The first patent should expire soon as their software Labview was launched 1986. It contains some essential items. I collected papers on this topic recently. In Labview user creates the circuit editor and the control panel. Both existed alone earlier. Labview includes special GUI elements in the circuit (see Reaktor, for example). I'm in belief that this connection can be done slightly differently without violating the patent. When Csound type software was first written? 1960? 70? There are other Labview patents. One patent patents what I have invented prior them. I remember posting it to a mailing list, but have not yet found it. I have not read the patent but my idea was that when the module is a subgraph, a click on the module opens up a graph editor; and when the module is a script, a click on the module opens up a text editor. Obvious? Juhana -- http://music.columbia.edu/mailman/listinfo/linux-graphics-dev for developers of open source graphics software