[
Lists Home |
Date Index |
Thread Index
]
If the mere use of XML as a file format renders an old idea newly
patentable and Microsoft decided to exploit this three years ago, the
only choice seems to be to flee to YML (Your ML) and get those patent
applications in before the crowd. ;-}
Bob Foster
http://xmlbuddy.com/
Michael Champion wrote:
> http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3312091
>
> Details at
> http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&u=/
> netahtml/search-
> adv.htm&r=9&p=1&f=G&l=50&d=ptxt&S1=Microsoft.ASNM.&OS=AN/
> Microsoft&RS=AN/Microsoft
>
> "
> Systems, methods and data structures for encompassing scripts written
> in one or more scripting languages in a single file. The scripts of a
> computer system are organized into a single file using Extensible
> Language Markup (XML). Each script is delimited by a file element and
> the script's instructions are delimited by a code element within each
> file element. Other information, such as a name of the script and a
> functional description of the script may also be included in the file
> using other XML elements to delimit that information. The language in
> which a particular script is written is also included within the XML
> format. When a particular script is executed, the file is parsed to
> create a list of the script names or of the functional descriptions of
> the scripts. One or more scripts are selected and the code for those
> scripts is extracted from the file and executed by the appropriate
> scripting process. The scripting process that executes a particular
> script is identified from the scripting extension attribute that is
> included in the XML format of the file."
>
> At very first glance, it appears to be another case of "wrapping common
> practice in XML tags makes it patentable". Of course, there could be
> subtleties here that are more innovative than are apparent at first
> glance, but needless to say it's hard to have any faith that the USPTO
> would be able to tell the difference.
|
