Apple Got Another Patent for WHAT?!!!

I just came across this goodie in the Register.  As you know, I have been on a bit of a tirade over well lack of a better term, frivolous use of the patent office.  Apple has been particularly cheeky as of late with some real good ones and not to be undone, here is their newest:

• Apple granted patent for ebook page-turning 

Oh yes!  According to the article in the register:

• the US Patent and Trademark office has granted Apple a new design patent,  entitled "Display screen or portion thereof with animated graphical user interface".

You can click HERE for the actual patent.  As you can see, it took three people to invent page turning...oh there is a joke in there some where.  And the absolute stunning amount of reference documents cited.....all for what in and of itself would seem frivolous.  

Electronic document page turning patent?  Really?  Is there no end to what the patent office will patent?

How is the patent office protecting intellectual property?  I understand the need for protection from someone trying to glom onto an idea as their own, just because they were bigger  or had more money, but even if this wasn't patented, I would think that the company that has more money than it knows what to do with could protect its own legal and legit properties...right?

Check it out...unbelievable...well not so much lately....but how long to the idea of breathing in and out......

Its' 1984 All Over Again

This has got to be the most F.U. use of technology since the up skirt camera.  What am I twitchin about now? Well you know that piece of tech attached to the Microsoft 360 called the Kinect?  Well it seems that Microsoft can use the Kinect for nefarious purposes (NO!)  Oh yes!  It seems in a newly uncovered  patent, Microsoft has developed tech that allows Microsoft to use these cameras attached to your TV to gather information (Oh hell, who am I kidding they are spying, jesus I am even lying to myself now) And why is Microsoft so damn interested in what's going on in front of the set?  Would you believe that this new tech allows Microsoft to get this....count how many people are say watching a movie and should you say have too many people watching, they can shut down the player, tv whatever, you name it.  

Check it out in this Boing Boing article:

• Basically, when you buy or rent something like a movie, you’ll only be granted a “license” for a certain number of people to watch it. If Kinect detects more people in the room than you had a licence for, it can stop the movie, and even charge you extra. So if Microsoft has its way, you won’t just be renting movies any more. You’ll have to decide how many people are watching, and no doubt pay more. And if one extra person turns up to your movie night? Click....

Check out the patent here

And here is the original story at Kotaku

Judge Rules Genes Can't Be Patented

IO9 reports that a judge recently ruled against the pharmaceutical industry stating that a company could not patent a human gene just because they discovered it.

From the article:

• The ruling grew out of a suit brought by the ACLU and Public Patent Foundation against Myriad Genetics, Inc., which had a patent on a gene which can lead to breast cancer.
• The ruling that could invalidate patents held on almost 20 percent of the human genome. There is a long-simmering debate within the biotech and scientific communities over whether it makes sense to patent genes. At this point, most scientists agree that patents on genes retard scientific innovation.
  

complete IO9 article