[AccessD] Database Patent

Since I'm not an attorney, I'll leave the expert opinions to you.
However, unless your client is dealing with some database technology
other than object-oriented or event-driven, I suspect it isn't new or
unique.  As for being sold a pup, it was just a phrase.  Your previous
message made it clear that you had perhaps "inherited a pup" by default
rather than buying it.  LOL

Charlotte Foust 

-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Jack Stone
Sent: Monday, September 10, 2007 11:40 AM
To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
Subject: Re: [AccessD] Database Patent

Well, after what I said below, I guess I am one of those that say you
can copyright code, but as I also said, it is not worth much, and I
don't believe I have ever advised a client to do it.  I will note too
that copyright is limited to protecting expression, and does not extend
beyond that to protect method, application, and solutions, at least not
in the sense of those words as I understand them.

Patents are another story.  While I sometimes include code in the
detailed description portion of a patent as an example of one way to
implement an invention, I don't believe I have ever written a patent so
that it was limited to any particular embodiment of code.  The subject
Weinman patent is a case in point.  The purpose of a patent is to
protect function (not mere expression, as with a copyright), including
any way that a function may be performed, and so the legal metes and
bounds of a software patent are typically defined at a high level by
flow charts and/or structure, and rarely ever by code, even though code
obviously underlies all of it.  If it were limited to a particular
embodiment of code, then it would indeed be easy to design around, and
so not worth much, or overkill as you say.

Re being "sold a pup", we never bought it and it was not part of the
arragnement (e.g., as a contingency), we were just stuck with it, as can
happen in any business when a client defaults in payment and/or goes
bankrupt.

Jack