Ok, im sorry if you took what I said as "name calling" - as I said I know I worded things a bit strongly but I am just amazed by the views of some people here.
As for comparing software and other patents, I was just following on from your own analogy of tents. You may believe my arguments to be "strawman" but I am just trying to convey the ridiculous because that is what I find your arguments. I am sorry if I have offended you - that isn't my intention but I do still find your arguments ridiculous.
Your views on software patents are not really relevant - in fact I share at least some of them. However they are a lawful tool that until they are abolished many companies - including many others that have worked on OpenSim - use. The fact that a company uses a legal mechanism you do not agree with does not mean they should be attacked. I have said before that I don't like the fact that they have applied for patents, but I am not going to call for them to put their staff out of work because I don't like something that they are (lawfully) doing.
The fact that Stevan Lieberman has implied he would defend these patents (I believe he said he would see what he would do about it if someone infringed them), doesn't mean he WILL. The fact that some other companies haven't said they will defend theirs doesn't mean they wont. Nor does the fact that still other companies may have said they WONT defend theirs make any difference. The one thing Stevan HAS said (very badly) was that he could say whatever he liked, and it wouldn't be binding. So those companies that have said they wont pursue their patents..... it isn't worth the paper they wrote that on.
And yes I know that laws are different in the US and the UK, but I do not believe that anywhere ignorance is considered a defence. I am not a patent lawyer, and I do not claim to know all about it. I can use my common sense though and I do find it odd that lawyers would recommend companies to not check if what they are doing breaches someone's patent;
Lastly, all the scaremongering IS based on conjecture whatever you say. You do not know what SpotOn3D will do. You are taking your beliefs as to what they will do (which in time may prove to be correct or incorrect) to try and sway people away from them. You and others are blowing things out of all proportions by saying they threaten the future of OpenSim. There is zero evidence of this, the only threat they pose is to other grids that may want to do similar things to them. You have already acknowledged that you dont think they will go after OpenSim itself. Development of OpenSim isn't dependant on what ways someone can launch a viewer.