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Author Topic: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property  (Read 3632 times)

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Offline nslay

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NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« on: September 16, 2007, 01:08:55 pm »
For NetApp's side:
http://blogs.netapp.com/dave/2007/09/netapp-sues-sun.html

For a pretty good view of both sides:
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2179693,00.asp

Its a dissappointment when patents take something great and ruin it for everyone.  Patents on techniques make about as much sense as patents on techniques to solve math/scientific problems.
"Oops, you're going to have to pay Company X a license fee before you can use Fourier Transform"
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Offline iago

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #1 on: September 16, 2007, 01:27:16 pm »
Yeah, patents on things like algorithms are stupid. Hopefully, somebody will come to his/her senses and they'll abolish patents on ideas like they were supposed to be.

What sucks is, if I write a piece of software from scratch, odds are that I'm going to infringe on a bunch of different patents that I've never even heard of, for concepts that are fairly obvious. As a result, writing software is a total minefield.
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Offline nslay

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #2 on: September 16, 2007, 01:47:59 pm »
I can understand where patents apply.  The only place it should apply is quite simply plagerism.  ZFS doesn't plagerize WAFL.  However, a patent currently applies to the broader concept.  Like anybody can tell a story, anybody can code...how the story is told makes the difference, much like the quality of the code, whoever does it better deserves the sales, not the damn inventor!  A patent is unamerican as it attempts to stifle competition.

P.S. If UNIX were under a patent, then any Unix-like system would be violating it since it copies the concept of Unix (i.e. the look, the API, ... everything).
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Offline Sidoh

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #3 on: September 16, 2007, 02:04:52 pm »
Quote from: iago on September 16, 2007, 01:27:16 pm
Yeah, patents on things like algorithms are stupid. Hopefully, somebody will come to his/her senses and they'll abolish patents on ideas like they were supposed to be.

What sucks is, if I write a piece of software from scratch, odds are that I'm going to infringe on a bunch of different patents that I've never even heard of, for concepts that are fairly obvious. As a result, writing software is a total minefield.

Yeah, I totally agree.

If only there were virtual robots who would sacrifice themselves for me in the minefield.  Wait, hold on... hey, Joe...  Hehe, just kidding. :)
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Offline iago

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #4 on: September 16, 2007, 02:40:45 pm »
Didn't SCO try to sue Linux et al for patent violations and fail?
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Offline Hitmen

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #5 on: September 16, 2007, 02:55:37 pm »
Quote from: iago on September 16, 2007, 02:40:45 pm
Didn't SCO try to sue Linux et al for patent violations and fail?
Miserably.
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Offline Newby

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Re: NetApp sues Sun over ZFS intellectual property
« Reply #6 on: September 16, 2007, 03:37:36 pm »
Quote from: Hitmen on September 16, 2007, 02:55:37 pm
Quote from: iago on September 16, 2007, 02:40:45 pm
Didn't SCO try to sue Linux et al for patent violations and fail?
Miserably.

High-five.
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Quote
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[17:32:54] * xar sets mode: +o newby
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Quote from: Rule on June 30, 2008, 01:13:20 pm
Quote from: CrAz3D on June 30, 2008, 10:38:22 am
I'd bet that you're currently bloated like a water ballon on a hot summer's day.

That analogy doesn't even make sense.  Why would a water balloon be especially bloated on a hot summer's day? For your sake, I hope there wasn't too much logic testing on your LSAT. 
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