Microsoft Patents Looks-Are-Everything Dating 192
theodp writes "Screw that eHarmony Compatibility Matching System nonsense. 'Physical appearance is generally considered one of the most important search criteria among users of online dating services,' according to a patent granted Tuesday to five Microsoft Research Asia inventors. Its Image-Based Face Search technology not only allows people to specify the 'gender, age, ethnicity, location, height, weight, and the like' of their prey, explains Microsoft, it also allows them to 'provide a query image of a face for which they would like to search for similar faces.' So, even though you can't have the real Angelina Jolie or Natalie Portman, Microsoft will fix you up with a look-alike."
Re:every country has a motive to be lax (Score:5, Informative)
That's not quite correct, actually. Patents apply only in the country in which they are granted. However the Paris convention provides that filing an application in one member state gives you an exclusive right for one year, to file in any other member state. However your patent still needs to fulfill the requirements of the country you are filing in. So if you have a weak patent in the US, you may not be able to successfully apply in e.g. the UK (assuming they are more strict for the purpose of this example).
If you are based in the UK, the US patent could still be relevant for you though - e.g. if you are exporting to the US. That's one of the reasons why many foreign companies file for US patents, even for "inventions" which wouldn't be patentable in their home countries.
Re:Website name (Score:2, Informative)
you say it is diet but if i starve myself for a week no fat loss only water weight loss
Dieting: you're doing it wrong.
Re:Website name (Score:4, Informative)
blaming the water? aw cmon, how do you explain the thin people in your area. Eat a good diet of mostly vegetables and fruit, with rice or potatoes without the butter or sour cream, with six ounces or less of lean meat a day, and get off the workstation chair and start walking, adding a little distance each day, get to two miles or more a day. Then add some of those exercises we all learned in school PE, jumping jacks and pushups and such.
You'll be amazed what happens in six weeks....