10.02.09

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Microsoft Fights Back as More Nations Adopt ODF

Posted in Africa, Apple, Free/Libre Software, GNU/Linux, Microsoft, Open XML, OpenDocument, Standard at 6:24 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Summary: Another migration to Free software and ODF in Denmark; ways in which Microsoft currently responds to the “ODF threat”

NOT only the third world is embracing ODF, thanks in part to a recent initiative from Canonical and IBM^*. Highly developed nations too have decided that ODF is the better route, debunking myths of “poor man’s standards”.

As a spurious reminder, Microsoft is no friend of ODF [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7], which it fought like fire. ODF is currently gaining ground in Denmark, despite the many offences of Microsoft over there. For details, see:

According to this latest report from the Observatory, another migration to ODF in Denmark is now being implicitly confirmed.

The administration of the Danish municipality of Lyngby-Taarbæk is installing OpenOffice on some 1700 school desktop PCs, the administration announced yesterday.

There is other good news about OpenOffice.org, including an approaching conference. Rob Weir writes: “OpenOffice.org 2009 Conference draft programme posted. Best ODF track ever.”

This ought to be enough to make the Danish Microsoft ecosystem at least a little nervous. When one place sets an example for others to follow, then it becomes akin to Kissinger mercilessly chasing the “Red Threat”. Microsoft McCarthyism, anyone?

Microsoft’s bestest [sic] friend in Denmark still heckles ODF all the time, as he has done for years while pretending to have genuine interest. “I’ve been fixing various bugs for koffice2.1 that should make ODF interop much better,” writes Thomas Zander from Nokia. “Hope you can test that version,” he tells the Microsoft provocateur.

“I think I see informal signs of migration of XML folk from working on OOXML to contributing to ODF, wondering if stats over time document it”
–John CodyMicrosoft Denmark would love more control of ODF too [1, 2, 3]. If enough people forget the many scandals, Microsoft’s minions will manage to get nearer and they might as well get their way. For the time being, things appear to be safe enough. “Despite to soaring rhetoric from Redmond OOXML meetings are just Microsoft,” remarks Scientes. “ODF has a broad coalition,” he adds while citing Rob Weir’s latest report.

Mary McRae, the Director of Technical Committee Administration for OASIS (this includes ODF), agrees with Weir and John Cody, who seems to be in a position to influence New York’s policy on ODF, currently writes: “I think I see informal signs of migration of XML folk from working on OOXML to contributing to ODF, wondering if stats over time document it”

Apple is still a bit of a lost cause and one person is “Wondering if/when Apple will get round to adding ODF support to iWork, specifically ODP import/export to Keynote?”

Over at Wikipedia, Microsoft’s hAl adds lengthy OOXML promotion to the article on ODF (OpenDocument). They just can’t help it, can they? It’s their nature. █
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^* They bring ODF along with GNU/Linux, so these two are not entirely mutually exclusive.

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