Subj : Re: Software Patents
To   : comp.programming
From : Paul Dietz
Date : Fri Jul 08 2005 06:18 pm

CBFalconer wrote:

> The only effect of the patent was to stop all development cold. 
> Other techniques were developed, and by now have far outperformed
> LZW. [1]

This is actually an argument used by patent advocates.  The idea
is that a patent forces competitors to explore workarounds they
otherwise would have ignored.

	Paul

.