War over Word

The war over Microsoft Word that is. I was fascinated to see that Canadian firm i4i Inc. has won a permanent injunction against Microsoft in relation to a patent infringement issue dealing with custom xml translations.

I4i sued Microsoft in March, 2007, claiming the Redmond, Wash., company had infringed on a patent awarded in 1998 for manipulating complex data in electronic documents. The jury verdict had initially recommended damages in the amount of $200-million.

I’ll certainly be watching to see what happens, as it’s been indicated that Microsoft will appeal the verdict. Of course they will, right? Big money even for such a big company. For a little more on the topic have a look over at Jeff Krause’s Practice Management blog.

And on the topic of Word, can someone please tell the version on my laptop to stop causing Vista to freeze? Thanks!