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In Focus... Copyright or Copyleft? Checkout wikipedia for a style of open source licensing. If you got it for free, and build upon it, release that for free! Not all free software licenses are this way, though. Digital Rights Management or not?- DRM advocates claim that restricting digital content to proprietary formats or with restrictions of usage on a particular device are needed- since unlike the print and analog world- digital copies are perfect and can be distributed instantly. On the other hand, many believe that putting restrictions on digital data- especially music or creative works, is to undermine the internet's potential and is unfair to consumer. But then folks, the internet did not reach a millionth of its real content potential, on account of lack of rights management in the first place. The reality, as they say, is somewhere in the middle. Minimal DRM- depending on content type, and extremely competitive pricing, which just makes it easy to get an 'official' download rather than search and sort 'unreliable' copies -pirated or via friendly emails- is perhaps the key. |
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saumilzx::Patents, IP
Finding out what needs to be done, is usually a lot more difficult than working out how it's done Saumil's Patents at the USPTO |
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Intellectual Property is a tricky issue indeed. All human creativity is usually based on advancing or innovating upon the past efforts of pioneers in various fields around the world. So when someone has an idea today, which is the N+1 stage in the process of ideas and theories, should they have right or some control on that phase, which depends on the previous N generations? Hmm... it depends on how much impact that N+1 phase has on the subject as such and how can any controlling right of the creator can be enforced. There are many who feel that just about every creative work should be released for free- we should all share and grow from each others ideas, as we have been doing since the History of Civilization. Noble, indeed. But then there are others who feel that every intellectual contribution must get credit, to encourage individuals to motivate themselves and more importantly- devote their personal time and effort (and at times money) to take on problems or create new paradigms in their fields. Patents are no longer what they were intended to be- for individuals and small entities who care to explore ideas which make a change in the industry- but may not have the resources to build and market it. Larry Ellison said the computer world will not change in 1000 years. Sure it won't, until the big guys can realize that there are many independent voices never considered even though they can be heard. Patent law may need to undergo change, but few great ideas can make a pradigm shift. And patents or a patent-like concept is required, not for arm-twisting between the big companies but to stimulate genuine change. |
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Saumil currently holds two patents at the USPTO but and has many more waiting, unfiled, which I hope to use tactically someday. With Provisional Patent Applications, it is easy to get ahead on the filing date, if your specification of the patent is clear and the essential ideas can be established. If you are interested in learning about Patents or filing a patent, Nolo Press books are the way to go! |