kapow - 10:05 am on Sep 27, 2010 (gmt 0)

I see reasonable cases on both sites. It seems to me the issue is between real mathematic 'creativity' vs ordinary 'practicality' e.g. If Fred invents an algorithm to say compress video 100 times more than existing systems - thats a very cliever 'created' idea and Fred should be allowed to licence the idea (it might have been his lifes work). While, if George rather logically uses web forms to include a mailing list management tool - thats not 'creativity', thats practical use of functions.
How can the Patent Office distinguish between 'a created idea' that should be patentable and a fairly obvious 'practicality' that should not be patentable?