Apple awarded patent on the Dock

***AppleInsider*** · 10-08-2008, 03:01 PM

It took nearly nine years, but Apple chief executive Steve Jobs and Co. were awarded this week with a patent for their implementation of a software-based computer dock that has since become a trademark of the Mac OS X operating system.

On Tuesday, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted the Mac maker patent number 7,434,177 titled "User interface for providing consolidation and access." The 20-page filing outlining the principles behind the Dock and its magnification component is credited to Jobs, in addition to well-known Apple interface designers Bas Ording and Donald Lindsay.

Apple now retains the exclusive right to prevent others from making, using, selling, or otherwise employing replicas of the technology in their own products. Under United States patent law, that right typically extends 20 years assuming the company keeps up with routine maintenance fees due 3½, 7½ and 11½ years following the grant date.

Since the release of Mac OS X 10.0 in 2001, the Dock has been one of the most prominent features of operating system's user interface, serving as a centralized and resizable launch pad for applications and document files.

Over the years, the Dock has evolved in both appearance and function, gaining a 3D look and most recently assuming the role as a container for Stacks, another organizational feature introduced alongside Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard.

Although CDE -- a similar interface element for flavors of the Unix operating system -- preceded Apple's implementation by approximately 8 years, the origins of the Mac OS X dock date back even further. It was actually conceived in the late 80's and release in 1989 as part of Nextstep, an operating system developed by NeXT Computer, a company Jobs founded after being ousted from Apple a year earlier.

When Apple purchased NeXT for $429 million in December of 1996, it absorbed the company's assets and intellectual property, which include the Nextstep operating system.

It should be noted, however, that the patent awarded to Apple this week doesn't grant the company broad ownership to the principles behind software-based application trays. It instead pertains to aspects of a dock specific to the company's implementation, primarily its magnification component and ability to display application names as a user cycles through its icons.

For more on the history of Dock, please see AppleInsider's three page report: Road to Mac OS X Leopard: Dock 1.6

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

solipsism · 10-08-2008, 03:20 PM

Before someone lambaste the article's author for not including Acorn in the history of the dock, note that the last line of the article does link to another article that does mention a more thorough history of OSes with icon docks.

aplnub · 10-08-2008, 03:23 PM

Seems pretty weird to patent the dock at this stage in the game unless Windows 11 will feature it.

solipsism · 10-08-2008, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aplnub

Seems pretty weird to patent the dock at this stage in the game unless Windows 11 will feature it.

It was filed on December 20, 1999.

stukdog · 10-08-2008, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

When Apple purchased NeXT for $429 million in December of 2006, it absorbed the company's assets and intellectual property, which include the Nextstep operating system.

I think that quoted year is about a decade too late. 1996 right?

***Kasper*** · 10-08-2008, 03:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stukdog

I think that quoted year is about a decade too late. 1996 right?

Yep -- thanks!

K

Lafe · 10-08-2008, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

It took nearly nine years, but Apple chief executive Steve Jobs and Co. were awarded this week with a patent for their implementation of a software-based computer dock that has since become a trademark of the Mac OS X operating system.

I'd have said, "... that has since become a hallmark of the Mac OS X operating system."

YTV · 10-08-2008, 04:16 PM

I don't quite understand what other companies are not allowed to do.

The dock is just a group of shortcuts along the bottom of the screen.

Windows 98 and XP have quicklaunch shortcuts in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen that does the same thing. Heck Windows 95 might have it too, but I can't really remember.

EDIT: upon further consulting with my friend google, Windows 95 did indeed have the quick launch icons in the taskbar.

nubread · 10-08-2008, 04:21 PM

Well, now that Apple officially has the patient, I hope this will deter Windows 7 from using a dock. If you look at an interview with Walt Mossburg where they check out the multi-touch features of Win 7, you can see this little line up of icons on the bottom...hmmm...
I hope Apple has the balls to stop MS from copying yet again.

timgriff84 · 10-08-2008, 05:05 PM

I to am a bit confused what this actually gives them. Is it really as specific as the magnification effect with the name of the program appearing above? Like already mentioned Windows has had a quick launch bar that essentially does the same thing although admittedly it doesn't look as cool. Im quite sure there's a few other OS's around with similar things as well.

Clive At Five · 10-08-2008, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nubread

Well, now that Apple officially has the patient, I hope this will deter Windows 7 from using a dock. If you look at an interview with Walt Mossburg where they check out the multi-touch features of Win 7, you can see this little line up of icons on the bottom...hmmm...
I hope Apple has the balls to stop MS from copying yet again.

No no, that's the "Deck". Very different.

Quote:

Originally Posted by timgriff84

I to am a bit confused what this actually gives them. Is it really as specific as the magnification effect with the name of the program appearing above? Like already mentioned Windows has had a quick launch bar that essentially does the same thing although admittedly it doesn't look as cool. Im quite sure there's a few other OS's around with similar things as well.

There are several Dock replicas for Windows, AquaDock and ObjectDock to name a couple. I use them. It means that I had better save a copy because their respective programmers won't be able to sell them any longer.

-Clive

elroth · 10-08-2008, 06:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clive At Five

There are several Dock replicas for Windows, AquaDock and ObjectDock to name a couple. I use them. It means that I had better save a copy because their respective programmers won't be able to sell them any longer.

-Clive

Just don't update your version of Windows, or the apps probably won't work anymore.

SpamSandwich · 10-08-2008, 07:28 PM

What about visually similar implementations, such as one in Flash used by YouTube? Guess I'd have to delve into the details of the patent, but I'm too groggy at this point.

Ireland · 10-08-2008, 07:43 PM

I love the dock, always have since I first saw it.

I love this app!

iLawCDN · 10-08-2008, 11:00 PM

Does this mean RocketDock is in deep trouble?

www.rocketdock.com

solipsism · 10-08-2008, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iLawCDN

Does this mean RocketDock is in deep trouble?

www.rocketdock.com

Based on the patent, yes; but Apple would have to find this app to be a threat, which I don't think the will. Now, if MS implements it as a standard OS option then Apple would have cause for alarm.

Ireland · 10-08-2008, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iLawCDN

Does this mean RocketDock is in deep trouble?

www.rocketdock.com

Yes. If you want Rocketdock in the future you'll have to buy a Mac

hiimamac · 10-09-2008, 01:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ireland

Yes. If you want Rocketdock in the future you'll have to buy a Mac

WRONG WRONG WRONG and MSFT will fight Apple if they have to. But google Y'Z' Dock and Kubulator..... He was the inventor. Haven't you guys ever watch Silicon Valley?

I bet half the people here also think Apple invented SPOTLIGHT.

MSFT invented it before VISTA, it was released by MAC OS X, it was journaling, MSFT didn't get it out in time, Apple did, yet I don't see MSFT taking on Apple saying sorry, you have to get rid of spotlight, it uses journaling, something we invented, maybe they will someday and maybe Mr. Koubulator will take on Apple.

Get a grip, get the facts first.

mdriftmeyer · 10-09-2008, 01:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nubread

Well, now that Apple officially has the patient, I hope this will deter Windows 7 from using a dock. If you look at an interview with Walt Mossburg where they check out the multi-touch features of Win 7, you can see this little line up of icons on the bottom...hmmm...
I hope Apple has the balls to stop MS from copying yet again.

Code Blue. Call the Doctor. Our Patient is down.

solipsism · 10-09-2008, 01:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hiimamac

WRONG WRONG WRONG and MSFT will fight Apple if they have to. But google Y'Z' Dock and Kubulator..... He was the inventor. Haven't you guys ever watch Silicon Valley?

I bet half the people here also think Apple invented SPOTLIGHT.

MSFT invented it before VISTA, it was released by MAC OS X, it was journaling, MSFT didn't get it out in time, Apple did, yet I don't see MSFT taking on Apple saying sorry, you have to get rid of spotlight, it uses journaling, something we invented, maybe they will someday and maybe Mr. Koubulator will take on Apple.

Get a grip, get the facts first.

1) Movies, even if they are documentaries which Pirates of Silicon Valley isn't, don't make for proof.

2) We are talking about a patented functions within a dock, not journaling.

3) You have provided any info as to when any of these journaling concepts were patented or any info on prior art.

macinthe408 · 10-09-2008, 01:52 PM

Apple, how about making a real hardware-based Dock?

It sucks having to plug in all my cables manually when I get to work. And I ain't using any stinking ugly third-party docks.

solipsism · 10-09-2008, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by macinthe408

Apple, how about making a real hardware-based Dock?

It sucks having to plug in all my cables manually when I get to work. And I ain't using any stinking ugly third-party docks.

I don't think the market is large enough to warrant it, and since most of Apple's sales are consumer-based at this point I think the market would be even smaller than the business sector.

dfiler · 10-10-2008, 02:44 PM

I understand that given the current patent system, it is necessary to patent just about anything and everything just in case somebody else patents it instead and decides to sue.

However, I would be disgusted by Apple if they try to enforce this patent. It would be despicable to try and profit from others on such a fundamentally obviously concept.

wirc · 10-10-2008, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by macinthe408

Apple, how about making a real hardware-based Dock?

It sucks having to plug in all my cables manually when I get to work. And I ain't using any stinking ugly third-party docks.

I think Apple's idea of the dock is an AirPort Extreme with more ports.

Seeing as a wireless dock is a desire I just projected onto a company that makes things I like, I'm already excited about the AirPort home.

mdriftmeyer · 10-10-2008, 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hiimamac

WRONG WRONG WRONG and MSFT will fight Apple if they have to. But google Y'Z' Dock and Kubulator..... He was the inventor. Haven't you guys ever watch Silicon Valley?

I bet half the people here also think Apple invented SPOTLIGHT.

MSFT invented it before VISTA, it was released by MAC OS X, it was journaling, MSFT didn't get it out in time, Apple did, yet I don't see MSFT taking on Apple saying sorry, you have to get rid of spotlight, it uses journaling, something we invented, maybe they will someday and maybe Mr. Koubulator will take on Apple.

Get a grip, get the facts first.

Spotlight isn't journaling. Filesystems have been using journaling for over a decade. Hell, the meta data approach to Spotlight comes from BeOS, dips***.

Apple's Dock comes from 1988 NeXTSTEP, dips***.

10-08-2008, 03:01 PM	#1
*AppleInsider* Kasper's Automated Slave Join Date: Nov 1997 Posts: 6,171	Apple awarded patent on the Dock It took nearly nine years, but Apple chief executive Steve Jobs and Co. were awarded this week with a patent for their implementation of a software-based computer dock that has since become a trademark of the Mac OS X operating system. On Tuesday, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted the Mac maker patent number 7,434,177 titled "User interface for providing consolidation and access." The 20-page filing outlining the principles behind the Dock and its magnification component is credited to Jobs, in addition to well-known Apple interface designers Bas Ording and Donald Lindsay. Apple now retains the exclusive right to prevent others from making, using, selling, or otherwise employing replicas of the technology in their own products. Under United States patent law, that right typically extends 20 years assuming the company keeps up with routine maintenance fees due 3½, 7½ and 11½ years following the grant date. Since the release of Mac OS X 10.0 in 2001, the Dock has been one of the most prominent features of operating system's user interface, serving as a centralized and resizable launch pad for applications and document files. Over the years, the Dock has evolved in both appearance and function, gaining a 3D look and most recently assuming the role as a container for Stacks, another organizational feature introduced alongside Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. Although CDE -- a similar interface element for flavors of the Unix operating system -- preceded Apple's implementation by approximately 8 years, the origins of the Mac OS X dock date back even further. It was actually conceived in the late 80's and release in 1989 as part of Nextstep, an operating system developed by NeXT Computer, a company Jobs founded after being ousted from Apple a year earlier. When Apple purchased NeXT for $429 million in December of 1996, it absorbed the company's assets and intellectual property, which include the Nextstep operating system. It should be noted, however, that the patent awarded to Apple this week doesn't grant the company broad ownership to the principles behind software-based application trays. It instead pertains to aspects of a dock specific to the company's implementation, primarily its magnification component and ability to display application names as a user cycles through its icons. For more on the history of Dock, please see AppleInsider's three page report: Road to Mac OS X Leopard: Dock 1.6 [ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

10-08-2008, 03:20 PM	#2
solipsism Registered User Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: The Ansible Posts: 11,916	Before someone lambaste the article's author for not including Acorn in the history of the dock, note that the last line of the article does link to another article that does mention a more thorough history of OSes with icon docks. Do your part to clean up AppleInsider forums: User CP » Edit Ignore List » Teckstud Last edited by solipsism; 10-08-2008 at 03:28 PM..

10-08-2008, 03:23 PM	#3
aplnub Registered User Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: The kool-aid stand... Posts: 2,189	Seems pretty weird to patent the dock at this stage in the game unless Windows 11 will feature it. Hardcore.

10-08-2008, 04:21 PM	#9
nubread Registered User Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 2	Stopping Windows 7 Well, now that Apple officially has the patient, I hope this will deter Windows 7 from using a dock. If you look at an interview with Walt Mossburg where they check out the multi-touch features of Win 7, you can see this little line up of icons on the bottom...hmmm... I hope Apple has the balls to stop MS from copying yet again.

10-08-2008, 07:28 PM	#13
SpamSandwich Registered User Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 8,461	What about visually similar implementations, such as one in Flash used by YouTube? Guess I'd have to delve into the details of the patent, but I'm too groggy at this point. "The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield, and government to gain ground." —Thomas Jefferson Proud AAPL stock owner.

10-08-2008, 04:16 PM	#8
YTV Banned Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 110	I don't quite understand what other companies are not allowed to do. The dock is just a group of shortcuts along the bottom of the screen. Windows 98 and XP have quicklaunch shortcuts in the taskbar at the bottom of the screen that does the same thing. Heck Windows 95 might have it too, but I can't really remember. EDIT: upon further consulting with my friend google, Windows 95 did indeed have the quick launch icons in the taskbar.

10-08-2008, 05:05 PM	#10
timgriff84 Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 112	I to am a bit confused what this actually gives them. Is it really as specific as the magnification effect with the name of the program appearing above? Like already mentioned Windows has had a quick launch bar that essentially does the same thing although admittedly it doesn't look as cool. Im quite sure there's a few other OS's around with similar things as well.

10-08-2008, 07:43 PM	#14
Ireland Registered User Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Ireland Posts: 8,565	I love the dock, always have since I first saw it. I love this app! Collecting my SSD iMac Fry-die. :D

10-08-2008, 11:00 PM	#15
iLawCDN Registered User Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 2	Does this mean RocketDock is in deep trouble? www.rocketdock.com

10-09-2008, 01:52 PM	#21
macinthe408 Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Los Gatos, CA (spanish for The Gatos) Posts: 149	Apple, how about making a real hardware-based Dock? It sucks having to plug in all my cables manually when I get to work. And I ain't using any stinking ugly third-party docks.

10-10-2008, 02:44 PM	#23
dfiler Registered User Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 2,666	I understand that given the current patent system, it is necessary to patent just about anything and everything just in case somebody else patents it instead and decides to sue. However, I would be disgusted by Apple if they try to enforce this patent. It would be despicable to try and profit from others on such a fundamentally obviously concept.

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