My, oh, my!

Story: Linspire to help develop ODF-OpenXML translatorsTotal Replies: 5
Author Content
Egon_Spengler

Jul 03, 2007
9:13 AM EDT
Quelle surpris!
tracyanne

Jul 03, 2007
1:30 PM EDT
The headline should read

Linspire help entrench Microsoft's proprietary specification as defacto standard.
dinotrac

Jul 03, 2007
1:51 PM EDT
Although -

There is a side to all of this that you're overlooking...

The very fact that Microsoft is trying to get OOXML->ODF (or ODF->OOXML, or whatever) translators developed is an assessment that ODF matters.
tracyanne

Jul 03, 2007
7:57 PM EDT
Quoting:The very fact that Microsoft is trying to get OOXML->ODF (or ODF->OOXML, or whatever) translators developed is an assessment that ODF matters.


Yes, it does mean that.

However the translation is being done, primarily on the FOSS, or at least Linux, side of the equation, as indeed every non Microsoft inspired attempt at interoperability between Microsoft proprietary specifications and open standards has been in the past, which means that Microsoft is likely driving this round of interoperability in order to side line the Open standards embodied in ODF.

Which would mean that eventually ODF would no longer matter.
Sander_Marechal

Jul 04, 2007
12:31 AM EDT
All that matters to MS is that you can get from ODF to OOXML. They don't care the other way around. They don't want interoperability but they want a one-way street to MS lock-in.
tracyanne

Jul 04, 2007
3:42 AM EDT
Quoting:All that matters to MS is that you can get from ODF to OOXML.


Indeed. It's unlikely that Microsoft will invest a great deal in getting from OOXML to ODF, only as much as is necessary for appearance sake, and it's unlikely that OOXML to ODF translators will be an easily accessible option on Microsoft's Office products, or evn that Microsoft will do anything to make it well known that such a choice is available.

What I see here is an attempt to normalise document formats on OOXML by creating a situation - the translators, which are being developed in the the Linux/FOSS/Open Standards domain - where ODF conforms to OOXML.

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