Oracle patents content management systems

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From the "stupidity of patents department" comes the fact that Oracle was allowed to secure a patent on "content management systems".  Similar to the .gif patent, one has to wonder if they now intend to sue every Web site on the Internet.  

From the original article at http://lwn.net/Articles/93245/ :

Patent 6,745,238 was awarded to Oracle in June; it is titled "self service system for web site publishing." "[color=990000]The web site system permits a site administrator to construct the overall structure, design and style of the web site. This allows for a comprehensive design as well as a common look and feel for the web site. The web site system permits content for the web site to originate from multiple content contributors. The publication of content is controlled by content owners. This permits assignment of content control to those persons familiar with the content.[/color]" This patent was filed in March, 2000; prior art should, one would think, be relatively easy to find.

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Patents in general are wrong, and software patents in particular are an abomination. Ideas should be no more patentable than human genes. Oh, wait...

I politely disagree. Without patents and trademarks, there is no reason for anyone to write anything with the purpose of selling it.  This would kill software creation (if not design and innovation).  Now that being said, do I think the patent system desperately needs an overhaul?  Yes.  Absolutely.  

In the early 1900's when it was designed, patent applications numbered in the very low thousands per year.  With a staff of 50, that was manageable and everyone could easily decide if something infringed on another patent or idea.  In 2004, they expect to see well over 16 million patent applications, yet they don't have a staff of a million people to sort it all out.