All your FAT are belong to us!

Post #241,020

1/11/06 3:33:57 PM

Even though two previous tribunals have held that FAT isn't patentable, when left to the luddite cronies of the USPTO, big business always wins.

The US Patent Office has upheld Microsoft's claim of patent rights over its File Allocation Table.

The decision reverses two earlier judgements and potentially allows Microsoft to go after open-source developers who use the technology. FAT controls how computers store information to hard drives and other storage devices such as Flash cards.
Click Here

The US Patent and Trademark Office ruled that the file system is "novel and non-obvious" and, therefore, deserving of a patent. [emphasis added]

Full story at [link|http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/01/11/microsoft_wins_patent_case/|El Reg]

Now what? A court case to prove that the USPTO is loaded with payrollers that would know a file system if they stored all their documents on one?

jb4
shrub●bish (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

Post #241,032

by JayMehaffey

1/11/06 3:49:36 PM

Open Source is not the target at the moment

MS target right now is memory cards. Most flash cards are formated using FAT, just because it is easy and is fairly efficent when space is limited. MS has already said it will go after this market.

I would guess that MS will try to hit memory card makers with a sub-dollar per card fee. Going for the companies using the cards would be more sensible, but going after the card makers lets them blanket the entire market with a miniscule fee and still make a fortune. Trying to go after all the companies that make card readers and writers for different products would be much harder.

Jay

Post #241,034

by imric

1/11/06 3:53:14 PM

*chuckle*

It might actually be interesting if they go after Linux!

I'd kinda like to see IBM drop a patent-nuke on Redmond.

Imric's Tips for Living

Paranoia Is a Survival Trait
Pessimists are never disappointed - but sometimes, if they are very lucky, they can be pleasantly surprised...
Even though everyone is out to get you, it doesn't matter unless you let them win.

Nothing is as simple as it seems in the beginning,
As hopeless as it seems in the middle,
Or as finished as it seems in the end.

Post #241,039

by drewk

1/11/06 5:17:14 PM

Why do you think they're not doing it?

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Post #241,056

by Steve Lowe

1/11/06 7:35:21 PM

Condom has a hole?

--
Steve
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