The proposed European software patent legislation could have some pretty serious effects, not least on the ability of smaller players to compete with software giants like Microsoft. Today three European open source luminaries – Linus Torvalds, Michael Widenius and Rasmus Lerdorf – lent their support to the anti-patents campaign. Let’s hope this helps, and that this short-sighted and foolish legislation is kept out of our legal system. (Via Simon Willison.)