• Adding pushpins - Know where something is but don't know the address? Simply right-click and add a pushpin.
• Directions - Directions were supported before, but the support in WLL is much, much better. Now you can quickly overlay directions on the map and even print them out for your convenience.
• Bird's eye - In the context of a conversation, this is very cool. Easily showing someone a view from above is fantastic.
• Permalinks - Building up a scratchpad and directions and then being able to bookmark it in a browser is great for saving a session. Too bad the Messenger Activity API doesn't support launching an application with some initial information.

News that Microsoft recently applied for a custom emoticons patent spread across the Internet last week. As users of the MSN Messenger instant-messaging client will recognize, the patent deals with a feature that allows them to exchange customs emoticons with their contacts. The general consensus was that Microsoft "has no right to take away my right for self expression." While Microsoft applies for tens of patents each week and is often awarded as many, occasionally a particular one will catch the interest of the mainstream media.

1. Usefulness — Will anyone benefit from it?
2. Novelty —  Does an existing reference anticipate the invention?
3. Nonobviousness — Would a person with ordinary skill in the art find the invention obvious?
4. Enabling — Could someone with ordinary skill in the art use the patent document to recreate the invention?

So does a patent for custom emoticons hold up? Let me discuss how it stacks up against each of the points. The bar for usefulness is rather low, so the fact that custom emoticons allow people to more readily express themselves during an interactive conversation should easily exceed that requirement.

Thinking back to the beginning of last year, when the patent application was filed, did anything anticipate a means to associate typed text with a pictograph and to transport them to a destination together? None of the IM networks supported such functionality, but did anything else more general support such behavior? While one might draw a connection between custom emoticons and hypermedia that contains links to images, the claims of this patent specifically embody an end-to-end method to associate an image with text and to then transfer them together. An extensive search is necessary and will be conducted before the patent is awarded, but for the purposes of this discussion, I also think the invention is novel.

The nonobvious requirement is often the most difficult to grasp. A simple way to measure whether an invention is nonobvious is to run the idea by someone skilled in the art, in this case a computer scientist. If that person fully grasps the idea yet almost has an epiphanic reaction to it, there's a good chance the invention is nonobvious. A classic modern example is the Black and Decker Snakelight: the average person probably believes that he could come up with that device, but the fact that B&D did first gave them the exclusive right to utilize the invention. In the same light, I would argue, Microsoft should be granted exclusive rights for the method to exchange custom emoticons.

Lastly, is the patent application enabling? Given this document, could a computer scientist directly implement the method that is claimed? Upon careful inspection, I believe wholeheartedly that there is enough pertinent information for me to implement the feature on my own.

Based on these findings, I will argue that Microsoft will be awarded the patent in several years time. Until then, a patent officer will be carefully examining the entire application as well as performing an extensive search of existing art. Questions, comments and feedback are all welcome.

Not to beat a dead horse, but I'll once again talk about my new place. Closing is officially January 27th now, so I will be able to move in at 6pm that evening. I won't have a bed to sleep on, but as someone suggested, I could simply lay on a pile of clothes.

I gave the place a final examination this morning, and everything appears to be in order. Refer to  Bordeaux II within the Photos to see it now that it has been emptied.

Afterward, during the commute to work at around 9:20, I found the traffic to be worse than I had expected. As you can see below, traffic was quite heavy as I drove through Bellevue.

After a fair amount of searching I finally settled on my new abode, which you may have saw in the photo album. I entered mutual acceptance with the seller, so barring the discovery of roaches or termites, I most likely will be moving in at the end of January or early February. Housewarming gifts are by all means welcome and I'll certainly forward my address to anyone who asks. (Well, almost everyone—minus someone I know who made explosives during his youth.) I hope to get better photographs of my condo during the inspection this next week.

After drinking truckloads of Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper, and A&W Root Beer (all diet of course), I slowly noticed something strange recently—a chemical-like taste in the back of my mouth. Thinking it was due to poor brushing habits over vacation, I shrugged it off, but then I started work and noticed that the taste persisted.

Finally, yesterday, I did a little research and low and behold that taste is a sign of acid reflux, which as you probably know, is often caused by acidic beverages and spicy foods. Therefore, I've cut out soda for the time being, so if I throw a desk in a fit of outrage, it could be due to the caffeine withdrawals I'm experiencing. Don't think I'm giving up the sweet taste of Mountain Dew forever though—once the problem goes away, I'll be back to drinking it, in moderation of course.

Since getting in last Sunday, I've had the opportunity to move into my office, start working, and realize how boring being alone hundreds of miles away from friends and family actually is. So boring, in fact, that I'm in my office on both a Saturday and a widely accepted national holiday. However, from that boredom, I've bothered to update both holiday pictures as well as shots of my apartment and office.

The next big task is to find a more permanent place to live, which while seemingly simple on the surface is actually a major hassle. As I continue to search and scour hopefully I can find an interesting place to live for the next one to five years. Wish me luck.

Tyler has entered the blogging world. Hopefully he'll provide some insight regarding interesting articles in NYT and WSJ as they are printed.

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Steve Made Me Do This

After years of being apart, the Foster House gang of 2001 freshmen reunited for an evening of reminiscence at Tyler's apartment. All but Leslie and Zaid were present, and even though we spent a substantial portion talking about the highlights, we managed to dedicate a portion of the conversation to bashing Jeff.