Apple awarded patent on the Dock

[Fitzcarraldo]

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08 ... _dock.html

What impact, if any, will this have on existing Linux docks?

[wolfden]

well that is interesting

[BlueJayofEvil]

Typical software patents. Awarded without consideration for the blatant 'prior art'.

But then again, this sentence caught my eye:

It should be noted, however, that the patent awarded to Apple this week doesn't grant the company broad ownership to the principles behind software-based application trays. It instead pertains to aspects of a dock specific to the company's implementation, primarily its magnification component and ability to display application names as a user cycles through its icons.

[doom0r]

The sentence catches your eye because THAT'S what the patent is for. They would lose on prior art for a dock. So, they narrow the scope heavily to get a patent, then push media with a different angle to scare off others.