Bonum Certa Men Certa

British Library Versus Preservation, Pro Vendor Lock-in (Microsoft OOXML)

ooxml_demo_4.jpg



We must assume, naturally, that readers have not yet come across previous coverages of the appalling situation at the British Library. Here are some posts of interest, which put things in context and perspective, as well provide some background:



Digital curation is one of the most important aspects of preservation of national assets and reduction/prevention of digital rot (or "information decay", which Vint Cerf recently warned about). You can find a long videotaped lecture about the subject right here. For a live demonstration that is backed by news, consider the first part of this recent post. Add to this the following new article that bears the headline "Boyer: Records useless without access." To quote the concluding portion:

We've already seen examples of electronic records essentially being useless to the average resident because they do not have some piece of specialized software the state used to create them. That's a situation that needs to be fixed.

The report is lengthy, and some sections are too technical for most people (including me) to understand, but the underlying conclusion is that the Legislature needs to pass legislation that ensures openness. To do that, the study recommends lawmakers establish a state electronic records committee that will constantly evaluate, develop and implement policy.


ISO in moneyIn light of all this, consider again what the British Library foolishly does at the moment. Not only has it put its weight behind the colossal scandal commonly referred to as "OOXML". It is prepared to give Microsoft control over everybody's invaluable assets, never mind the company's status as a "multiple-times convicted monopolist", betrayer of partners (in this case the British Library is at risk), not to mention its not-so-certain future (no company lasts forever, not even with bankruptcy protection).

Here again is a classic from <NO> OOXML where you can see Microsoft lobbyist Jan van den Beld [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7] shaking hands with Microsoft's Jean Paoli. In the background you find Adam Farquhar [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8], whose history with Microsoft could make one cringe (see more in the references at the top).

This is an image from the good old days. Microsoft's Jean Paoli hands over the OOXML specification to Jan van den Beld, the general secretary of ECMA. And you find Adam Farquhar from the British Library, the bearded person on the right. The British Library was instrumental to legitimizing the whole ECMA and ISO OOXML standardisation process as an 'independent' participant in the committee work. ECMA did a brilliant job to mature the specification text to get it ISO fast-tracked. Or as the ISO BRM convenor and recent consultant for the British Library Alex Brown reflects:

Ecma made the road very rocky though, by initially producing a text that was so lousy with faults.



At the end of the day you have a company that wants your data and wants you dependent on its existence and survival. It uses the government to establish this lock-in without giving you, the taxpayer, an opportunity to say no. That's partly why Microsoft is said to have entered the medical areas where Microsoft's endurance can become a matter of people's lives.

The short article above proceeds to discussing the fact that Microsoft tossed out its book-scanning project. That happened just a few days ago. Microsoft cited "poor demand" as the reason for discontinuation. In other words, preserving and enabling access to books was never Microsoft's motive. If there's no money in it, Microsoft is disinterested. Let the scanning partners be ditched and hopefully find some new direction. Good luck to the British Library, too.

Would you trust Microsoft with your medical data? Would you trust your national library putting its assets in Microsoft's hands, thanks to the advice of a paid Microsoft lobbyist (Mr. "you are well paid, shut up")? Bear in mind that the United States Library of Congress too has sold out to Microsoft. This happened quite recently (previously alluded to in [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]), possibly in an even worse way.

OOXML: the biggest scam Microsoft was able to afford. And it's only part of a larger proprietary stack.

The Nightmare

Recent Techrights' Posts

Comparing U.E.F.I. to B.I.O.S. (Bloat and Insecurity to K.I.S.S.)
By Sami Tikkanen
New 'Slides' From Stallman Support (stallmansupport.org) Site
"In celebration of RMS's birthday, we've been playing a bit. We extracted some quotes from the various articles, comments, letters, writings, etc. and put them in the form of a slideshow in the home page."
Thailand: GNU/Linux Up to 6% of Desktops/Laptops, According to statCounter
Desktop Operating System Market Share Thailand
António Campinos is Still 'The Fucking President' (in His Own Words) After a Fake 'Election' in 2022 (He Bribed All the Voters to Keep His Seat)
António Campinos and the Administrative Council, whose delegates he clearly bribed with EPO budget in exchange for votes
Adrian von Bidder, homeworking & Debian unexplained deaths
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Sainsbury’s Epic Downtime Seems to be Microsoft's Fault and Might Even Constitute a Data Breach (Legal Liability)
one of Britain's largest groceries (and beyond) chains
 
People Don't Just Kill Themselves (Same for Other Animals)
And recent reports about Boeing whistleblower John Barnett
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, March 18, 2024
IRC logs for Monday, March 18, 2024
Suicide Cluster Cover-up tactics & Debian exposed
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Gemini Links 19/03/2024: A Society That Lost Focus and Abandoning Social Control Media
Links for the day
Matthias Kirschner, FSFE: Plagiarism & Child labour in YH4F
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Linux Foundation Boasting About Being Connected to Bill Gates
Examples of boasting about the association
Alexandre Oliva's Article on Monstering Cults
"I'm told an earlier draft version of this post got published elsewhere. Please consider this IMHO improved version instead."
[Meme] 'Russian' Elections in Munich (Bavaria, Germany)
fake elections
Sainsbury's to Techrights: Yes, Our Web Site Broke Down, But We Cannot Say Which Part or Why
Windows TCO?
Plagiarism: Axel Beckert (ETH Zurich) & Debian Developer list hacking
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 18/03/2024: Putin Cements Power
Links for the day
Flashback 2003: Debian has always had a toxic culture
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
[Meme] You Know You're Winning the Argument When...
EPO management starts cursing at everybody (which is what's happening)
Catspaw With Attitude
The posts "they" complain about merely point out the facts about this harassment and doxing
'Clown Computing' Businesses Are Waning and the Same Will Happen to 'G.A.I.' Businesses (the 'Hey Hi' Fame)
decrease in "HEY HI" (AI) hype
Free Software Needs Watchdogs, Too
Gentle lapdogs prevent self-regulation and transparency
Matthias Kirschner, FSFE analogous to identity fraud
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Gemini Links 18/03/2024: LLM Inference and Can We Survive Technology?
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, March 17, 2024
IRC logs for Sunday, March 17, 2024
Links 17/03/2024: Microsoft Windows Shoves Ads Into Third-Party Software, More Countries Explore TikTok Ban
Links for the day
Molly Russell suicide & Debian Frans Pop, Lucy Wayland, social media deaths
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Our Plans for Spring
Later this year we turn 18 and a few months from now our IRC community turns 16
Open Invention Network (OIN) Fails to Explain If Linux is Safe From Microsoft's Software Patent Royalties (Charges)
Keith Bergelt has not replied to queries on this very important matter
RedHat.com, Brought to You by Microsoft Staff
This is totally normal, right?
USPTO Corruption: People Who Don't Use Microsoft Will Be Penalised ~$400 for Each Patent Filing
Not joking!
The Hobbyists of Mozilla, Where the CEO is a Bigger Liability Than All Liabilities Combined
the hobbyist in chief earns much more than colleagues, to say the least; the number quadrupled in a matter of years
Jim Zemlin Says Linux Foundation Should Combat Fraud Together With the Gates Foundation. Maybe They Should Start With Jim's Wife.
There's a class action lawsuit for securities fraud
Not About Linux at All!
nobody bothers with the site anymore; it's marketing, and now even Linux
Links 17/03/2024: Abuses Against Human Rights, Tesla Settlement (and Crash)
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, March 16, 2024
IRC logs for Saturday, March 16, 2024
Under Taliban, GNU/Linux Share Nearly Doubled in Afghanistan, Windows Sank From About 90% to 68.5%
Suffice to say, we're not meaning to imply Taliban is "good"
Debian aggression: woman asked about her profession
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Gemini Links 17/03/2024: Winter Can't Hurt Us Anymore and Playstation Plus
Links for the day