

The patent minefield is already patented. - Schwolop
http://www.triplepointrobotics.com/blog/2012/6/21/the-patent-minefield-is-already-patented.html

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noonespecial
I agree with everything you said about patents and this is completely off
topic, but have you ever actually tried projecting onto a whiteboard with a
projector? We had the bright idea of using the whiteboard in a conference room
as a screen as well but the glare off the board's shiny surface made
everything unreadable.

As for patents: This bit by Don Lancaster (from 1990!) seems to be the
definitive work on how startups should relate to patents. It definitely
changed my mind as to how I proceeded in my own ventures.

<http://www.tinaja.com/glib/casagpat.pdf>

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Schwolop
We have tried a few times (before this company was established) and yes, it
can be crap. However, we've got a few ideas on how to fix this such as matte
overlays, light filters, anti-speckle laser projectors, etc. We're very early
stage so I can't tell you whether any of those will work at all, but I'm
confident we can solve the technical problems - it's the business side I'm
finding hard!

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noonespecial
Good luck then. Sound like an exciting project.

Oh and; Whiteboards are white. You don't have to re-project the white part.
(Didn't see that in your list. Sprang to mind)

~~~
Schwolop
Well yes and no actually. Projectors can't produce black (absence of colour)
so they typically do so by increasing the contrast with respect to surrounding
areas (that, and you turn the lights off). So to draw black text, you need to
shine white around it.

But yes, in general you're right. If we draw text in blue for example, we
should be able to get away with this. Again, more testing required... :-)

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wissler
The truth is, patents are not a poorly executed good idea; they are a morally
indefensible, heinously evil idea. They are a more sophisticated feudalism,
but feudalism nonetheless.

There obvious moral truth is that no human being has the right to tell another
that he can't independently think, create, and sell a given product, and that
truth holds regardless of whether he thought of an idea that someone else
happened to think of first.

Patents are based in pure mythology, they are a sign that humanity still
hasn't gotten out of barbaric intellectual ruts (along with a number of other
litmus tests of human barbarism, such as the War on Drugs, the non-consensual
forms of government we have, and many other things).

