Microsoft files patent for verb conjugation software

[Jonathan Lighter]

Now you won't have to leave the computer, open a big book, look something up, sit down again, spill your coffee, etc.

  JL

Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
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Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: Wilson Gray
Subject: Re: Microsoft files patent for verb conjugation software
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"A user might enter the verb "eats," for instance, and the software
would recognize this as a form of the English infinitive "to eat." It
can then translate this into another language and display all possible
conjugations, like 'como, comes, ...' in Spanish. Users can also enter
phrases containing verbs or can type queries like '1st person plural
of sein' to get the proper conjugation for that German verb."

What, exactly, would a person use a computer program that does this
for that makes it superior to, e.g. a copy of "[Languge Name] for
Dummies"? Given that Bill Gates is no fool, I'm sure that there must
be some obvious, money-making use for it that I'm simply overlooking.

-Wilson


On 9/1/06, Grant Barrett wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: Grant Barrett
> Subject: Re: Microsoft files patent for verb conjugation software
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> On Sep 1, 2006, at 16:04, Scot LaFaive wrote:
> > So now whenever I get back to memorizing my Latin verb conjugation
> > tables or begin Spanish 101 I will need to pay Mr. Gates a quarter
> > for each verb?
>
> No, the are trying to patent software that does conjugation, not
> conjugation itself.
>
> Grant Barrett
> Double-Tongued Dictionary
> http://www.doubletongued.org/
> editor at doubletongued.org
>
> The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English (May 2006, McGraw-Hill)
> http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071458042/
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>


--
-Wilson
----
Everybody says, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange
complaint to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.

--Sam Clemens

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