Franz Bouma discovered that Microsoft has patented ORMapping . I gave up trying to read all the patent mumbo jumbo, but it sure looks like a patent on OR-Mapping. I’m a bit confused actually to wether it’s just an application, or wether it has been approved.
But anyway, is there no decency? I mean, sure, it would be nice to be evil and sit there collecting royalties from all mapping going on in the world, but this is just too stupid. And even if you were the first one to come up with the idea of mapping, how can you claim ownership of such a general idea? I haven’t really read up on the issue of software patents, but if it’s going to amount to this in Europe too we should be scared.