[pandler]

I'm not 100% sure what you are confused about, but let me take a stab at it. Prior disclosure is public disclosure of the invention prior to the patent application. The one year rule states that once you publicly disclose an invention, you have one year from that date to file a patent application. Otherwise, your invention is considered public domain and cannot be patented. Does that clarify?

The problem I think you are referring to is that researchers run the risk of shooting themselves in the foot by prematurely presenting their findings unless they file an application in the process. Doing so would ruin their chances of being granted a patent.

[seldo]

I understand how prior disclosure works, my confusion is that nothing like that seems to have happened here. The patent was invalidated on the basis of documentation of a different piece of software with the same features released 5 years prior (albeit by the same company).

However, having read the ruling, I see it explicitly cites the prior-disclosure rule. So the bad patent system has invalidated a bad patent, but in a bad way.