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Re: Results of "downloading compressed program images" request


At 09:26 PM 1/21/98 -0700, you wrote:
>    we're not talking about PC hardware!  we're talking about standalone
>    products:
>
>I see the difference, but I don't think the difference is all that
>significant.  Technical trade secrecy is always
>antisocial--discouraging it is one of the stated reasons for having a
>patent system--and while the amount of harm it does varies from case
>to case, it does not deserve sympathy.

Richard,

Please don't feel that I am picking on you. But what is antisocial about
trade secrets? 

I have never heard that the patent system was justified because of
antisocial tendancies. One of its purposes is to make inventions public so
that the science can be advanced, but the point is that that advancement
should not happen without the inventor being appropriately compensated.
Having a patent allows an inventor to reap economic benifits (maybe) while
not having to keep his invention secret. But not all inventions are
patentable. He may have simply found the perfect combination of existing
techniques by extensive trial and error. 

I guess I have a lot of difficulty with what I perceive as your thinking
that an inventor is not entitled to the fruits of his labors. Can you
explain your thoughts in more detail? A lot of the statements you make are
not clear to me. 


Rick Collins



Rick Collins  Email: redsp@writeme.com
re:DSP, A Signal Processing Solutions Company
P.O. Box 1253
Warrenton, VA 20188-1253
540-349-9606
Web Page: http://www.angelfire.com/biz/redsp/