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India Votes Against OOXML
harsha_c sends in a local Indian perspective on the vote against Microsoft's OOXML ahead of the March 29 deadline. Of 19 companies participating, only 5 voted in favor of OOXML. "It was the ultimate battle for control over global IT standard for documents — between Microsoft-promoted OOXML and Sun and IBM-backed Open Document Format. It was played out between Indian IT giants, namely Infosys, Wipro, TCS supported by Nasscom on one side and the global IT biggies like IBM, Sun Microsystems, Red Hat backed by te IITs, IIMs and IISc on the other, on their respective positions on Microsoft's OOXML standard. Microsoft understandably expressed its disspointment. 'While we are disappointed with the decision of the BIS committee, we are encouraged by the support from NASSCOM.'
While voting for OOXML does not automatically make one dishonest, I think it is fair to say that voting against is a sign of honesty.
A few donations, free lunches and trips to exotic places will likely convince decision makers otherwise. You know it's true. That's just the way things work for now.
While Mr Gates may be starting to feel that he's loosing it,this really means good news for India. In a country where more than 70% of the people use pirated software,ignorant of any software licenses. As an Indian,i've seen that when people buy a computer,they just pay for the hardware. It probably is too obvious for them that software (pirated windows) should come free with it! Here only Open Source can ensure that people get it right. Rejecting OOXML is of course a big step for starters. ODF FTW :)
It's a bite that MS can always come late to the table with something broken and then get equal billing in the press. MOOX came as an attempt to compete with ODF, after some 600 companies reviewed ODF as an open standard. How is it then, that no matter how positive the articles is to open standards, the situation always gets spun as MS vs MS competitors? Really, how else can it be? One the one side you have the cult of MS. On the other side, all the major companies, governments and universities, except for the cult of MS. So by definition these are going to be 'MS competitors'. How about some reality injections here.
While I'm as much opposed as you are to "approval as an ISO/iEC standard" of the mess which OOXML currently is, to my knowledge the above criticism is not valid anymore. What specifically is in your opinion "not properly documented"?
Modding something down as "flamebait" when all it is doing is politely pointing out where others are incorrect is simply wrong. Somebody had done that twice just today. I don't have the power to stop you, dear moderator, but you are making yourself look ignorant.
But that doesn't change the fact that many of the people who are arguing against OOXML do so with invalid arguments. Here is an example right from this current discussion. Note that I got modded "Troll" for challenging that claim while the invalid example got modded "insightful".
Annoyed to find anything I've written marked as Troll. Grrr.
I call bullshit on the parent that suggests that Noooxml is a virus page. That should never have been modded up: it's an attempt to stop people finding out about what has been happening, and I'm prepared to waste karma pointing that out.
Evidence against noooxml:
Some random person says that it's a virus but doesn't provide any proof.
Evidence for nooxml being valid:
- It's linked from the front page of Groklaw - www.grokla.net. Currently item 2 in the right hand column. "Belgium also stuffed with Microsoft business partners?"
- It's linked to from Bob Sutors blog 6 times. Bob is IBM VP for Open Source and Standards, and isn't positive about OOXML.
- It's been supported by the FFII and the Shuttleworth foundation (i.e. Mr Ubuntu) amongst others.
- It has a proper contacts page and gives telephone numbers.
"NoOOXML.org was started by Benjamin Henrion in January 2007 to campaign against Microsoft's push for ISO standardization of their captive document formats. This campaign was part of a global project by the FFII's open standards workgroup that reached standards campaigners in over eighty countries. We thank all those who signed the petition. We gratefully acknowledge the contributions of many, many people including the FFII open standards workgroup, which has worked on the issue of open document formats for many years, coordinators in many countries who helped communicate the issue to national boards and local standards experts, and standards groups and activists globally, who helped build NoOOXML.org into a global success. We thanks those who helped us eat and pay the rent while we did this campaign. NoOOXML.org was mainly funded by ESOMA, with support from the FFII, Shuttleworth Foundation, the Open Society Institute, OpenForum Europe, FTISA, and iMatix Corporation. We thank Microsoft too, who gave us such amusement with their capers that we were obliged to give them the FFII Kayak Award. But open standards are serious business, and the NoOOXML.org campaign has proven that the Community takes this business very seriously.
* Benjamin Henrion +32-484-566109 (French/English)
* Andre Rebentisch +49 4421 301122 (German)
* Pieter Hintjens +32 475 235 984 (English/Dutch/French)
* Alberto Barrionuevo (Spanish)"
Now, moderators, do you seriously think that it's a virus page, and that this is a troll? Or do you think that the parent one-liner without any proof is crap? Mod the original link up. Mod the troll who is trying to stop people finding out about the behaviour of Microsoft down. And mod my original up.