[OT] Microsoft filled patent applications for scoped and immutable types

["Jérôme M. Berger" via Digitalmars-d]

Dicebot wrote:
> On Wednesday, 27 August 2014 at 20:08:45 UTC, Jérôme M. Berger 
> wrote:
>> 	Note however that as I understand it D does not have "immutable
>> types" as claimed by patent 20140196008. The difference is that
>> according to the patent the immutable attribute is given to the 
>> type
>> and applies to all instances of this type, whereas in D the
>> immutable attribute applies to an instance (I may be wrong about
>> that one, since I haven't done anything in D for years even if 
>> I try
>> to keep up with the forums).
>>
>> 	However, scala case classes should constitute prior art for 
>> this
>> patent.
>>
>> 		Jerome
> 
> In D it applies to type. When you "apply immutable to the 
> instance" you in fact create new type on the fly by adding 
> immutable qualifier to the existing one. But it can also be 
> aliased to always be immutable.

	I should have said that in D it is used when declaring an instance
(i.e. at the place of the instance declaration) whereas in the
patent it is used when declaring the type. For a patent lawyer, this
will be enough to say that the patent is new.

	Aliases are not really prior art either since they do not allow
creating an immutable type without also creating the corresponding
mutable type.

	Of course in addition to being new a patent must also be inventive
(i.e. "not obvious"), which is a lot more difficult to prove or
disprove (especially since it will be judged by lawyers who don't
know anything about the technical side of things). Usually something
is considered "obvious" if it results from the combination of not
more than two prior art documents and if there is some incentive to
combine the two.

		Jerome

PS: The above does not mean that I think the patent is valid (as a
matter of fact I don't). It only means that the "immutable" keyword
in D is not enough to invalidate it IMO.

PPS: IANAL but I have had lots of contacts with patent lawyers and I
have taken part in several patent disputes as an expert witness.
However, this was in France so most of my knowledge applies to
French law and things may be different in the US.