[OpenISO] Fwd: [Osia-discuss] Even if OOXML becomes an ISO standard, Microsoft wont promise to abide by it.

[Janet Hawtin]

This kind of waste of people's time should probably be criminal
I am hoping that openISO will not process these kinds of problems
because it will be grounded in material which is open and accessible
to improve.
This process is certainly and education in what characteristics make a
standard viable.
Janet

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Con Zymaris <conz at cybersource.com.au>
Date: Sep 19, 2007 6:44 AM

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/mgmt/74C665EDA37CB6F0CC2573560004F188

Hold that thought.

Now consider this, from Brian Jones, a Microsoft manager who has worked
on OOXML for six years. In July, Jones was asked on his blog whether
Microsoft would actually commit to conform to an officially standardised
OOXML. His response:

"It's hard for Microsoft to commit to what comes out of Ecma [the
European standards group that has already ok'd OOXML] in the coming
years, because we don't know what direction they will take the formats.
We'll of course stay active and propose changes based on where we want
to go with Office 14. At the end of the day, though, the other Ecma
members could decide to take the spec in a completely different
direction. ... Since it's not guaranteed, it would be hard for us to
make any sort of official statement."

Now that's cynical. After all this work to make OOXML a formal,
independent standard — a standard created and promoted by Microsoft,
remember — Microsoft won't agree to follow it.

...

What a waste. And what a betrayal of trust. It's unfortunate. Most users
of Microsoft Office don't care about this whole standards brouhaha —
they just use Office because it's Office.

But for organisations that need a well-defined, XML-based format to
manage huge numbers of documents that may be archived for decades, this
is important.

These customers want a standard that Microsoft will promise to use —
even if it's not convenient for the company.

They want a standard that Microsoft won't arbitrarily change in order to
lock them in or block competitors out.

They want a standard that third-party software makers and in-house
programmers can use to build tools for managing documents, searching
contents, extracting data and converting text.

--
___________________________________________________________________________
Con Zymaris <conz at cyber.com.au> Level 4, 10 Queen St, Melbourne, Australia
Cybersource: Australia's Leading Linux and Open Source Solutions Company
Web: http://www.cyber.com.au/  Phone: 03 9621 2377   Fax: 03 9621 2477
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