RE: Microsoft Proves Pronouns Patentable

Let's be fair here. Microsoft, and several others on this list, correctly
argued that sufficient prior art exists to warrant a re-examination of the
Eolas patent, which would hopefully render it as obvious.

Other media sources and lists may be a more receptive channel to these
sarcastic twists of facts.

-ml

-----Original Message-----
From: public-web-plugins-request@w3.org
[mailto:public-web-plugins-request@w3.org] On Behalf Of TheoDP@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, June 16, 2004 4:24 PM
To: public-web-plugins@w3.org
Subject: Microsoft Proves Pronouns Patentable


Five days after arguing that the Eolas browser plug-in patent should
be invalidated as obvious, Microsoft pocketed a patent of its own for
'Computer programming language pronouns', which covers the use of
ellipses, blanks, and ditto marks as substitutes for names in a
computer programming language. Perhaps the USPTO was won over by the
patent's eloquent conclusion: 'Eliminating names is a substantial
benefit as programmers dislike creating names.'

See the patent at:
http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?patentnumber=6,748,585