You've got to love the joke that is software patents and the associated trolling that has come of late. As you may have heard by now, NetApp have filed a suit claiming Sun are infringing on some of their patents with ZFS.

Dave Hitz of NetApp details their side of things on his blog.

I'm a bit skeptical of all these claims and, like many believe this may be a desperate attempt to quash a competitor's superior product. The thing that strikes me most as this being another "patent trolling" case is where they've files the suit - Lufkin, TX. Erm, surely if NetApp believed they have that much of a case, they would have filed suit in their hometown (Sunnyvale, CA) or Sun's (Santa Clara, CA), not Lufkin, TX - a known haven for patent trolls.

It already gives you something to think about without actually delving into the facts or hearing Sun's side of things.

As has become characteristic of late, Jonathan Schwartz has responded with a blog entry of his own, clearing up the Sun side of things.

Now how much more do you need to convince you that this may be yet another pointless patent case, wasting investors' money? I think Dave and Jonathan should sit down over a couple of beers and sort it out as suggested by Ben Rockwood.