Windows XP Desktop Themes: A Tough Inception
Windows XP desktop themes faced a rocky inception, ending up at a pitched battle between Microsoft and Apple. Microsoft’s plan to providing Windows XP desktop themes was nearly derailed by Apple, which had patented similar desktop themes.
The patent, granted on February 13, 2001, from an application made way back in May 1998, covers "systems and methods for providing a user with increased flexibility and control over the appearance and behavior of objects on a user interface are described." In other words, the patent seemed to cover the processes included in the Windows XP desktop themes.
Windows XP desktop themes are defined as sets of objects can be grouped into themes to provide a user with a distinct overall impression of the interface. These themes can be invoked by calling a corresponding theme engine.
Apple’s original patent application was made a mere eight days after well-established UI enhancements-oriented Web site (Themes.org) was launched, on April 25, 1988. Themes.org - for those not in the know - provides stacks of modified interface products for the main Linux GUI window managers, including KDE, Enlightenment (Gnome’s WM), WindowMaker, AfterStep and Blackbox.
Some contended that the Themes.org site constituted prior art, further complicating the birth of Windows XP desktop themes. In the end, the legal squirmishes, through settlements and the like, worked out and resolved in favor of the Windows XXP desktop themes version.
In the end, Microsoft was able to successfully maneuver through the shark infested legal waters and bring Windows XP desktop themes to market. Windows XP desktop themes, after finally getting a foot up in the market, has gone on to dominate this product area. Other companies once interested in this area of product development essentially abandoned their research once the Windows XP desktop themes version gained predominance in the marketplace.
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