Re: Year 2000 woes solved? -Reply

Scott, where've you been (no flame, just wondering....)

I thought the same thing. Wrong. You can definitely patent
software; you are patenting the "idea", which is an 
astonishing twisting of the law, IMHO. I think it was
Intel that got this decision. It's terrible law, but it is
the law. An idea (expressed in software) can be patented.
Then, you get to copyright the expression of the idea.
I'm no lawyer, and I haven't looked at any of this, but
that's what my buddies tell me.
    Carl Friedberg  carl@comets.com v +1.212.233.5470
    Comet & Company
    165 William St 9th floor
    New York City, NY 10038

>>> "Joe Teff"  wrote>>>
><A 14-year-old New Zealand boy says he's
><come up with a solution to the Year 2000
><computer problem - but he's not showing his
><stuff until he gets a patent in his pocket.
><
><          ----------
><
><Just because I dread the night of Dec 31,
><1999 (no New Year's parties for us
><propellor heads that night :)), I'll
><reserve judgement on this...but my initial
><gut feeling response is "When pigs fly!"
><
><Besides (delving into yet another region
><where I'm totally ignorant, so please no
><flames if I'm wrong :)) aren't things (e.g.
><machines) patented and intellectual
><property (e.g. software) copyrighted?  If
><the kid and the writer are accurately
><reporting what's going on (a big
><assumption, I know), then pursuing a
><"patent" implies that the kid has designed
><a Y2K compliant *machine*.  Well heck, we
><in the AS400 community already have one of
><those - it's the #%$@ programs I'm sweating
><about.
><
><Scott Cornell
><Mercy Information Systems
+---
| This is the Midrange System Mailing List!
| To submit a new message, send your mail to "MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com".
| To unsubscribe from this list send email to MAJORDOMO@midrange.com
|    and specify 'unsubscribe MIDRANGE-L' in the body of your message.
| Questions should be directed to the list owner/operator: david@midrange.com
+---