>>I don't think this is correct. I seem to remember Fox Software working on the patent before it merged with Microsoft.
>
>Yes, Fox Software had applied for a patent. It was pending when purchased by Microsoft. Some years later the patent was rejected; it depended on too much "prior art". The technique used is known and has been incorporated into other products. The copyright would apply to the code that produces VFP -- if another implementation is created in a clean room (meaning no reverse engineering) then it is not a violation of copyright.
Among the results of Cristof's link:
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5799184.html? - Dave Fulton & Eric Christensen, assigned to MS.
Also from that list, both Borland and Oracle have some patents in seemingly related areas.
Regards. Al
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