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Microsoft Open Document Standard Not So Open
avik42 wrote to mention an EWeek article discussing Microsoft's attempts at an Open Document Standard. From the article: "According to a Microsoft representative, 'The covenant language is what was referred to as the updated license for the Open XML formats that will be submitted to ECMA International for the standardization process.' The only difference between Microsoft's November 2003 open and royalty-free license for the Office 2003 Reference Schemas and today's Office 2003 license, according to the company, is that 'Microsoft is offering a covenant not to sue for the Office 2003 Reference Schemas.'" We reported on this initiative when it was first announced.
Water is wet, and the sky is blue.
From an AC developer in a linked article in TFA: "In English, that means if an open-source group agreed to use the license (never gonna happen) and built an application with it, they can NOT provide the source code for it with the license. If you write code with a license, you can NOT share that code with me unless I go get a license, too. Pretty much against everything open source is about," the developer said.
MS: The ceiling is blue.
Me: Obviously, it is not. It is chartreuse. You said you'd make it blue, but it is still chartreuse. Maybe a slightly different shade of chartreuse, but chartreuse.
MS: No, it's blue. It says it right here in our marketing materials. That color you see is now called blue.
Me: Screw this, I'm going outside, where the sky is really blue, and everyone calls it blue. Whatever you're selling isn't the same as what you're calling it.
"Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
this and this.
Hope those help.
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Covenant language?
So that's what the religious war was about in Halo! The Aliens using OpenOffice against the heretic humans using Microsoft Office. Or possibly the other way around.
I always wondered why both sides hated each other so much.
Time to call in the Arbiter!
In the Middle Ages: "DUNK the WITCH!" If she floats, she IS a witch and we BURN HER! If she sinks and drowns, then she is not a witch, and we bury her in the full embrace of Church. As one can see, Microsoft draws on fairly well established and traditional legal presidents.
- Minutus cantorum, minutus balorum, minutus carborata descendum pantorum.
After all, the MS Office XML format is so hideous that I doubt any programmer would want to modify an application that dares touch the thing!
:)
Thank you, Microsoft!
Lie to me, force me to write hot checks, but please, please Microsoft, respect me in the morning...
I lost my sig...
People believed they were the good guys. What a relief that BMP is open, with it we can avoid all the legal issues with GIF.
[sig]
Cross Bill's heart and hope to die, stick a needle in Balmer's eye, promise they won't sue. It must be true, Redmond's lawyers say so! (Anyone else flashing back to Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown by any chance?) Too bad Johnny Cochran kicked the bucket, we might need to employ the "Liar, liar, pants on fire defense" if this goes bad!
What would Richard Feynman do, if he were here right now? He'd do some math and he'd follow through!
In a stunning turn of events, Massachusetts state secretary of administration and finance Thomas Trimarco has revealed that Microsoft's recent efforts to make Office XML a ratified ECMA standard may indeed make the format acceptable to the government.
Science fiction superstar William Shatner quickly responded to the news...
You can hold down the "B" button for continuous firing.
No, but rm will.
Footnotes longer than the article aren't that unusual in legal writing. Well, I suppose that does prove your point though. . .
An example of new Microsoft Office XML file is provided below. It takes more disk space which is why Bill Gates believes XML is bad and proprietary formats are good:
... and so on until...
<!-- Start of foo.doc -->
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="0"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="0"/>
<bit value="0"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="0"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<bit value="1"/>
<!-- End of foo.doc -->