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In the midst of this fun, here is an article that illustrates
how "standard: the concept", gets abused. In effect, there
isn't much difference between a proprietary technology and
a patent-encumbered standard if the terms of use aren't very
well-defined prior to implementation. A deal that changes just
before showtime is a rotten deal and the performer should fire
their agent. Apple is standing up to MPEG. Good for them.
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-835740.html
And good for the W3C members who realized that patents
per se aren't evil; a lack of policy for establishing
terms of use (licensing) up front with full disclosure
would be. Otherwise, boot it away. Open tech is always
to be preferred, but the opportunities are narrowing.
The bloody BT patent case on hyperlinks is still brewing.
Note that even the local papers here in Alabama now know
who Vannevar Bush and Doug Englebart are although they
still have a problem figuring out that hyperlinks are
not a "Web" invention. It's progress but someone really
should do a Wall Street Journal article on the history
of hypermedia with some references to these folks, the
Dexter Reference model, and so on. This isn't an XML
or markup thing, but it keeps biting us on the posterior.
len
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