Linux/Unix patent about to be lost to M$ ?

[davemc]

http://www.linuxjournal.com/node/1000232

Novell currently holds the keys to Unix, and if they die, the patent comes up for grabs. If M$ gets it, guess what?.. I guess thier claims over Linux might actually have some serious teeth then eh?

[Darksurf]

DAMN! Novell is a pain in the @55! I hope novell doesn't turn its back on linux like it has in the past (stupid suse & microsoft crap). wouldn't that end up making Microshaft a monopoly which is illegal??

[wolfden]

From the very first time I ever used Novell I didn't like em

[eshum]

I believe big Blue still has a financial stake in Novell (rather large). As such they would be first in line to pick up the pieces caused by a Novell collapse.

ed

[mbuel]

From what I understand, Microsoft is claiming patent violation, without the patents Novell has a stake in.

There is no doubt in my mind, that Novell accepting the deal with Microsoft, was just about the stupidest thing, ANY open source company could make though. The fine print to the deal(the way I basically understand it.), basically states that;

1) Novell is violating microsofts, samba (their networking protocol) and FAT patents (Which btw, was just granted to them.)

2) By making this deal, Novell won't sue Microsoft, for patent infringements (for stealing NT technology), and Microsoft won't sue Novell.

I don't know what crack Novell was smoking, to think this was a good idea.

[davemc]

Novell was/is pretty dumb when it comes to Linux and Open Source. They have quite the destinguished history when it comes to thier dealings with the Linux world, and have given quite alot of folks good cause to really dislike them. However, when it comes to thier business dealings, they have not always been so shortsighted as with thier deal with M$, which really caught alot of folks off-guard. The general gist of it was that both M$ and Novell (aparently moreso Novell) were both feeling uneasy about the possiblity of patent infringements, and both have a good many customers who have cross server platforms who apparently drove them to some kind of an arrangement. I honestly believe that the big heads in Novell have absolutely no clue about Linux/Open Source, nor do they give a care about its well being, other than the false front they put out to maintain some sort of good relations with that world (and because they know that more negative publicity wont make them $$). M$ had everything to gain by doing this, and im sure it was they who engineered the whole plan.

[Eden]

Patents i believe have a similar setup as copyright, they are around for a certain amount of time regardless of the state of the original patent requestor(is that a word?). After the patent is void it cant really be picked up as anyone is free to use whatever the original patent patented, anyone who requests a similar patent may get it but they have no value as they cant hold up in any court because people will have been using what ever the patent patents before it was patented.

I think i said patent enough times for the rest of the week