I studied physics for a couple years before switching my major.  Magnetism is NOT energy.  However, difference in magnetism (north and south poles changing current directions)can become electric energy.  Its the whole basis for Alternating Current.  The problem, is that you need initial kinetic energy to convert into that electric energy, some of which will be lost to heat from friction, and you will always lose something and end with less than 100% efficiency.

So how could you conceive of an idea to produce "excess" energy?  I suppose there could be a way to create a perpetual motion device using continual repulsion of like ended magnets in a cylinder, but it would have to have some kind of initial starter from outside kinetic energy.  Once started, it would feed off of its own kinetic energy by continually being repulsed.  From that point, the kinetic energy of the rotating magnet would be transfered into electric energy, eventually creating some form of electric out put, as the magnet no longer requires outside help to continue its kinetic motion.  Keep in mind it would create energy per se, it would just keep converting the kinetic energy of the rotating magnet into electric energy as long as the magnet ends kept alternating at the appropriate time.  If you could contain that in a system, you would have your perpetual motion device.

That last part is theoretical at best, but it COULD be used as a base model to create such a device.  You would need large magnets, solenoids, and it would have to be perfectly machined to keep the magnets at the right distance from eachother to keep an "even spin" so to speak.

So, do I believe that a perpetual motion machine actually exists?  I am forever an optimist, and won't say it couldn't happen, but I don't think there is any evidence yet to support that it does currently exist.  There are likely explanations and ideas that I'm overlooking or just aren't aware of that would keep this from working properly, and two years of study on my part isn't really enough to say I'm a master of the subject by any standards.

The First Two Laws of Thermodynamics (aka energy flow) of Isaac Newton, condensed into an easy-to-read-and-understand format.

1)  You can only get out as much energy as you put into a system.

2)  You can't get that much.

There is NO free energy, there CANNOT be free energy, even if smallbiz.info says so.

Hi, Sir Isaac Newton here. I'm dead, but I published a lot of papers and science and stuff a long time ago. I wouldn't expect you to have read EVERYTHING I wrote (it could get pretty heavy), but  I did lay out a foundation of basic principles that allow people to approach things like "perpetual motion machines" with a set of fundamental understandings to help those people tune their Bullshit-o-Meters.

Now, once you're done raping my corpse and I've stopped spinning in my grave like a jet engine, I recommend you go out and actually take a physics class if you believe this obvious horseshit. Or just read this for a good introduction: http://www.lhup.edu/~DSIMANEK/museum/phys101.htm. Is that too "technical" for you? Do you feel that "the man" makes physics difficult just so that "the people" have a hard time understanding it so "the man" can "keep us down"? Then read this http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/21/magniwork_perpetual_motion_scam/.

Sir Isaac Newton here, signing off and reminding all you out there to use your fucking brains.