> Publicly disclosing the invention is just a direct consequence and not a virtue of the patent system. Umm, no. That was the whole idea behind the system --

> Publicly disclosing the invention is just a direct consequence and not a virtue of the patent system. Umm, no. That was the whole idea behind the system -- to make your information public in exchange for a limited time monopoly on your invention. Before this people just kept things secret and tried to enforce a monopoly through things like guild memberships and whatnot.