🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1991Feb28.111753.2@minerva.inesc.pt> fmhv@minerva.inesc.pt (Fernando Manuel Vasconcelos) writes:
A previous poster writes:
>>And since I personally can't afford the $10k it would cost to get a
>>single patent search, 

A patent search can be done (yourself) at your local University library
for very little cost or free. Copies of the patents are available for
the cost of copying from several sources. It DOES take time though.

>>I'm not really likely to go hunting next time I
>>write an expert system that uses X as its interface and happens to use
>>a data entry screen to get information from the user.

If you sell the code then you take your chances just like any other
business. If you give it away without charge there is no profit in
suing you is there?

>The first one adresses those who would have to grant the patents:
>For those the problem would be: What criteria will we use to grant
>a patent ? This is a difficult problem to solve. 

A problem which has been hashed out in every country of the world, with
remarkable similarity in the results - the present patent system!

>This price would put off every small software company ...

Why? Why hasn't this happened in fields like instant cameras (Land vs
Kodak), electronics etc.?

>It's very difficult ( if not impossible ) to grant software patents judiciously.Even if we could manage that the prices involved would be enourmous
>This proces would put off every small and medium software company.
>Thus making more damage then good ....

Please explain just what makes software so uniquely vulnerable? More so
than say circuit design which has always had patents, innovation and
small companies.

-- 
           *Mike Waters    AA4MW/7  waters@nddsun1.sps.mot.com *
Certainly there are things in life that money can't buy, but it's very funny--
	Did you ever try buying then without money?
		-- Ogden Nash