Microsoft's Surface and prior art...

As usual, Microsoft is getting the credits for something other people have already created in the past.

Microsoft’s “Surface” is getting a lot of atention, lately. Why didn’t other similar products that have been created long before get the same kind of attention? For example, BumpTop. Or even another project I found a couple of years ago that basicaly did exactly the same as Microsoft’s Surface on the demonstration video - and I mean exactly the same thing.

Which brings us to another interesting question: Microsoft loves their patents and they enforce them, so why don’t they respect the work done by other people? Why don’t they respect “prior art”? What’s that? Because they’re doing something great based on the work of one single individual who didn’t have the money to take his idea forward and Microsoft, as a huge corporation, has all the means necessary to make a great idea become real? Yes, indeed, that’s a good argument… one that goes both ways, too.

If we recognize that it is a good thing to improve other people’s ideas, then WTF is going on with all the crappy patents? I’m not against someone making money out of something they invent but if someone has an even better idea based on someone’s work and that idea is going to improve the quality of work of a lot of people, why should that new idea be stopped?

Blargh… enough rambling and ranting. I just felt I needed to say this.