"Unread Message Alerts: An application filed January 3rd, 2008 covers the ability for a device to automatically provide unread message alerts when a user is about to contact another party."
You've got to be kidding me. In my opinion, things like this are what bring the whole patent system into disrepute.
The idea that a piece of software will notify you of any pending unread messages to a recipient when you start to send them a new message, is a patent-able idea is--for lack of a better phrase--patently absurd.
Basically you're talking about patenting code like this:
Code:
if (inbox.getAllUnreadMessagesBy(recipent).size() > 0) {
displayUnreadMessages(inbox.getAllUnreadMessagesBy(recipent));
}
... which is over-simplified pseudo-code. But as a developer, I must say, that while it's a cool idea... it's also a ridiculously "evolutionary" not "revolutionary" idea, which is contrary to what the patent system was designed for.
If Apple is granted this patent, I'm going to spend a few days writing a simple mail client with the express purpose of infringing on this patent out of spite, if for no other reason than I find it horribly offensive.
If this is the standard by which patents can be granted--as a developer--I should go on a binge of patenting absolutely every stupid unique idea that I can possibly come up with. Every other developer can too, and we'll end up not being able to develop pretty much any software anymore because the whole bloody industry with be so encumbered with a patent on every possible software idea that we'll all inevitably trip over each others patents and we can all spend our time suing each other instead of developing software.
If the patent system was this badly abused in the 1960's and 1970's during the rise of computing, we never would have come as far as we did today. Somebody could have patented the idea of a code compiler, and then we'd have no C programming language, because that would violate that patent. Everyone else would be stuck writing machine code or paying a royalty for the right to use the idea of a compiler.
Or someone could have patented the idea of transmitting digital messages over a network of computers, and then the whole internet would have been encumbered by a cluster**** of royalties.
This type of crap needs to end.
