Today has been fairly quiet – although I do not know if that is because I wanted it to be quiet because I was recovering from some minor flu symptoms, or if it has just turned out that way. It does not matter either way. All that matters is that things have been a bit quiet which is what I needed. I probably did not get quite enough sleep last night but I am sure that I can improve things a bit with a nap in a little while.

I was reading the latest issue of Circuit Cellar – a magazine for electrical engineers – one of the better ones. Anyway, the editorial at the back gave the derivation for the term ‘Patent Troll’. Despite this being a rather rude term for the people or companies that sit on patents until somone else implements the idea and sues them, this is a polite term. The libelous term was ‘Patent Extortion’ and a lawyer in the USA got sued by opposing counsel for using the term. I dont know about you, but I think that being called a PATENT TROLL would be libelous in itself.