From mdlug-bounces@mdlug.org Sun Oct 3 06:36:12 2004 Return-Path: Received: from mdlug.org (mdlug.org [198.111.36.77]) by red.cse.msu.edu (8.12.10/8.12.10) with ESMTP id i93AaBC9004415 for ; Sun, 3 Oct 2004 06:36:12 -0400 (EDT) Received: from mdlug.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by mdlug.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0D00021666C; Sun, 3 Oct 2004 06:32:29 -0400 (EDT) X-Original-To: mdlug@mdlug.org Delivered-To: mdlug@mdlug.org Received: from smtp-out.hotpop.com (smtp-out.hotpop.com [38.113.3.61]) by mdlug.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 4E9EC21666C for ; Sun, 3 Oct 2004 06:32:28 -0400 (EDT) Received: from hotpop.com (kubrick.hotpop.com [38.113.3.103]) by smtp-out.hotpop.com (Postfix) with SMTP id 0DCF786C74A for ; Sun, 3 Oct 2004 10:35:52 +0000 (UTC) Received: from [68.62.23.160] (pcp02861561pcs.roylok01.mi.comcast.net [68.62.23.160]) by smtp-2.hotpop.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id 6A88486C74A; Sun, 3 Oct 2004 10:35:51 +0000 (UTC) Message-ID: <415FD5DA.1000901@hotpop.com> Date: Sun, 03 Oct 2004 06:35:06 -0400 From: Aaron Kulkis User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; Linux i686; en-US; rv:1.7.2) Gecko/20040803 MultiZilla/1.6.4.0b X-Accept-Language: en-us, en, ru MIME-Version: 1.0 To: MDLUG Main List , lugwash Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-HotPOP: ----------------------------------------------- Sent By HotPOP.com FREE Email Get your FREE POP email at www.HotPOP.com ----------------------------------------------- Subject: [mdlug] OpenSource victory: Microsoft's FAT Patent Rejected for Now X-BeenThere: mdlug@mdlug.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list Reply-To: MDLUG Main List List-Id: MDLUG Main List List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Sender: mdlug-bounces@mdlug.org Errors-To: mdlug-bounces@mdlug.org X-Keywords: X-UID: 3649 Status: RO Content-Length: 1374 Lines: 38 Good news for anyone who uses USB memory keys, memory stick, digital cameras, and other devices which present data to as FAT-based filesystems In a heavy blow to Microsoft's intellectual property rights, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has initially rejected Microsoft's patent claims on the universally popular FAT (file allocation table) file system. The request to re-examine Microsoft Corp.'s FAT patent was first made in April by PUBPAT (the Public Patent Foundation http://www.pubpat.org/ ), a nonprofit organization that describes its mission as "protecting the public from the harms caused by wrongly issued patents and unsound patent policy. The FAT system, which Microsoft claims http://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/ip/tech/fat.asp it developed in 1976, has become an ubiquitous format used for data storage and data interchange between computers and digital devices such as cameras and USB memory sticks. [Interesting that Microsoft claims to have developed a filesytem for CP/M several YEARS before they did **ANY** work with it, let alone when they bought it an re-named it MS-DOS) Remainder of article http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1663715,00.asp _______________________________________________ Metro Detroit Linux Users Group mdlug@mdlug.org http://mdlug.org/mailman/listinfo/mdlug