The debate is on as to whether or not Microsoft “borrowed” the Word 2003 Reading Layout View from Eric Wilson.
You tell me. Take a look at the screen shots and tell me if you think Microsoft, uh, “borrowed” Word 2003’s Reading Layout View from Eric Wilson.
I dunno how they get away with it.
Eric’s taking on Goliath, with an interesting twist: he has a patent pending in Australia for his Document Display System and Method – a two-year-old technology that bears, shall we say, a striking resemblance to Word 2003’s Reading Layout view.
Eric wrote to me recently and said, “At this point I’m waging my campaign on the basis of the potential risks to end users posed by patents pending, because I’ve found Microsoft doesn’t wish to cooperate with my business model at the moment. Yet because I have these filings in my back pocket, Microsoft’s customers must now share the risks as well.”
Of course, you all know about my long-standing beef about Microsoft, uh, “borrowing” features, with neither a thank you nor a fare-thee-well. They’ve been doing it for a decade. The difference here is that Eric filed for a patent on his inventions – and that could make things interesting.
Will the patent be granted? Does Eric stand a chance against Microsoft – a company that can bankrupt most mortals with a single Interrogatory? If Eric wins, do all of us Office 2003 users owe him a fee?
