Open Office XML wins some, loses some

Now this is getting to be a real battle.

Over the past few days, Microsoft has had a few wins in the drive to gaining ISO certification for the OOXML standard, known as Ecma-376.

It so happens that despite the whining of some US-based IBM mouthpieces trying to Astroturf the voting, saner heads prevailed, and proceeded to conditionally vote yes on approving OOXML, as revealed by the INCITS Executive Board on August 24.

If you remember, just days earlier, August 21, IIRC, the Deutsche Institut für Normung (DIN), announced that it would support OOXML as voted on by the DIN technical committee, known as NIA 34 – announcement in German here, English translation here.

When the Brazilian standards authority voted against OOXML, I didn’t hear of any Microsoft employee or OOXML backer such as myself freakin’ out, as can be seen by ODF fanboi. In fact this very site linked to the gleeful blog of YAIBME who was on the technical panel in Brazil raving about the decision there.

Annoying, his blog post was; but I was nevertheless optimistic.

While funny in a sort of a cruel way, I couldn’t help but snicker (OK, I almost split my somewhat considerable sides with laughter) at a poor twit of an IBM functionary who attended the voting at the Swedish standards institute(SIS), and, in his hilarious words, saw a lot of newcomers there, joining up specifically to vote for Microsoft.
According to this dolt, only Google, among the new companies/members of the SIS had a stake in the process.
He then goes on to mention that most of the new companies were Microsoft Gold & Certified partners!
Yet this person could not put together that they did have a stake in the process!
This poor sap became so overcome at the positive voting for Microsoft and OOXML that he nearly gave up the ghost, and had to vacate the voting area for his own health.
Dude, it is only a job! Step back from the edge and take a deep breath!

So much gobbledygook was made about the fact that the specifications were 6,000 pages.

So?

If the necessary amount of detail was not included, those same yum-yums would whine about insufficient data. However, to put it in perspective, major ODF format stakeholder and current high-technology flower-power child Sun Microsystems, submitted over 8,000 pages to the Ecma for Java – the software, not the stock symbol. That’s true, 8,000! Then it has the (unmitigated) gall to attempt to paint a not-so-similar blackboard white, complaining about 6,000 pages!

Now the cognoscenti feel they have something to say about Microsoft.

People, please! OK?

Microsoft suffered, IMO, a devastating loss in the US vs. Microsoft because it did not know how the game was played. It tried to compete on the facts of its case against a politically astute group of competitively clueless opponents who found solace in the arms of a technologically illiterate Penfield Jackson. Also did not help that Billy G. was the richest man on Terra, with his fortune approaching $100 billion USD back then.

Now that Microsoft is availing itself of all the tools allowed, competitors cry foul.

If you cannot take the heat, boys, vamoose!

The travails of the ODF faction and the certainty of eventual ISO approval for OOXML exposes the open source movement as wanting standards only if it is their own.

What an arrogant position!

It begs the following questions:

What is ODF-faction scared about?
Can the ODF format stand on its own?
Why do ODF backers see it as a one-horse standard?
Shouldn’t open source fight for open standards?
Can we all just get along?

It is definitely pleasing that the former head of the Ecma, Jan Van Beld, predicts eventual certification of OOXML, noting that dueling formats is not new.

For all the nonsense happening, I have no choice, but to boldly announce,

J’accuse ODF!

You and your backers created this mess.

Believe me, this ODF thing is just a little more than a flash in the pan, a temporary success. As borne out by the correction in Massachusetts, blogged about here .

In fact, it is like one of those failed jihadists: even if you strap the ODF format with high-yield thermonuclear devices, like a failed martyr, it wouldn’t blow up; i.e., become the format of choice for relevant documents!

Believe that!

Does anyone, any sapient example of the dominant biped species on this planet, outside the open source extremists, believe that Microsoft is going to chuck all their investment in Microsoft Office, just because some tossers at some particular wonky standards bodies think it (OOXML) is not a standard?

Anyone, anyone, Bueller?

Related Posts