Comments on: Apple awarded patent for digital page turning

By: Alexander Inglis

Alexander Inglis — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 17:27:31 +0000

These sorts of things ought not to be patentable. What should be protected is the code used to get there. If you build the identical virtual mousetrap using your own lines of electronic code that you can demonstrate are different than the challenger, then there should be no breach of law.

By: Frank Lowney

Frank Lowney — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 13:45:49 +0000

From what I read about the recent shakeup at Apple (two top execs ousted), it seems that skeuomorphism is on the way out there.
In iBooks, tap on the Font icon, select Themes and then the Scroll theme. This will yield a very functional interface to the text. The Full Screen theme does away with the spine and page simulations but retains the page turn.
One can have a vigorous debate over the merits of skeuomorphism. Here’s an excellent review of the topic with pros and cons.

By: Felix Torres

Felix Torres — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 12:52:06 +0000

I suggest that, just to be on the safe side, everybody doing ebook reading applications cease and desist from using all forms of skeuomorphism altogether. No animations, no “wooden bookshelves”, just go with function over form. Just say no and save the litigation fees.
Of course, I despise skeuomorphism in anything reading-related and want to see it exterminated, but that *would* avoid all possibilities of infringement on this particular design patent.
ebooks need animated page turns as much as racing motorcycles need training wheels.

By: Name Required

Name Required — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 01:16:40 +0000

I am happy Apple patented this. I hope they are going to defend this patent very fiercely and I hope they also patent other forms of useless page animation that you can’t switch off.

I strongly dislike such animations. And I dislike applications where you can’t switch those off. It might look cool when you are a salesperson showing of the gizmo to a customer, but it quickly becomes tiresome. To me it looks as if a car manufacturer installed a player that would produce the sound of hoof clacking and installed air freshener that would fill the car interior with a smell of a fresh horse manure. Cars were once horse carriages, weren’t they?

By: Frank Lowney

Frank Lowney — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 23:20:39 +0000

The US patent system may be ridiculous but what’s a company to do between now and the time the patent system in the US regains sanity, if it ever does?