5 ms·

Patent for pull down to refresh mechanic.

34 points by nirmal 16y ago

deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
the100rabh 16y ago
I think someone should have patented click based actions as well. This patent thing is getting crazy day after day. So I should patent refresh with pull up as well
Construct 16y ago
Filed 4/8/2010. I'm fairly confident that I used the pull-down refresh mechanic in other apps well before that, so these guys had better have some seriously good evidence that they were first to invent. Then again, it's rather easy to be granted a patent. It's much harder to make it hold up in court. Still frustrating when app developers have to be afraid of implementing simple and obvious functionality like this for fear of being sued!
- benatkin 16y ago
  It's not the filing date that matters. It's the date of the invention. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prior_art#First-to-invent_versus_first-to-file http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prior_art#First-to-invent_versu... The name on the patent is Loren Britcher, who wrote Tweetie. Did you implement the feature before Tweetie came out?
  - tkeller 16y ago
    It's both.
    - benatkin 16y ago
      Thanks. I stand corrected.
  - bmalicoat 16y ago
    Your point still stands but the mechanism was first in Tweetie 2.
- zach 16y ago
  As I understand it, there is a year after an invention is published in some form or another for an inventor to file the patent. That way the patent filing won't inhibit, or be inhibited by, the actual publication of the invention. As a result, the filing date isn't the exact delimiter of what's prior art, but of course it must logically allow art more than a year prior to the filing date. You'd have to look at the first time the public or media saw Tweetie use this technique. Anyone have any evidence?
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
irons 16y ago
I suppose this is why Tweetie for OS X has been languishing for a year. Loren had better things to do with his time.
- maukdaddy 16y ago
  Like getting bought?
jcsalterego 16y ago
Given his outward support of other developers' using the Pull Down to Refresh mechanism, this is a defensive patent more than anything else. http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21665180962 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21665180962 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21629390400 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21629390400
- someone_here 16y ago
  Defensive patents can be turned offensive quite instantly. Look at what Oracle is doing.
  - jcsalterego 16y ago
    You mean how Oracle took Sun's defensive patents and unleashed all hell?
  - huhtenberg 16y ago
    Sure thing, but I would take currently defensive patent over a patent of some litigious bastard anytime.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
armandososa 16y ago
Does the patent now belong to Twitter?
lanstein 16y ago
Patent _application_

34 points by nirmal 16y ago

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

I think someone should have patented click based actions as well. This patent thing is getting crazy day after day. So I should patent refresh with pull up as well

Construct 16y ago

Filed 4/8/2010. I'm fairly confident that I used the pull-down refresh mechanic in other apps well before that, so these guys had better have some seriously good evidence that they were first to invent. Then again, it's rather easy to be granted a patent. It's much harder to make it hold up in court. Still frustrating when app developers have to be afraid of implementing simple and obvious functionality like this for fear of being sued!

benatkin 16y ago
It's not the filing date that matters. It's the date of the invention. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prior_art#First-to-invent_versus_first-to-file http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prior_art#First-to-invent_versu... The name on the patent is Loren Britcher, who wrote Tweetie. Did you implement the feature before Tweetie came out?
- tkeller 16y ago
  It's both.
  - benatkin 16y ago
    Thanks. I stand corrected.
- bmalicoat 16y ago
  Your point still stands but the mechanism was first in Tweetie 2.
zach 16y ago
As I understand it, there is a year after an invention is published in some form or another for an inventor to file the patent. That way the patent filing won't inhibit, or be inhibited by, the actual publication of the invention. As a result, the filing date isn't the exact delimiter of what's prior art, but of course it must logically allow art more than a year prior to the filing date. You'd have to look at the first time the public or media saw Tweetie use this technique. Anyone have any evidence?

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

irons 16y ago

I suppose this is why Tweetie for OS X has been languishing for a year. Loren had better things to do with his time.

maukdaddy 16y ago
Like getting bought?

jcsalterego 16y ago

Given his outward support of other developers' using the Pull Down to Refresh mechanism, this is a defensive patent more than anything else. http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21665180962 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21665180962 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21629390400 http://twitter.com/atebits/status/21629390400

someone_here 16y ago
Defensive patents can be turned offensive quite instantly. Look at what Oracle is doing.
- jcsalterego 16y ago
  You mean how Oracle took Sun's defensive patents and unleashed all hell?
- huhtenberg 16y ago
  Sure thing, but I would take currently defensive patent over a patent of some litigious bastard anytime.

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

armandososa 16y ago

Does the patent now belong to Twitter?

lanstein 16y ago

Patent _application_