07.24.07
India to Weigh in on Real Standards and ‘Monopoly Enablers’
Microsoft’s Linux deals bought it some pseudo support. It gives the impression that the industry accepts OOXML. It is, however, nothing but a case of buying support.
India, the free market needs your help. As the following blog indicates, you can make a real difference. There is momentum, too.
There are Updates from Massachusetts, South Africa, Japan, Portugal, Spain etc. It Failed to get approval even in USA. South Africa TC Rejects OOXML 13 to 4
So Say No To Microsoft Office Broken Format OOXML .
This new article talks about Microsoft’s attempts to buy itself a standard. Standard should be earned, not bought. It is not a matter of pressure, either.
There are two upcoming votes on the fate of Microsoft’s Office Open XML, a document format that has brought about bare-knuckle business tactics and fierce philosophical disputes.
[...]
Meanwhile, Microsoft rivals are accusing the company of bullying its way through a standards process.
“The fundamental question is whether a large company with a lot of money and business partners will essentially be able to stack committees so that they are out of balance and therefore buy an ISO standard. I, for one, do not think this is appropriate. I doubt ISO does either,” Bob Sutor, IBM’s vice president of open source and standards, wrote earlier this month in his personal blog.
Let us ensure that the industry does not get locked down to formats which only Microsoft is permitted to implement. If you are aware of wrongdoing, please share. Do not let manipulation get out of sight. The Europe Commisions is already prepared to investigate this. We just need to gather evidence.
Highlight: Novell was the first to acknowledge that Microsoft FUD tactics had substance. Novell then used anti-Linux FUD to market itself. 
Highlight: Xandros let Microsoft make patent claims and brag about (paid-for) OOXML support. 
Highlight: Linspire's CEO not only fell into Microsoft arms, but he also assisted the company's attack on GNU/Linux. 
Highlight: Microsoft craves pseudo (proprietary) standards and gets its way using proxies and influence which it buys. 
Highlight: The invasion into the open source world is intended to leave Linux companies neglected, due to financial incentives from Microsoft. 
Analysis: Xen, an open source hypervisor, possibly fell victim to Microsoft's aggressive (and stealthy) acquisition-by-proxy strategy.