A Case Against Patents - Don Lancaster
As a cynic, I’ve developed a certain disdain for the patent system. Mainly because of companies like the new SCO, which is a company that bought the SCO unix rights and makes a business out of trying to enforce patent infringement claims. Sure, if your stuff gets ripped off, and you defend yourself thats ok. But I find it repulsive when people who don’t do the creating, who’ve just bought the rights, start throwing their weight around saying “That’s our idea and you have to pay for it”. I doubt very much that the code monkeys who wrote the products the new SCO now is protecting feel good about accusing the whole linux community of mass patent infringement.
Similarly disgusting is the music industry, with the example standing out of Michael Jackson outbidding Paul McCartney for the rights to most of the Beatles music.
As an American, especially as an engineer, you get fed this story that you can make it big by inventing something, patenting it and selling it to everyone over the television late at night. In a simplistic view, the patent system seems great and would be the “ticket outa here” of many aspiring home inventors. Practically, though, the situation is much less rosy as Don Lancaster eloquently explains in his article “A Case Against Patents”.
Snip:
“Finally, be realistic. You don’t create things to get filthy
rich. You create things because you like to create things
and have some compelling desire or need to do so. As long
as there are enough nickels to keep going, that is all that
should really matter.”