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New OH NOES
[link|http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=%2220040230959%22.PGNR.&OS=DN/20040230959&RS=DN/20040230959|http://appft1.uspto....RS=DN/20040230959]


Peter
[link|http://www.debian.org|Shill For Hire]
[link|http://www.kuro5hin.org|There is no K5 Cabal]
[link|http://guildenstern.dyndns.org|Home]
New Wow, the balls of some people
The question is, will the USPTO be stoopid enough to grant it? Nothing like losing the ol' == operator to really fuck things up.

Sadly, if the past is any indicator of the future, the USPTO will indeed be stoopid enough to grant it.
--\n-------------------------------------------------------------------\n* Jack Troughton                            jake at consultron.ca *\n* [link|http://consultron.ca|http://consultron.ca]                   [link|irc://irc.ecomstation.ca|irc://irc.ecomstation.ca] *\n* Kingston Ontario Canada               [link|news://news.consultron.ca|news://news.consultron.ca] *\n-------------------------------------------------------------------
New While this is just a practical joke now
consider the same thing patented in 1950s. How would that affect the developement of programming?
--

This guy's ahead of his time! He's using quantum programming methods: in universes where invalid data is passed to this function, it does not return. Thus you are ensured that you will only have valid data after calling it. Optimally you'd destroy the universe on failure, but computers haven't quite advanced to that level yet.

-- [link|http://thedailywtf.com/archive/2004/10/26/2920.aspx|The] Daily WTF

New Gotta be a joke,
just to see how stoopud the USPTO really is. Wouldn't be surprised if there was a "friendly wager" somewhere as to whether this was really granted.

In the meantime, I can just see the code:
\n    if (p ==/* patent pending */ NULL)\n
jb4
shrub\ufffdbish (Am., from shrub + rubbish, after the derisive name for America's 43 president; 2003) n. 1. a form of nonsensical political doubletalk wherein the speaker attempts to defend the indefensible by lying, obfuscation, or otherwise misstating the facts; GIBBERISH. 2. any of a collection of utterances from America's putative 43rd president. cf. BULLSHIT

New It is NOT. Microsoft has pursued this. Reported Groklaw
--
[link|mailto:greg@gregfolkert.net|greg],
[link|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry|REMEMBER ED CURRY!] @ iwethey
No matter how much Microsoft supporters whine about how Linux and other operating systems have just as many bugs as their operating systems do, the bottom line is that the serious, gut-wrenching problems happen on Windows, not on Linux, not on Mac OS. -- [link|http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1622086,00.asp|source]
Here is an example: [link|http://www.greymagic.com/security/advisories/gm001-ie/|Executing arbitrary commands without Active Scripting or ActiveX when using Windows]
New Trying to bulk up the portfolio of doom
MS has to know that this is both stupid and invalid. But they also know that it will be yet another weapon they can threaten people and companies with if it passes.

They are trying to build up their portfolio so they can pull IBM's old manuver of pulling out an endless stream of patents. Yes, most of them are questionable or obviously invalid. But if they can pull out dozens or hundreds of patents you would have to challenge individually in court, you have no choice but to fold.

Jay
New There is a vast amount of prior art
And the patent is limited to the BASIC language.

I don't think it'll matter either way.



"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them."     --Albert Einstein

"This is still a dangerous world. It's a world of madmen and uncertainty and potential mental losses."     --George W. Bush
Expand Edited by tuberculosis Aug. 21, 2007, 05:52:57 AM EDT
     OH NOES - (pwhysall) - (6)
         Wow, the balls of some people - (jake123)
         While this is just a practical joke now - (Arkadiy)
         Gotta be a joke, - (jb4) - (1)
             It is NOT. Microsoft has pursued this. Reported Groklaw -NT - (folkert)
         Trying to bulk up the portfolio of doom - (JayMehaffey)
         There is a vast amount of prior art - (tuberculosis)

Does this snake smell funny to you?
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