Linked List: September 8, 2011

Thursday, 8 September 2011

Google Gets Its Hands Dirty 

Philip Elmer-DeWitt:

The difference is that Apple actually invented the technology it accused HTC — and by proxy, Google — of “stealing” (to use Steve Jobs’ verb). One of the patents Apple cited in its 2010 suit —  Patent No. 7479949 — is a 358-page document signed by Jobs himself that covers everything from the way a finger touches the screen of a smartphone to the heuristics that turn those touches into commands.

HTC and Google, by contrast, are accusing Apple (whose smartphone designs they have plainly copied) of violating patents they bought fourth or fifth hand.

But Google’s slogan is “Don’t be evil”, thus, this must be OK. Duh.

Microsoft Signs Android Patent Agreements With Acer, ViewSonic 

Janet I. Tu:

In news releases issued today, Microsoft announced agreements with Acer and ViewSonic.

The agreement with Acer covers Microsoft’s patent portfolio for Acer’s tablets and smartphones running the Android platform. The agreement with ViewSonic covers Microsoft’s patent portfolio for ViewSonic’s tablets and mobile phones running the Android or Chrome platforms.

Which major Android handset makers haven’t yet made such an agreement with Microsoft? Samsung and Motorola, I think. And they’ve already started their court case against Motorola.

Carol Bartz, a Year Ago, on Apple’s iAd: ‘That’s Going to Fall Apart for Them’ 

I said we should check back in a year, and here we are. Bartz may well be proven right eventually — it doesn’t seem like iAd is doing great — but as of today iAd is still here and Bartz is out.

International Business Times: ‘10 Reasons Why iPhone 5 Doesn’t Stand a Chance Against Motorola Droid Bionic’ 

Ignore the hyperbolic headline. Forget about just how jackasstic it is to compare a just-released Android phone against an iPhone that is nothing more than a rumor. The whole thing is click-bait, sure. But what I think is interesting is that if you just took this list of 10 items, you could use those same items to write a real article headlined, “Things Tech Nerds Believe Make the iPhone Inferior But Which in Reality Don’t Matter in the Mass Market”. Flash Player, Google-style “openness”, RAM, expansion card slots. Come on.

‘These People Fucked Me Over’ 

Say what you want about Carol Bartz’s performance as Yahoo CEO, but I love her straight-talking attitude:

“The board was so spooked by being cast as the worst board in the country,” Bartz says. “Now they’re trying to show that they’re not the doofuses that they are.”

Google Acquires Zagat 

“Just what every restaurant wants”, to be more “dependent upon Google”.