

Ask HN: Software patents? - throwaway7221

Is there an economical option for preparing and applying for a software patent? There are many lawyers that offer the service, but their rates vary so greatly that it's hard to tell what's legit and what's not.<p>I don't have a college degree and all of my best work will never be visible to the outside world due to contractual agreements. I would like to have something that sets me apart from all the other coders who've been locked up in corporate world for their entire careers. I know open source is an option, but I don't have a lot of free time available to adequately maintain a project.<p>I've developed some unique technology / processes and spoken briefly about it with a few friends who do patent work at a BigCo near me. They seemed to think that it would be worth pursuing, but didn't have any useful advice on the process since they have different IP needs.<p>Frankly I don't care if the patents are air-tight enforceable - is there a way they can be assigned to an organization like the EFF after they're granted? I don't want to spend the time or money trying to enforce them. I just want to include "patent holder: patent #" on a résumé.<p>I'm sure many HN'ers have been through this process before, any advice would be most welcome.
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bluishgreen
Apply for a provisional patent. I think it is free, and you can put the words
"patent pending" in your website, resume etc. Also you can write it yourself.
You just have to describe the idea like you would to any other person and
after which that person should be capable of implementing it solely based on
your description. You have a one year window before which you should file a
full patent ( with the claims section etc) which is better written by a
lawyer.

<http://www.uspto.gov/patents/resources/types/provapp.jsp>

