Email: Password: Remember Me | Create Account (Free)

Back to Subject List

Old thread has been locked -- no new posts accepted in this thread
???
03/16/10 04:39
Read: times


 		 #174179 - patentable vs proprietary
Responding to: ???'s previous message
Open Office is freeware and can read and write Office file formats. I kinda think Microsoft would not just hand over the keys to them.

If I'm reading the wiki correctly, file formats are not patentable in the US, but some algorithms used to calculate the data held in them are (such as for GIF file; in Europe, file formats are patentable but algorithms are not. (2nd paragraph of the 1st link below.)

I guess proprietary is not synonomous with patentable, though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File_format#Specifications

more details

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Office#Proprietary_File_Formats

List of 39 messages in thread
TopicAuthorDate
SDCC download            01/01/70 00:00      
   Here you go...            01/01/70 00:00      
   newest            01/01/70 00:00      
      Has any effort gone into documentation?            01/01/70 00:00      
         documentation            01/01/70 00:00      
            Just to add...            01/01/70 00:00      
               more howto-s            01/01/70 00:00      
                  the first 'oddity' is ...            01/01/70 00:00      
                     I think you dreamt that one eric            01/01/70 00:00      
                        No - it's a well-known Gotcha! in SDCC!            01/01/70 00:00      
                           Reference: ISRs (or prototypes) must be in same file as main            01/01/70 00:00      
                     linking            01/01/70 00:00      
                        I see it not correct            01/01/70 00:00      
                           I don't understand            01/01/70 00:00      
                              what is it you do not understand?            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 Does it not recognise...            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 Surely not...            01/01/70 00:00      
                                    "magic"            01/01/70 00:00      
                                       That's not the fault of 'C'!!            01/01/70 00:00      
                                       highly unusal, but            01/01/70 00:00      
                                       Try java etc            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 I now see why is this confusing            01/01/70 00:00      
               emulation?            01/01/70 00:00      
                  Source-level debug            01/01/70 00:00      
                     symbol information            01/01/70 00:00      
                        re: symbol information            01/01/70 00:00      
                           hex-file download?            01/01/70 00:00      
                              hex vs omf            01/01/70 00:00      
                     Keil proprietary stuff?            01/01/70 00:00      
                        extended omf51            01/01/70 00:00      
                           omf51 vs cdb            01/01/70 00:00      
                        proprietary file format?            01/01/70 00:00      
                           I don't see why not            01/01/70 00:00      
                              So, what do *you* mean by, "proprietary" ?            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 AutoCAD            01/01/70 00:00      
                           Yes            01/01/70 00:00      
                              patentable vs proprietary            01/01/70 00:00      
                                 Proprietary is a questin of ownership, not protection            01/01/70 00:00      
   bouncing email            01/01/70 00:00      

Back to Subject List