The FLOSS-open source argument and Europe

[Michael Haney]

On Tue, Jul 20, 2010 at 2:12 PM, Fred A. Miller <fmiller at lightlink.com> wrote:
> This is a bridge too far for Florian Mueller of FOSSPatents, who says
> that if RMS (and those who are inside the movement always refer to him
> by his initials) insists on no patent encumbrance whatsoever then open
> source will always be left with 20-year old technology
> <http://fosspatents.blogspot.com/2010/07/patent-expiration-benefits-free-and.html>.
>
> The stand taken by RMS is an ideological one. And he makes a decent
> living standing on principle. But open source has to eat. And this is
> the key difference between the two movements
> <http://fosspatents.blogspot.com/2010/07/richard-stallmans-mono-and-dotgnu.html>.
>
> http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/the-floss-open-source-argument-and-europe/6870?tag=nl.e539
>

Software patents are not legal in New Zealand and it "should" be the
same way here in the US.  Technically, under the rules of the US
Patent Office software cannot be patented, but get patented anyway
because of an idiot judge's ruling in the 90's.

Recently, some software patents have been revoked, and the US Supreme
Court has left the door open for a lower court to rule them illegal.
We'll see in the next few months.

-- 
Michael "TheZorch" Haney
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for it in the endeavor of science. " ~ Carl Sagan

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