Even after Section 101 gets fixed, we will still be wanting a way to better understand the difference between unpatentable printed matter such as a novel and a patentable computer program consisting of machine readable code. In my mind, the difference comes down to the essential purpose and value of the former being dependent on variable abstract notions forming in the human mind and essentially only existing in the human imagination, whereas the later’s utility is not in any way dependent on such notions, but rather its 100% predictable and assured activation of an electronic circuit to perform an electronic operation.
