[Kosh]

I has that term acronym, and I refuse to pay IBM any royalties to use it



LOL

[Flipside]

They are trying to copyright the ability to translate acronyms?

I'm sure N.A.S.A, the F.B.I and a whole host of other organisations that interact electronically will have something to say about that...

[Ghostavo]

They seem to be proposing a messaging system that includes a dictionary which will select words (including acronyms), find synonyms and then decide if it should change the original word for the synonym.

Of course, it seems retarded to implement such a system in the receiver's side, but hey, at least they patented something.

[The E]

....Something totally stupid. Yeah, this is just a parser that will expand a given acronym into its long form. Time to throw TDM TLAs at it to see where it trips up.

[Kosh]

They are trying to copyright the ability to translate acronyms?

I'm sure N.A.S.A, the F.B.I and a whole host of other organisations that interact electronically will have something to say about that...

It isn't a copywrite, it is an actual patent. You know, the kind they give out for useful inventions like lightbulbs.

[Flipside]

One interesting aspect of this is that Word tries to spellcheck some Acronyms, and the technology to bring up more information etc on mouse event has been around for ages, so what this really is, to the looks of things, is similar to a glorified spellchecker/thesaurus, I'm pretty sure this would tread on the toes of several other contextually-sensitive system patents.

[Ziame]

Um, the patent is for programs that expand acronyms automatically from what I get

[redsniper]

Too bad NASA, FBI, and WTF aren't acronyms...

[Commander Zane]

What are they then? Last I checked NASA meant National Aeronautics and Space Administration, FBI meant Federal Bureau of Investigation, and WTF (Means quite a lot but there is the World Taekwondo Federation).

So what are they if they're not acronyms, which include examples such as NATO, being the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and BBC, being the British Broadcasting Corporation, I suppose those aren't acronyms either? Perhaps you could point out to us what they really are then?

[headdie]

BBC, being the British Broadcasting Channel, I suppose those aren't acronyms either? Perhaps you could point out to us what they really are then?
[/quote]

try British Broadcasting Corporation   

[Commander Zane]

Curse this memory.

[redsniper]

Chill the **** out. An acronym is a word spelled from the initials of other words. FBI is not a word. NASA is not a word. WTF is not a word.

[headdie]

Chill the **** out. An acronym is a word spelled from the initials of other words. FBI is not a word. NASA is not a word. WTF is not a word.

I know this is pushing the definition a bit but I  tend to say NASA as a word, ok FBI is F.B.I. to me

[redsniper]

Actually... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym_and_initialism

Frak me then. Looks like no one can agree on an exact definition.

Still, I was taught that calling any set of initials an acronym is a common misconception and that they have to spell a word for it to be an acronym. It's also interesting to note that some sets of initials became words themselves like 'laser' and 'radar'.

[Galemp]

when oh when is US Patent Law going to get the 21st Century overhaul it so desperately needs.

[redsniper]

They're initials. That's what you call writing the first letters of a bunch of words. When a paper says 'initial here' you write your initials which are the first letters of your first and last name.

[Flipside]

Strictly speaking Redsniper is correct, but nowadays, Acronyms and Initialisms are piled into the same basket, partly because of language drift, some Acronyms have become words in their own right, for example, the word Scuba is an Initialism that has evolved into an Acronym of sorts.

Edit: Which is, ironically enough, one of the examples given on that Wiki page.

[Commander Zane]

It's easier to say most acronyms than it is to spell each letter out, one thing people like to conform to.

[Flipside]

True, but in the case of words like Scuba, people forget that they are an Acronym, or Initialism, or whatever. You can even, iirc, find the word 'Scuba' in the Oxford Dictionary.

[Nuke]

so ive decided to patent flatuence, dont even think about passing gas without paying me.