Linux Defenders: Obeying — Not Challenging — a Broken System

to protect Linux and FOSS. The point is to stop bad patents being approved, and to make information available that will make it easy to defang Microsoft's existing bad patents. Ignoring reality does not work, and nor does banging one's head against a mountain.

There's and old saying "Softly Softly, catchee Monkey" and another one "There's more ways to kill a cat than choking it with butter".

Here I thought the old saying was, "Never get into a land war in Asia."

I'm afraid you didn't understand the problem TA. Indeed, OIN is only protecting the current tate of Linux and FOSS as Linux and FOSS are now, today.

However, software patents are holding people back from writing & releasing software; so software patents are a hindrance to innovation. Indeed, I agree the point is to stop bad patents being approved. But how can you do that by starting a pool of other bad software patents as a defense against software patents? It's like an arms-race in the cold war; we defend against the enemy having enough arms to destroy 5x the world by making enough arms to destroy 10x the world. However, unlike the arms race which fostered innovation, software patents are only a hindrance. Nor is the OIN going to do anything against fraudulent MEP's such as Heiner Lehne and the majority of MEP's in the EP deciding about software patents existing of lawyer types and not software developers.

I'd rather bang my head against a mountain (though I agree it doesn't help) than accepting that such corrupt politicians as Klaus Heine Lehner&co represent Microsoft's interest in the EP. A parliament is supposed to represent citizens of the region the parliament governs, not to represent even foreign companies.

@hans: It's all a matter of time.

* OIN is a short-term goal. A weapon that we can threaten so we aren't sued out of existence in the arms race. * Linux Defenders is a mid-term goal. Stop bad patents from being granted and end the arms race. * Ending software patents is a long term goal. It's mutual disarmament.

We need all three. No sense in trying only to stop software patents and not do OIN or Linux defenders. By the time the End Software patents campaign has any success there would be no FOSS project left. All would sued out of existence (or at least into obscurity) in the mean time.

I don't have a problem with stupid patents. I have a problem with stupid patents being used to restrict competition.

What's the problem if someone holds a boatload of patents but only goes after Microsoft?

@bigg: There's no guarantee he will only go after Microsoft. Besides that, even Microsoft made a few nice things. Not many, but a few.

Sander:

Bingo!!

It reminds me of something my pastor said in a sermon.

He was talking about people in trouble because of bad things they had done or were doing. First you have to do triage: You can't tend the soul of somebody who is frightened, hurt, or in danger. First you make them safe. Then you try to give them the help they really need.