03.03.08
OOXML BRM to Be Remembered by Tim Bray’s Remarks
“Unadulterated bulls*t”
The father of XML was far from pleased with initial interpretation of his remarks, but they are here to stay. Just watch the press coverage:
Ars Technica: ML spec editor: OOXML ISO process is ‘unadulterated BS’
ISO conducted a Ballot Resolution Meeting on Friday in an effort to address some of the technical issues that plague Microsoft’s Office Open XML (OOXML) document format. Participants say that some very positive and meaningful changes were made to the OOXML specification, but many of the participants are frustrated with the large number of problems that didn’t receive adequate attention as a result of time constraints.
PC Pro: Nevermind the bulls**t, here’s OOXML, says Microsoft
Microsoft says it is “optimistic” that the Office Open XML specification will be made into an ISO standard, despite a national body describing the ballot resolution process as “bulls**t”.
Speaking after a week-long meeting to discuss technical issues raised following last year’s failed bid to have OOXML fast-tracked, Microsoft’s Tom Robertson said the company was hopeful of persuading sufficient national bodies to change their vote to ‘yes’.
There are more such examples that we covered here over the weekend. He was direct and blunt, maybe even impulsive, but his level of authority had him quoted on this issue quite far and wide.
There is an interesting new update from Tim Bray’s blog about mugging throughout the week of the BRM.
There were 120 delegates in Geneva for a week for the BRM, and two of them were mugged. One fellow got a fractured jaw and a woman had her purse grabbed. This is not exactly the image one has of Switzerland. Who knows, maybe it’s just a statistical fluke. Maybe ISO delegates look like soft targets. But if I were going to be in Geneva, I’d watch where I walked and be careful about being alone.
The other day, Rob Weir talked about mugging as well. Under a week ago, noooxml.org spoke about robbery at the BRM, yet the choice of words is merely coincidental.
Those last two are speaking about the BRM itself and the latter speaks about a LinuxWorld article which contains this bit: “robbing national delegations of the opportunity to propose their own modifications”. Either way, it looks bad for ISO, not just for Microsoft. Will ISO spill the beans in attempt to restore a positive public image? Remember: As Microsoft conquered (hijacked) ISO, some senior OSIers fled. █
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.