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From: ok@goanna.cs.rmit.oz.au (Richard A. O'Keefe)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: Patents and Architecture
Message-ID: <3333@goanna.cs.rmit.oz.au>
Date: 28 Jun 90 10:54:46 GMT
References: <62864@sgi.sgi.com> <=Y943A7@xds13.ferranti.com> <63007@sgi.sgi.com>
Organization: Comp Sci, RMIT, Melbourne, Australia
Lines: 21

In article <63007@sgi.sgi.com>, karsh@trifolium.esd.sgi.com (Bruce Karsh) writes:
> 	2) You are allowed to create any kind of accelerator pedal you want
> 	   so long as it does not contain any patented invention.  You
> 	   can usually license the patented technology if you need it
> 	   badly enough.

In all of this thread about XOR cursors and letters patent and such,
I'm reminded of something I was told by a mechanical engineer.  I knew
that the early steam engines used this amazing "sun-and-planets" gear,
which always struck me as though Heath-Robinson had something to do
with it.  Why did they use _that_ thing when they could have used a
simple crank?  The mechanical engineer told me that when the early
steam engines were about to hit the market, an entrepreneur heard
about it and *patented the crank*, so it was back to the drawing board
to find a way of managing without cranks.

Yes, patents like this one *do* encourage invention.
Pointless, silly, invention, just to work around not the bugs but the rats.

-- 
"private morality" is an oxymoron, like "peaceful war".