[TheForge] Creeping commercialisation

[Demon Buddha]

Perhaps the patent examiners have been taking a little too much LSD
with the morning coffee.  That or, from http://bustpatents.com :

"Why many invalid patents are being issued by the Patent Office"

"One of the reason so many bad software patents issue (as well as 
fewer numbers of bad patents in other technology areas such as
electronics and biotechnology), is that patent examiners do not 
have enough time and library resources to do their jobs. To
understand the conditions under which your patent applications 
are examined, accounts and studies of these conditions reported in
past articles from the Internet Patent News Service, plus academic 
studies, are provided that report on the strained conditions
under which patent examiners do their jobs, conditions that not 
surprisingly lead to many patents of questionable quality being
issued."

Your example sounds like one of the above.  A patent guarantees you
nothing.  Not even that it is valid.

Bill245@aol.com wrote:

> The following patent exists. Did you ever swing that way as a kid? Do you
> think the patent examiners who granted it did, too? Nevertheless... Sadly,
> I'd suspect that any patent can be enforced if you have more time and lawyer
> money than the defendant.
> 
> United States Patent  6,368,227
> Olson  April 9, 2002
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> --
> Method of swinging on a swing
> 
> Abstract
> A method of swinging on a swing is disclosed, in which a user positioned on a
> standard swing suspended by two chains from a substantially horizontal tree
> branch induces side to side motion by pulling alternately on one chain and
> then the other.
> 
> Licenses are available from the inventor upon request.
> 
> (Read more about it under "Previously Featured..." at:
> http://www.library.ubc.ca/patscan/bizarre_patents.html )
> 
>    Bill Alleman
>    Tavern Village Forge
>    Weare, NH
> 
> --- StripMime Report -- processed MIME parts ---
> multipart/alternative
>   text/plain (text body -- kept)
>   text/html
> The reason this message is shown is because the post was in HTML
> or had an attachment. Attachments are not allowed.
> Please post in Plain-Text only.---
> _______________________________________________
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
> theforge mail list group photo site is
> http://www.photoaccess.com
> Login:  blacksmithblacksmith@hotmail.com
> password:  anvil
> ___________

--
	-Andy V.

	Living on a lighted stage approaches the unreal 
	for those who think and feel,
	In touch with some reality beyond the guilded cage.
	Cast in this unlikely role, ill equipped to act.
	With indufficient tact, one must put up barriers 
	that keep oneself intact.