Patent Policy Disaster

Dear Consortium ---
	I am opposed to any adoption of standards using patented standards.  The
basis of my opinion is clearly stated in Dan Gillmor's column as printed in
the San Jose Mercury News on October 7, 2001.  Let me write a short quote
from that article w.r.t the proposed standards:
	"This is a grtesque idea, and it would damage the foundations of the open,
royalty-free standards that  have marked the rise of the Net as a useful
part of our lives."
	I have just now looked over the proposed standard and some of the
associated discussion and I find no evidence whatever that patented
standards are necessary or that future patents will not be able to be
circumvented.  The main effect of such an adoption would seem to limit the
number and quality of software developers in the way that the current
patents on gif formats and limitations on cryptography do at present.  The
w3 consortiim should find ways to avoid these problems in the future, not
exacerbate them.

Peace,
	--- Tex Horning
	msg phone: 408 534-1153
	e-mail: tex@pchem.net

Received on Thursday, 11 October 2001 17:08:28 UTC