If Microsoft gets this OOXML format "approved", it will be by irregularities in the voting, it seems. Here's more on what happened in Germany and a report on what is being called a scandal in Norway. And another odd process in Croatia.
If you can read German, here's the story on what happened there. For those who can't, when they went to vote, they were not allowed to vote disapprove, so the choice was to approve or to abstain. It was a tie, 6:6, which means no consensus. So under the rules I've read, that would have meant that they should send a vote of Abstain.
But surprise, surprise!! A solution helpful to Microsoft: the representative from DIN decided to cast a vote, which isn't the process. DIN isn't supposed to vote, because it's supposed to advise. But this, they rationalized, was a vote not about whether to accept OOXML on the basis of *technical* issues, but whether to accept the approval suggestion of the technical committee. So DIN voted to accept DIN's suggestion. Hence Germany ends up in the Approve column. I know. No doubt there will be objections filed.
Norway's at least as bad. Here's an article from Norway, and the translation of the title of the article is, "Scandal in Standards Norway. I didn't write that headline. They did. And here's why. The article says there should be an investigation of the irregularities there, because while there were only two votes to approve, from Microsoft and a business partner, Statoilhydro, and all the others voted no, 21 votes, they approved anyway. Here's how they shuffled the deck in Norway. So they put everyone out of the room, and Standards Norway, three people were left in the room, and they usurped the decision and made it their business to decide to approve anyway.
Unbelievable. If it was happening in only one country, you might think it was local difficulties. But when it happens in place after place, one can only conclude that Microsoft, although outnumbered in a fair vote, has sufficient clout behind the scenes to shove this format into the world's mouth and hold its mouth closed by force until the world is compelled to swallow. Remember that Microsoft memo that surfaced in the Comes v. Microsoft litigation? The one about how to stack a panel discussion at conferences so it would be favorable to Microsoft? The key was to get to be the moderator.
One thing is certain. Unless ISO steps up and fixes this mess, it will lose the world's respect, and rightly so. Either the rules mean something, or they don't, but if they don't standards don't mean anything either.
Comments
LinuxIsFun
2008-03-30 06:11:14
There is nothing called Interoperability in Microsoft world.
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 06:14:34
SubSonica
2008-03-30 09:59:53
OOXML Vote: Irregularities in Germany & Croatia and a Call for an Investigation of Norway Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, March 29 2008 @ 03:08 PM EDT They don't need it to. If they get their standard, and then the EU courts bash
them down two years later, they don't care. They'll pay a $100 million fine and go on their merry way, because they'll have:
1) Secured Office's monopoly for another 5 years at least. 2) Have destroyed the ISO's credibility and the credibility of standards processes everywhere.
(1) is the obvious money-maker for them: A continuation of the Office monopoly means that they can spend several years trying to innovate while OpenOffice and the rest spend their time trying to get decent OOXML compatibility (which is essentially a lost cause). A few years from now, when OpenOffice has that compatibility (to some degree), Office14 or 15 will be out.
(2) is also a major coup for them. If people stop trusting standards bodies, then Microsoft wins. Standards break lock-ins, so Microsoft would love to damage ISO's credibility. Doing so also hurts W3C and other standards groups by association.
However, if Microsoft loses and this goes to the normal track, they'll be in trouble, because they'll have won a lot of ill will, and this'll be moving along
that track when the EU catches up with them.
LinuxIsFun
2008-03-30 11:26:56
All their search algorithms are closed and patented.
But they are much better than Microsoft. They don't go about damaging the eco-system like microsoft. Atleast they follow and add to the standards in a better and a responsible way.
Microsoft wont last too long. They are just a bully.
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 11:32:24
It's a very pessimistic view. Microsoft won't last that long as a dominant company.
Victor Soliz
2008-03-30 11:50:55
Although Norway is the worst case, I can't think of a single of the P members that changed their decision to YES to have actually based it on, at the very least, a decent vote. Money can definitely buy you international standards, I am now unable to even think of something money can't buy...
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 12:14:45
- Life - Peaceful sleep - Happiness
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 14:53:30
The important news and the good news is that we were able not only to see but also to show just how corrupt this whole process has been. While Murdoch's Cathedral is unlikely to publish anything about the abuses, it's not the general public that matters as much as the CIOs, many of whom have become familiar with this debacle and some of whom have sworn to no longer deal with Microsoft. Keep on bringing out truth and trust the regulators who will do their thing. It's their job. There's no room for bitterness if it only becomes a distraction and an emotional provocation.
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 15:35:20
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 15:38:00
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 17:41:01
Victor Soliz
2008-03-30 16:24:04
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 16:30:54
Brilliant, if true (and if it materialises).
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 16:38:16
That is soon ending with Mac OS and Linux.
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 16:39:24
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 16:40:44
"I am convinced we have to use Windows – this is the one thing they don’t have. We have to be competitive with features, but we need something more — Windows integration."
--Jim Allchin, Microsoft
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 16:42:17
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 16:46:12
Remove windows and their entire house of cards falls apart.
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 17:36:24
People running the FSF will be bought and broken by M$. Its only because of RMS the FSF is working. Without him its hard to see where FSF will go...
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 16:48:49
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 17:06:58
I suppose it all starts with Windows and then goes upwards..Windows is the base of all. The core is windows. Bottom to top integration...
Major monopolies are the ones who own the entire chain...its very hard to compete with them. The ones who are at the bottom of this process...are the real rulers. Think about it...they control everything that builds upon them.
Intel -> hardware. They own the entire consumer CPU business or most of it.
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 17:22:02
Windows 7 or whatever that comes out after some 5 years is going to suck even more...
Apple is going to have 50% desktop market share.
Linux is going to have 30% in desktop and will own most of the server with BSD variants and more than 50% of mobile.
Windows will be like 20% and going downhill.
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 17:26:28
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 17:30:08
It already looks very grim and I will gladly write a post about this, along with compelling proof if you wish.
The tipping point is Microsoft's financial problems, but it's hard to predict where it goes from there. Politics (and by their very nature -- corruption) will play a role also. I think that sites like Groklaw and ever-growing bodies like the FSF will play an increasing role in this.
CoolGuy
2008-03-30 17:51:41
See the ISO. Although there are lot of credible people in the ISO they couldn't do a thing and just kept watching how ISO was mauled by Microsoft right in front of their eyes.
See how its happening in Gnome also. And how frustrated we are that we cant do a thing about it...same things are going to happen at FSF I guess...
Check Matt. No one could stop him from inviting M$ to the the OSBC.
Place a few wrong people in the board and then they take the entire thing down along with them.
Roy Schestowitz
2008-03-30 17:58:43
It's hard to watch in which direction staff is moving and who is having lunch with whom.
Victor Soliz
2008-03-30 23:18:37
The FSF is the FSF I doubt they would sell out. As a matter of fact OSI didn't either, sure they approved MS' lame licenses but that comes from MS yet again gaming the system, the OSI was unable to give a good reason not to approve the lame licenses, and this is mostly a problem the "open source" definition got from the start, rather than OSI deciding to sell out.
At least we later heard from OSI about how MS' open source and protection is bollocks and their public statement against OOXML.
- MS can buy a lot of people, but think to yourself, has the MS opposition been reduced? Ever since the Novell deal I am noticing that there's more and more opposition, and for every person MS buys there enter two guys who wouldn't let MS come out. It is amazing how we currently are full of information about how MS got its votes that it is impossible for MS to escape a negative opinion, just take a look at their brand perception.