At 09:37 PM 2/4/97 -0500, Rick Osborne wrote:

...

a philosophical note, why *do* we allow the government to regulate algorithms? (Implementations, I can understand, but *algorithms*?)

At 03:33 AM 2/5/97 -0800, Bill Stewart wrote:

Because they're bigger than we are and better-armed? Okay, I can accept that ...

Because there's lots of money to be made by people patenting things? This i have a little more trouble with ... Sure *one* company can make alot of money, but *one* company making money doesn't stimulate the economy.

Because big companies can use it to interfere with competition? Once again, this is non- and even counter-productive. Pure competition is great, but if only one company has a product, there is *no* competition.

Because it's good for the economy because it encourages inventors of algorithms to publish them and make money by doing so? No: many companies using the same algorithm with different implementations is good for the economy.

It's like this: say that way back when the first electronic spreadsheet was produced, someone patented it. It then evolved into Excel. Now, no one else can do any kind of electronic spreadsheet, because Microsoft has the rights. There is no competetion and anyone who wants to use an electronic spreadsheet has to use Excel. This would be great for Microsoft, but horrible for everyone else. Lotus 1-2-3 would have never existed, etc, etc, etc. The constant chatter about the expiration of the Diffie patent proves my point: if everyone was satisfied with what there was, then no one would be gearing up to produce their own products. Competition is a *good* thing. You can't evolve without it ... _________ o s b o r n e @ g a t e w a y . g r u m m a n . c o m _________ Once a Junior Programmer interrupted a Great Guru of the Sun to ask a Question of no importance. The Great Guru replied in words which the Junior Programmer did not understand. The Junior Programmer sought to rephrase the Question, saying, "Stop me if I appear stupid." The great Guru, without speaking, reached over and pressed L1-A. The Junior Programmer achieved Enlightenment.