The Patent Apocalypse Begins?

Software patents... as, Obi-Wan warned, "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious." Well, the dark side has struck back, people. A massive salvo has been launched, this time aimed directly at the open source community in the form of Trend Micro vs. Barracuda Networks.

I was thinking about a cute little pictograph that would describe the public awareness and attitudes about software patents. Yes, this is highly unscientific. Also, I was too lazy to do it, so I settled for pie charts instead:




75% - Huh? Pass the beer...
24% - I know ALL about software patents... shoes, right?
1% - Programmers & Patent Lawyers



Within the programmers and patent lawyers, we could break it down this way:
75% - I don't mess with them, they don't mess with me... please don't hurt me...
24% - Ban the patent!
1% - Sue me? Sue you!

Is that last group now large enough to start the patent apocalypse? Just like any conflagration, some small sparks can result in a firestorm with devastating consequences.

Just ask yourself... really... are the ideas of free open source software and software patents compatible in any way? Are these two not overdue for a showdown? And what if we lose?

Be afraid... be very afraid...

The Man Who Sold The World

Was Thomas Edison the world's first patent troll, or at least the most famous? Fortune's Business Innovation Insider displays a list of the "nine things Edison never actually invented." In case you were wondering, yes, Edison did sue rivals to enforce his patents.
Just for fun, compare the lives of Edison and his great rival Nikola Tesla. Edison was everything that Tesla was not. In particular, financially successful. However Tesla really was a great inventor. Without Tesla's polyphase alternating current power distribution technology, the world would not have developed the widespread use of electric power.
Which is not to say that Edison did not contribute anything...but his contributions were more developmental than inventive in nature.

Patently Absurd

Paul Kedrosky comments on the latest travesty in the abusive system that we use here in the US for "protecting" intellectual property related to computer software.
As someone who gets paid by creating IP, I am supposed to support the US patent system, right? But I cannot help but think, what if the attitude of the early innovators in software had been like that of the current industry? How would have kids like me grown up hacking the Apple ][ using the published source code of its ROM? How would the Mac or Windows been created without mimicking the various OSes that went before it? How would innovation have occurred at all, let alone at the pace at which we have grown?
I look at my career, and it only exists thanks to standing on the shoulders of the giants. Where will we tell the next generation of dead programmers to stand? If we do not cultivate the minds and collective knowledge of our industry, the future programmers may be standing in an unemployment line.
Patents are intended to protect the public good, not merely to enrich individuals. If we do not reform the patent system for software, and quickly, we run the risk of massive consolidation in intellectual capital. Without the entrepreneurism and sharing of ideas that have made the software industry an engine of economic growth, the future of the US will be much poorer as a result.