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Judge Posner and the need for patent reform | 211 comments | Create New Account
Comments belong to whoever posts them. Please notify us of inappropriate comments.
Do you trust Oracle? Enough to use Oracle Linux ?
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 01:53 PM EDT
A better alternative to CentOS

We firmly believe that Oracle Linux is the best Linux distribution on the market today. It's reliable, it's affordable, it's 100% compatible with your existing applications, and it gives you access to some of the most cutting-edge innovations in Linux like Ksplice and dtrace.

But if you're here, you're a CentOS user. Which means that you don't pay for a distribution at all, for at least some of your systems. So even if we made the best paid distribution in the world (and we think we do), we can't actually get it to you... or can we?

Oracle

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

EFF Challenges National Security Letter Statute in Landmark Lawsuit
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 02:16 PM EDT
Not only does this briefing show that the Department of Justice continues to
strongly protect the FBI's NSL authority, it highlights a startlingly aggressive
new tactic used by the Department of Justice: suing NSL recipients who challenge
the FBI's authority, arguing that court challenges to such authority themselves
amount to breaking the law.

...

The Department of Justice promptly filed a civil complaint against the
recipient, alleging that by "stat[ing] its objection to compliance with the
provisions of" the NSL by "exercis[ing] its rights under" the NSL
statute to challenge the NSL's legality, the recipient was "interfer[ing]
with the United States' vindication of its sovereign interests in law
enforcement, counterintelligence, and protecting national security."

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/07/eff-challenges-national-security-letter-st
atute-landmark-lawsuit

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Patent Haters: Here's something you can do.
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 03:04 PM EDT
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-07-17/pdf/2012-16710.pdf

The above bit of governmental gobbledegook describes new rules that, if you
follow them, will let you (each individual) submit up to 3 documents to a patent
examiner along with an explanation as to why the documents make claims in a
particular patent application old or obvious. You can submit additional
documents, but then you have to pay a fee of $180 for every 10 or fraction
thereof.

This only works for applications filed on or after September 16, 2012...

Have fun.

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

A comment from Higgs: I never doubted boson's existence
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 03:08 PM EDT

Article.

RAS

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Microsoft invents iPad keyboard ---- Patent to follow.
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 03:16 PM EDT
They don't have a clue. They don't even know where to start. Film at Eleven. Click here

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

UEFI preventing OS install? At least you can update the UEFI !
Authored by: SpaceLifeForm on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 03:52 PM EDT
Link

ASRock's newest UEFI BIOS setup program can update itself by downloading the latest BIOS ROM image from the web, if you can point it to a working Internet connection. Basic network/IP configuration, including PPPoE authentication can be made within the setup program. Once configured, the utility, called Internet Flash, looks up the latest version of the BIOS for your motherboard on the web, downloads it, and updates itself.

It won't take much work, and soon you will be able to have your own UEFI OS!

Hard disk not needed, all browser based and cloud based. Remember, UEFI is an OS, C library, network stack included.

Why, even Microsoft may not like that idea.

---

You are being MICROattacked, from various angles, in a SOFT manner.

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Another way around Linux's Windows SecureBoot problem
Authored by: SpaceLifeForm on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 04:01 PM EDT
Link

Wait a moment there. Will the advent of Windows 8 really mean that Microsoft's secure boot lock-in will be on every PC? Cathy Malmrose, CEO of the Linux PC vendor ZaReason doesn't think it should.

Malmrose told me “With UEFI's Secure Boot around the corner, we are hoping to raise awareness that Linux distributors don't need to sign with Microsoft [or use their secure boot. Computers that are rooted with open bootloader are available. That's what we ship.”

She knows, “UEFI's Secure Boot is implemented at OEM (originial equipment manufacturer) level, all new PCs purchased (with the intent of loading your favorite distro) will have Secure Boot." This cripples them as far as Malmrose is concerned.

“Yes, you can disable it. But 'disabling' something that's 'secure' makes you bad.” Besides as Malmose told me, “the keystroke(s) needed to get Linux to run on machines post-2012 will be simple at first, becoming increasingly complex at a non-shocking rate. It's a monumental shift at OEM level.” Malmrose fears that this will desktop Linux “too difficult to new users, [and this will cause] slow death by suffocation” for Linux.

So what can Linux users do instead? Malmrose thinks we can avoid a "Greek Tragedy “ by recognizing that Linux needs hardware vendors, like ZaReason, “who can keep things open, [who keep our collective foot in the door at the factories.” Malmrose insists that it isn't about her particular company. “There is 0 profit.* If we ever did have profit, we would donate to support the EFF, FSF, Software Freedom Conservancy, LinuxFests, GNOME Foundation, various conferences, the works. Hopefully someday there will be but most months it's a stretch to make payroll.”

Support non-locked-down hardware/firmware!
Boycott OEMS that support Microsoft.
Send the message with your money!

---

You are being MICROattacked, from various angles, in a SOFT manner.

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Judge Posner and the need for patent reform
Authored by: Gringo_ on Wednesday, July 18 2012 @ 08:41 PM EDT

You all will recall the sagacious words of Judge Posner during the Apple vs Motorola case. Seems he has had more to say on the matter, and some uniformed blogger has ventured to critique his ideas. She doesn't seem to be aware of the enormous damage caused by software patents in particular, and worries that patent reform will put US competitiveness at risk.

There are many here on Groklaw whom are very articulate on the subject of software patents and the need for reform. I thought it might be a good idea for you all to drop in on the site linked to educate those nice well-meaning folk.

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

UK Judge - Apple has to run Samsung did not copy Ipad ads
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, July 19 2012 @ 04:29 AM EDT
Click

I actually quite like Judge Birss for this sort of 'off the wall' penalty

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Philippines is pushing bill that would jail illegal downloaders minimum 2 years for 1st offense
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, July 19 2012 @ 06:31 AM EDT
Thought the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) was bad? A similar bill introduced into the Philippines’ House of Representatives would penalize people who illegally download with a minimum two-year jail sentence and fines of 50,000 to 150,000 Phillippine pesos. ($1,200-$3,600).

[...]

Irwin Tieng has successfully introduced two related bills that became law. One, the Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act of 2009, is designed to help government agencies better crack down on [redacted]ography, though critics say that comes at the expense of the government having too much ability to dictate the role of citizens’ Internet service providers.

The other, the Anti-Camcording Law of 2010, severely penalizes anyone convicted of creating, selling, or possessing unauthorized hard copies of movies by sending them to jail for up to six years. According to official press release, that law was created with support from Filipino film coalitions like the National Cinema Association of the Philippines (NCAP) as well as the Motion Picture Association of American (MPAA).

Kevin Collier , Daily Dot

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Raspberry Pi in near-space flight
Authored by: Anonymous on Thursday, July 19 2012 @ 08:23 AM EDT
Pi in the Sky

A well-written blog post describing a highly cool (ahem) use for a small Debian box.

-O4W

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Nokia Q2 results: Sales drop 39%, Posts $1 billion in operating losses
Authored by: Gringo_ on Thursday, July 19 2012 @ 09:25 AM EDT

Elop admits to uncertain consumer demand for its Lumia products. See Nokia Q2 Results: Bad bad and will be even more bad

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

800,000 strong Windows botnet taken down
Authored by: Gringo_ on Thursday, July 19 2012 @ 01:55 PM EDT

Re: An article in the Register: "Mega spam-spewing Grum botnet finally KO'd - Zombies lingered until security bods shot 'em down"

Chasing bot-herders from Holland to the Panama and on to the Ukraine, and finally cornering them in Russia, GRUM, WORLD'S THIRD-LARGEST BOTNET, was finally KNOCKED DOWN.

Grum was the world's third-biggest botnet and responsible for 18 per cent of global junk mail around the time of its takedown, or 18 billion spam messages a day. The zombie network has been around for around five years and most often associated with rogue pharmacy and fake Rolex spam. Estimates vary but the number of infected drones on its network may number 800,000 or more. The stream of crud is rapidly drying up, according to FireEye.

Of course, not one of the articles actually bothers to mentioned that these vast botnets are composed of Windows machines, that was my addition. We can take that for granted, because if it wasn't Windows machines, it would be headline news. This is Microsoft's legacy to us.

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

Suit filed against Mojang AB in Eastern District of Texas
Authored by: kryos on Saturday, July 21 2012 @ 09:56 AM EDT
Markus Persson, notch of Minecraft fame, tweeted this morning that Mojang were being sued for patent infringement. He posted a link to a PDF of the complaint filed. He also had the following things to say: "Unfortunately for them, they're suing us over a software patent. If needed, I will throw piles of money at making sure they don't get a cent" "Software patents are plain evil. Innovation within software is basically free, and it's growing incredibly rapid. Patents only slow it down."

[ Reply to This | Parent | # ]

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