So why is Novell still supporting it?

As response in Canada shows, nobody wants OOXML. So far, there have been over 130 comments, which were posted by people who understand and care about this matter. These are very consistent. People reject OOXML because it encourages lockin and it is not truly open. People in Canada prefer OpenDocument Format.

Having included some videos where Bob Sutor illustrates and demostrates the OOXML paradox, it might be worth pointing out the latest.

Take a look at this photo from an OOXML workshop. (Read the blog entry too.) [Photo of a pile of 6,000+ A4 sheets]

I don't know what your job is, but imagine your boss came to you and said "read this, fully understand it, implement it perfectly, and make sure that it fully interoperates with the software being produced by anyone else doing the same." Translate this statement to your own job and stare again at that photo. What do you conclude?

• You'll have lifetime employment trying to implement the spec.
• Your boss comes from another wacko parallel universe.
• This is a joke if not a travesty.
• Your job evaluation will not be very good next year.
• There is no way you can fully do the job without reimplementing significant portions of Microsoft's product portfolio and therefore you will run into intellectual property problems. (Don’t think that's a problem?)
• Microsoft is trying to change the rules on what is a standard and who can implement it.

Can Novell go where no man has gone before (and never will)? It is likely to be a case of posturing, which makes Microsoft satisfied.