Microsoft seeks patent on "immortal computing"

E-mail from the grave?  Microsoft seeks patent on immortal computing

In this culture of instant information, some Microsoft Corp. researchers are pursuing a radical notion -- the concept of saving messages for delivery in decades, centuries or more.

The project, dubbed "immortal computing," would let people store digital information in physical artifacts and other forms to be preserved and revealed to future generations, and maybe even to future civilizations.

After all, when looking that far in the future, you never know who the end users might be.

"It is definitely a long-term project," said Andy Wilson, the Microsoft researcher whose musings on the ephemeral nature of digital information inspired the research initiative.
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The previously undisclosed project came to light through a newly surfaced patent application in which the researchers explain some of the concepts they're exploring. The project seeks to address the fact that large amounts of valuable information are stored on media with limited life spans, in formats that could be rendered obsolete. Consider how quickly floppy disks disappeared.

ut the patent application, filed in June 2005 and made public this month, at least shows that they've given the concept of "immortal computing" considerable thought.

Among other things, the filing describes the potential use of durable data storage, such as advanced imaging techniques, to make sure the information survives over time. One key will be to avoid storage devices that require movable -- and potentially breakable -- internal parts.

The filing says the information could be retrieved through a separate interface, independent of the individual artifact, in part to allow the method of display to evolve with changing technology. People who store information would be able to decide in advance when and to whom it would be disclosed, using DNA or biometrics to confirm identity.


To be sure, the Microsoft researchers aren't the first to see the growing need to preserve information in the digital age.

One existing online approach is called the Handle System. Launched more than a decade ago, it assigns unique identifiers that, unlike traditional Internet addresses, can be used to find online information and media even if they're subsequently moved. The system grew out of the work of Bob Kahn, the technology pioneer who was separately responsible for the system design of the Arpanet, the forerunner to today's Internet.


"I'm delighted when anybody takes interest in this," Kahn said in an interview last week, when asked about the Microsoft Research project. "More and more information is being generated, and everybody, whether it's a corporation or individual, from time to time wants to go back and find something and they don't know where to look.

"I think there's a generic issue here that's really important for the future," he added. However, he said, there's no reason that the Handle System by itself can't be used to reference any type of informational resource.

And the fact that Microsoft has applied for a patent could raise eyebrows in the industry.

"I think it's great that they're pursuing it. If they feel like they have to patent it in order to pursue it, I guess that's a business decision they have to make," said Mark Anderson, publisher of the Strategic News Service technology newsletter. "But I would hope they wouldn't try and do it in a way which would preclude others doing the same thing."