdgw1.crd.ge.com Reply-To: montanaro@crdgw1.ge.com (Skip Montanaro) Followup-To: gnu.misc.discuss Organization: GE Corporate Research & Development, Schenectady, NY Lines: 16 In-reply-to: rms@gnu.ai.mit.edu's message of 13 Jul 91 16:07:45 GMT