20 Nov 2003
Morons

You know what would eliminate a lot of this speculative patent madness (aside from just doing away with "business method" or software patents)? Making people who claim a patent actually implement the idea expressed in the patent.

All you have to do to get a patent nowadays is come up with the idea - it doesn't even have to work! If your lawyer is clever enough, the language can be so broad as to be inclusive of any implementation of the base idea that actually does work, regardless of whether the patent holder thought of that implementation or not.

I spotted this particular patent in 1999 - it was one of the things that convinced me that an idea I was working on at the time would end up going nowhere. Even though my idea was not even vaguely similar (really!) to the material in the patent, the language in the blasted thing was broad enough to allow AT&T to sue - and could I fight AT&T? Can eBay? We'll see, I suppose....

AT&T sues eBay, PayPal over patent. The telecommunications giant files suit against eBay and PayPal, alleging patent infringement--the latest skirmish in the escalating Web patent wars. [CNET News.com - Front Door]

00:00 /Copywrongs | 0 comments | permanent link

Unemployed

This story's all over the place today: Slashdot,The Register and CNet (below).

But whatever the source, the story is all too true. In fact, despite the cited survey's claim that 2003's losses in tech employment are less than the previous years, I can only take very cold comfort in that fact.

I was laid off yesterday morning.

Anybody needing a digital audio/telephony software engineer should be advised to check my resume. Hopefully I'll be able to secure enough contract work (or sell enough websites/mail addresses via Raven Banner Hosting) to stay afloat until I can start turning some money over from the farm.

Hopefully ....

Report: U.S. lost half million tech jobs in 2002. New research indicates that some 540,000 high-tech jobs were lost in the United States last year. But the research suggests the unemployment trend has slowed in 2003. [CNET News.com - Front Door]

00:00 /Home | 0 comments | permanent link