[Patents] Man Patents the Wheel

[phm@a2e.de (PILCH Hartmut)]

> Where we differ is that you focus only on the government inability to
> handle software patents as a justification for getting rid of software
> patents

No: I agree with you that governments can be able to do some things fairly
well, including such things as running a patent system.  But I think that,
no matter how well the problem of prior art can be solved, it is a bad
idea to use the patent system on software.  One of the reasons for this is
that governments can't handle the problem of non-obviousness. But even
that is not the main reason why I find software patents a bad idea.  The
main reason is reflected in the traditional doctrine of technical
invention, which is the basic prerequisite for any patent system to be
able to function in an acceptable way.

Unfortunately there is such a thing as institutional decay.  Which is why
people periodically lose confidence in the ability of governments and take
refuge in market worship.  The market is of course a great progressive
force smashing a decayed state bureaucracy becomes a major task of
history.  So when you design a system, such as the patent system, you'd
better to build it on a few simple rules to make it somewhat
decay-resistant.  One such basic rule is that of technical invention.
Which is why you are a grave-digger of the patent system.

--
Hartmut Pilch                                           http://phm.ffii.org/
Protecting Innovation against Patent Inflation        http://swpat.ffii.org/
80000 signatures against software patents         http://www.noepatents.org/