Microsoft Releases Specs for Binary Formats

skolima writes "In response to requests for even easier access to the Binary Formats, Microsoft has agreed to remove any intermediate steps necessary to get the documentation. They're going to just post it, making it directly available as a download on the Microsoft web site. Microsoft will also make the Binary Formats subject to its Open Specification Promise by February 15, 2008. They're even planning to include an Open Source converter implementation."

Comments

Intermediate steps

[autophile]

I hope these intermediate steps that they're eliminating include packaging the documents in an .exe file, and requiring MS Office to be installed. I'm looking at you, Word format!

--Rob

This is a VERY good thing

[afidel]

Because it ensures that the very real possibility of bitrot for the majority of documents written in the last 15 years is now greatly reduced.

APRIL FOOL!

[MrNemesis]

Wait, what? Brain not comprehending this. Unless TFA is a complete pack of lies, I'm going to have to give tentative applause. Perhaps the only interesting thing I can think of is that "royalty free" != "we won't sue you into oblivion if we think you're trespassing on our patents". Sorry MS, you taught me to be cynical.

OSP: Might ba a trap for GPL license software

[denis-The-menace]

Disclaimer:IANAL
The docs are released under MS' own "Open Specification Promise" *cringes*
http://www.microsoft.com/interop/osp/default.mspx

If you do a search on GPL you get:

Q: Is this Promise consistent with open source licensing, namely the GPL? And can anyone implement the specification(s) without any concerns about Microsoft patents?

A: The Open Specification Promise is a simple and clear way to assure that the broadest audience of developers and customers working with commercial or open source software can implement the covered specification(s). We leave it to those implementing these technologies to understand the legal environments in which they operate. This includes people operating in a GPL environment. Because the General Public License (GPL) is not universally interpreted the same way by everyone, we can't give anyone a legal opinion about how our language relates to the GPL or other OSS licenses, but based on feedback from the open source community we believe that a broad audience of developers can implement the specification(s).

I don't get warm and fuzzy feelings reading this and I think that's the idea...

ODF must be some kind of threat

[Locutus]

or there's no way they'd be doing this. Well, it is Microsoft so there are likely to be some problems. For instance, they could post 10,000 lines of assembly or just plain crappy C code and say, 'there you go, it's open'. Not so bad in itself but not very easy to use none the less.

But what is really probably happening here is that ODF is getting adopted around the world by governments and once you go ODF, it's going to be a tough sell back to the pull-the-rug-out-from-under-your-feet Microsoft way. Anyways, if Microsoft really sees ODF as a credible threat, getting MS Office OXML through ISO is important, very important. But, once they can do that and gain back credibility, there is NOTHING to stop them from releasing software which others are not privy too. ie, change the format and keep everyone else chasing them.

Remember, ISO will not be in control of the changes to the spec, Microsoft will be.

So watch out for this good-guy mask being applied. We've seen nothing to say there isn't anything but the same old Microsoft hiding behind it. And no, I would not accept this as a first step and something to trust. ODF and open access to your own created data is too important to let a simple trick undermine it all. IMO.

LoB

Re:One month to reconfigure firewalls

[WK2]

This isn't the first project that Microsoft has released on Sourceforge. They also released WiX, which is a program to build windows installation executables (similar to Nullsoft's nsis). Sourceforge is available to everybody who wants to publish an open source project, even mega-corps like Microsoft. I wouldn't suggest it any other way.

Re:No, they want to influence the ISO meeting

[Chris Burke]

They must be worried sick about the ISO meeting in February, scheduled for a week after this grand opening. It's make or break time for MS-OOXML.

Meaning there won't be enough time to fully investigate whether these specs are actually useful or just PR BS like every other "Open" thing MS has done. Forgive me for preemptively assuming the latter.

Re:The important stuff

[Locutus]

The new format is one of the MS Office Open XML( MS-OOXML ) formats. And my guess is that this current revelation has been in the plans for some time. After all, patching Microsoft Office and disabling the OPENING of the older file formats is the perfect example of why people need an open file format. People are being shut out from using their older formats. But, out comes Microsoft saying that they'll open up those older formats and release converter code so everyone can convert to MS-OOXML. Yup, sure looks like the has been planned for quite some time.

But then there is probably a document or two inside Microsoft which shows the many paths to limit and/or destroy ODF support and to gain back any lost market due to MS-OOXML spec acceptance. For over 20 years Microsofts business model has been to beat the competition by attacking their revenue stream(s) by leveraging the 100's of millions of systems sold annually with pre-loaded Windows. Seldom has it ever used superior product attributes to win the market. I see no reason to think some switch has magically been thrown and now Microsoft wants to compete for customers in an open and level playing field. I don't think they would even know how to do this because without a complete management replacement, it's in their blood to go after the business and not the customers. Destroy the business and the customers will go to the shinny light that is Microsoft. IMO.

Regarding those new formats, there is a nice 6,000 page document that tells you how simple the new formats are so it should be very easy to implement an application which can read and display everything the spec covers. Why would you ever need code from Microsoft to help you access files based on that spec? If they can do it, anybody can. FYI, so far, there is one vendor who has applications with high levels of support of the spec and that is Microsoft.

Just look at how many apps now have a high level of support for the ODF spec:
http://opendocumentfellowship.com/applications

LoB

Re:This has to be good. Right ?

[Locutus]

"This has to be good. Right ?
How will this work with specifications that say "render text like Word 98?" Will Microsoft now document how Word 98 renders ?"

I'm sure there'll be some nice documents to tell you exactly how each of these statements work. You know, things like:
1)open file
2)scan for 0x06660666
3)take the next 128 bytes and pass them to winRulesAll(*DWORD) in /windows/system/explorer.dll
4)take the resulting array of 8bit vectors and sequentially call winConvertToBlob[0-255](LoByte(DWORD)) in /windows/system/kernel.dll
5)concatenate the results from those calls and send to sysDecryptWord95Text(URL,*DWORD) in mplayer.dll with URL=http://microsoft.com/secretdoor.asp
6)replace those 128 bytes with the results from the call or, if failed, render text like Word 95.

Easy as pie.

LoB

Re:I CALL FUCKING BULLSHIT!!

[ozmanjusri]

The underdogs always cry foul and always want someone, some government agency, some legal entity, to come to their aid and "level the playing field". Hogwash I say.

It's not Microsoft's competitors who want open document formats.

It's their customers.

Microsoft is bitterly fighting the entire world's demands to adopt formats that will allow businesses, governments and private individuals choice in their software. Customers want to be able to choose lower priced tools or tools which are more focused on their specific needs, not just one bulky, expensive, rarely updated suite.

Microsoft is fighting to keep them locked in to high prices and minimal improvement.