w00t. I had another olympic ride in from home to the urban grind. I was eating up east burnside from 90th to 22nd. Its true about endorphins, i get setup at a table and start reading slashdot. One comment in partular was the funniest thing ive read in a month. I dont think it would have been nearly as funny if i hadnt just finished my ride.

okay how i really feel about that article is loathing for software patents. Ive been researching anti-spam software, weighing the pros and cons with my knowledgable buds. challenge/response is a simple and effective system, with some serious side effects. the /. article says a company claims to have a patent on C/R. Thats like patenting wood birdhouses. sorry, noone in the USA can build a birdhouse without coming to an agreement with a company whom you have no leverage with. often the historical reason for patents is given as "we need patents to create incentive for inventors." that is untrue and the free software revolution proves it. these patents on ideas are criminal and a huge burden on the software startup industry.

No software patents. Its a little tricky because sometimes determining a physical thing and an idea can be blurred. software and biochemistry both act like ideas and like physical things. So i say err on the side of freedom, eliminating the whole idea of government enforced monopolies if necessary. In a sense I love to see these insane misappropriations of ownership because it means the system will self-destruct at a faster rate.