Bonum Certa Men Certa

OOXML Publicity Stunts Continue Whilst New OOXML Flaws Get Widely Publicised

Making a difference while we still can, for 1234.1233999999999 reasons

Things may seem to have quieted down a bit several days after the BRM in Geneva had ended [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]. It is not entirely true however. One just needs to look underneath the surface to identify a great deal of activity which is done more discreetly. Microsoft's lobbying attempts -- however gruesome and unethical they may be -- have not ground to a halt.

OOXML is badMicrosoft New Zealand apparently has what's called a "director of innovation" who gets somewhat of a media placement in the national press. Very promotional and unnecessary. It also deceives.

There is also the strategic announcement of an SDK (putting the carriage before the pony). Don't get too excited because it's all .NET-dependent on the face of it. OOXML is a 'standard' candidate from Microsoft, only for Microsoft to control and implement. It is hardly surprising that Novell and the Boys chose to implement OOXML 'translators' in C#, bringing to mind the technology which Microsoft "reserves the right to sue" over.

So far in this post we have discussed:

  1. The legal issues of OOXML
  2. The ownership issues of OOXML
  3. The deception surrounding OOXML


We have not yet discussed the corruption which ushered the race for ISO-isation of OOXML.

On we proceed to an actual technical breakdown. The following example is by no means new, but it is probably more detailed than several previous reports. Just consider this serious deficiency in what Microsoft strives to make an international standards. It is one among many other examples. Above all, pay attention to Microsoft's tactless response. [many thanks to a reader for the pointer]

I dashed off an email to the Microsoft UK PR team asking how Microsoft felt justified in seeking ISO standard status for OOXML when it wasn't even capable of storing numbers correctly. Go back a few issues for the full blood and gore on this matter, but suffice it to say here that a number such as 1234.1234 is a problem for Excel because of the way the IEEE floating-point number system works.

Type 1234.1234 into Excel and it displays as 1234.1234 correctly. However, save the file as XML and a nasty little secret gets revealed: Excel actually stores it as 1234.1233999999999 in the XML file. I understand that Excel has to deal with IEEE quirks, but I'd like the XML file to interoperate without requiring me to fudge the issue manually, thank you.

No less than the great Jean Paoli replied to my email...: "Excel does have the ability though to store 1234.1234 as 1234.1233999999999 or as 1234.1234 and Open XML of course allows both."

Woah, holy smoke, Batman. Open XML allows both?


If you believe that OOXML is deficient (which it is), then according to this new page you are encouraged to focus mostly on legal and technical issues found in OOXML, in case you contact your national body. [via Andy Updegrove]

I was at the OOXML BRM in Geneva on behalf of my national body.

[...]

If you have strong feelings about the procedures used in the voting (e.g. the O members vs P members debate, or the voting on issues that were not individually discussed):

* Contact your national body * Describe your concerns (with reference to the appropriate directives, if possible) * Allegations of corruption are unlikely to convince anyone of anything * Ask your national body to investigate, and to raise an objection to the process if they are not satisfied

I suspect that most national bodies will prefer communication via email - it's easier for the NB to distribute it to any relevant committee members. But some people feel that emails are cheap and easy, and sending a letter on paper carries more weight: if you agree, then just be aware that there isn't very much time before the decision on voting is due.


One thing to point out is the incompatibility of OOXML with the number one rival of Microsoft. Not surprisingly, Gray Knowlton is playing dumb in light of the not-so-accidental exclusion of the GPL, but we have known the truth about this deliberate legal maneuver for quite time time, even before the SFLC had it properly articulated.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

Our Case is a Very Easy Win, the SLAPPs From Microsofters Were a Grave Error, and Censoring Information Won't Work (It'll Only Ever Backfire)
Censoring is what people do when they lose the argument
 
Slopwatch: Mindless Slop Pieces, Fake Images and Text, Linux FUD on the Cheap
spewed out by Microsoft-controlled LLMs
Links 04/06/2025: Workers' Strikes, Sudan Exodus
Links for the day
Links 04/06/2025: Linux Foundation PR Spam and Lee Jae-myung Wins Election
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/06/2025: Future Leaders of the World and Platforming Jordan Peterson
Links for the day
Links 04/06/2025: WSL Backfiring on Microsoft and "Disney, Microsoft Announce Massive Layoffs"
Links for the day
Say the Truth, the Rest Will Follow
There's no guarantee that writing the truth will result in an audience (or readership), but over time - in the long run - people generally gravitate towards what they know or feel to be crude truth, not just what's comforting (albeit false or self-deluding, usually groupthink dictated from above)
How to Expose High-Level Corruption Without Getting in (Too Much) Trouble
Democracy depends on free press and freedom of the press depends on being able to safely publish (and keep available) material that bad people don't want to be known to anybody
In-Depth EPO Coverage at Techrights Turns Eleven
11 years is a very long time
Windows Measured Below 10% in Afghanistan, GNU/Linux Gaining a Lot
about 80% are Android (Linux) users, compared to only about 10% for Windows
Poland's Political Predicament and Social Control Media
Democracy and fake "tech" don't mix well; the latter tends to interfere with the former and that's why we get more "Putins" out there
EPO: Taking Away From the Staff to Give More to the Rich
The Central Staff Committee (CSC) wrote to EPO staff earlier this week
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 03, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, June 03, 2025
Abuse Inside the Polish Patent Office (UPRP) - Part I: It's a Lot Like the EPO
we can commence a series soon
Gemini Links 04/06/2025: Inescapable Questions and Quitting All "Oligarch Tech"
Links for the day
Slopwatch: Linux FUD From Slopfarms, Blaming Linux for Microsoft Issues; Even WebProNews Has Become a Slopfarm (Googlebombing "Linux" With Slop Images and Fake/Plagiarised Text)
The Web is really getting bad; it's also overwhelmed by fake material or plagiarised material, wherein the plagiarism gets disguised/hidden by LLM sausage factories
Links 03/06/2025: Tiananmen Square Massacre Censorship and Growing Military Activities Around Taiwan
Links for the day
Linux is Already Dominant (Android), Let's Make GNU/Linux Dominant in Desktops/Laptops as Well
"Dr. Stallman recently warned everybody about Microsoft."
The Loyalty to Microsoft and the Salaries From Microsoft (Funding SLAPPs Against Techrights and Tux Machines)
Garrett always knows better. He knows everything best.
Windows Falls in Italy as GNU/Linux Jumps to 5%
Italy knows a thing or two about digital autonomy
Nigeria is All Android and Google
Windows down to almost nothing in Africa's largest population
Mass Layoffs at Microsoft (Second Wave) Not Limited to Redmond
"More layoffs at Microsoft as axe falls in Washington and California"
Gemini Links 03/06/2025: Forth System and "Common Lisp is a Dumpster"
Links for the day
The Leaks Were Right: Mass Layoffs at Microsoft in May, Then Another Wave in June
Just as we've been saying for over a month
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, June 02, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, June 02, 2025
Last Article From Australia's Sam Varghese Was a Year Ago and It Covered the Release of Julian Assange, Who Will Apparently Come Back as 'Politician'
It'll soon be exactly 12 months
Hungary Seems Hungry for Linux
Windows down by a lot
Like in Europe, Bad News for Microsoft in US and Canada
If it loses those "regions", then what's left?
About 8 Waves of Mass Layoffs at Microsoft in 2025 (in Less Than 5 Months), Now Vista 11 "Market Share" Decreases
Really bad news for shareholders of Microsoft
statCounter Sees Bing "Share" Falling Over 0.5% in One Month, Now Lower Than Before the ChatGPT/Bing Chat Hype
Bing has been part of the mass layoffs for quite some time
After Microsoft's Bankruptcy in Russia Android (Linux) Will Dominate Asia Completely
Windows probably peaked in "XP" or "2000"
Microsoft's Demise is a Global Phenomenon
mass layoffs justified using mindless buzzwords
All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux in EU and the UK, All-Time Lows for Microsoft
Combining ChromeOS and GNU/Linux, it adds up to and almost reaches 6%
India: Windows Falls to 50% in Desktops/Laptops and 8% Overall
laptops/desktops fell to 16% of the whole
statCounter: GNU/Linux Up to 4.7% "Market Share" This Month
30,000 Microsoft jobs may be eliminated by year's end
Microsoft is in Trouble and Microsofters Know It
"I've been happy on Win 3.11 for years."
[Video] New Introduction to Richard Stallman's Contributions Including GNU Emacs, GNU/Linux, and Software Freedom
from the channel previously bullied for supporting RMS
Links 02/06/2025: South Korea to Vote, Russia Blitzed From Within
Links for the day
Links 02/06/2025: Political Leftovers, DRM, and Patents
Links for the day
Links 02/06/2025: Microsoft Spins Layoffs as "Slop", Frontier Settles Lawsuit
Links for the day
When You Publicly Boast About Wanting to Violently Attack People (Even Colleagues) Finding a Job Will Prove Difficult
there's a lesson to be learned here
The Web We Lost, the Information Lost Due to Microsoft's Attacks on Companies Like Yahoo! (Before the LLM Slop Frenzy)
When it comes to news sites, what can we say?
Covering Corruption in Poland, Including a War on Science (Due to Bad Politicians)
What we're about to show is that skilled and experienced scientists in Poland are besieged by bureaucrats
Gemini Links 02/06/2025: "Star Wars Day" and "Security Day"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, June 01, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, June 01, 2025