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<p>Thank you for posting. Prompted by your posting, I plugged this
word into Google. </p>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">The first search hit offered an
etymology that I found very interesting. It said:</div>
<blockquote>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">It's a combination of the words
verschlimmern ("to make something worse") and verbessern ("to
make something better").<br>
</div>
</blockquote>
<p></p>
<p>The second search hit said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>In German, the word \u201cVerschlimmbessern\u201d means \u201cto make
something worse while repairing it.\u201d In English, we call that
\u201csoftware development.\u201d<br>
</p>
</blockquote>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 10/17/2024 6:55 AM, Richard
Straussman via Patentcenter wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:b464649a-41f9-4f3b-b885-85663fda046f@weitzmanip.com">
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
Today I learned a new German word that seems so applicable to
PatentCenter I had to share it: verschlimmbessern. <br>
<br>
I am advised that it means to take something bad and try to make
it better, but in the process, you make it worse than before. We
NEED a word like that in English - particularly for many recent
PTO "improvements"!!<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
<style type="text/css">span.c16 {color: #800000}span.c15 {font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt}span.c14 {color: #800000; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt; text-decoration: underline}span.c13 {color: #0000FF; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt; text-decoration: underline}span.c12 {color: #800000; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt}span.c11 {font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt}span.c10 {color: #656565; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 10pt}span.c9 {color: #800000; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 10pt}span.c8 {font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial}span.c7 {color: #989898; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt}span.c6 {color: #656565; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 8pt}span.c5 {font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 10pt}span.c4 {color: #656565; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 11pt}span.c3 {color: #000080; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial}span.c2 {font-size: 8pt}span.c1 {color: #0000FF; font-family: Verdana, Helvetica, Arial; font-size: 12pt}</style><span
class="c1"><strong>Richard Straussman</strong></span><span
class="c3"><span class="c2"><strong><br>
</strong></span> </span><strong><span class="c4">Senior
Counsel</span><span class="c5"><strong><br>
</strong></span> <span class="c6">Registered Patent
Attorney</span><span class="c5"><br>
</span></strong> <span class="c6">Member NY, NJ & CT Bars</span><span
class="c5"><br>
</span> <span class="c7"><strong>. . . . . . . . . . . . . .</strong></span>
<span class="c8"></span> <span class="c5"><br>
</span> <span class="c9"><strong>Weitzman Law Offices, LLC</strong></span><span
class="c16"><span class="c5"><br>
</span> <span class="c9"><strong>Intellectual Property Law</strong></span><span
class="c9"><br>
</span> <span class="c4">425 Eagle Rock Avenue, Suite 401</span><span
class="c5"><br>
</span> <span class="c4">Roseland, NJ 07068</span><span
class="c11"><br>
</span> <span class="c12"><strong>direct line</strong></span>
<span class="c6">973.403.9943<br>
</span> <span class="c12"><strong>main</strong></span> <span
class="c6">973.403.9940<br>
</span> <span class="c12"><strong>fax</strong></span><span
class="c12"></span> <span class="c6">973.403.9944</span><span
class="c11"><br>
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class="c6"></span> <span class="c13"><a
class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="mailto:rstraussman@weitzmanip.com"
moz-do-not-send="true">rstraussman@weitzmanip.com</a></span><span
class="c11"><br>
<br>
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href="http://www.weitzmanip.com/"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext" moz-do-not-send="true">http://www.weitzmanip.com</a><br>
</strong></span> <span class="c15"><br>
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<br>
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</blockquote>
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