Oh sorry, I was under the impression that you had at least a basic knowledge about software and software development.

I now see that that's not the case.

Open source is an area where software patents don't generally protect the product, and yet it's the most innovative space out there. And in cases where patents are brought in (see the rust trademark incident) they are rejected by the community. And yet open source is still around, and powering most of the internet and present in most devices.

If what you said about patents were the case, that would not be so.