12.19.06
Microsoft: That’s Not Our Patent
I’m a little under the weather, although it has actually been an unseasonably warm December here on Long Island, but I did get a kick out of this and wanted to share.
It’s regarding the Google Patent search beta that came out the other day, admittedly I was fixated on it for hours, well- I wasn’t alone. Network World’s Paul McNamara stumbled upon what seemed to be an odd Microsoft patent
That there is a patent on file with the United States Patent Office for something called a “butt hinge with integrally formed butt straps” is odd enough — and in a patently obscene sort of way, too.
That the patent is held by the world’s most famous software company makes one wonder exactly what the limits might be on Microsoft’s well-publicized efforts to diversify its product portfolio.
Well, Microsoft’s representatives got back to Paul and were able to identify that the attribution to Microsoft is an error: "Hi Paul: Just got a confirmation from clients (Editor’s note: That’s Microsoft) that, as expected, the patent for a door hinge is not from Microsoft. Microsoft will contact the Patent Trademark Office to get the information fixed. Thanks for holding on."
The article also mentions a previous instance where Microsoft was incorrectly attributed with a "hybrid apple" patent. No, not that kind.
It’s good to know my upcoming Butt Hinge project has nothing to fear from Redmond, if only I was sure about my GNU/Linux Live CD.
Highlight: Novell was the first to acknowledge that Microsoft FUD tactics had substance. Novell then used anti-Linux FUD to market itself. 
Highlight: Xandros let Microsoft make patent claims and brag about (paid-for) OOXML support. 
Highlight: Linspire's CEO not only fell into Microsoft arms, but he also assisted the company's attack on GNU/Linux. 
Highlight: Microsoft craves pseudo (proprietary) standards and gets its way using proxies and influence which it buys. 
Highlight: The invasion into the open source world is intended to leave Linux companies neglected, due to financial incentives from Microsoft. 
Analysis: Xen, an open source hypervisor, possibly fell victim to Microsoft's aggressive (and stealthy) acquisition-by-proxy strategy.