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        <title>ZDNet Blogs</title>
        <link>http://blogs.zdnet.com</link>
        <description>ZDNet Blogs Focus: ODF</description>
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<title>OOXML vs. ODF: Lessons learned</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1301</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:55:55 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1301</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The votes have been tallied but it's still not 100 percent certain that Microsoft's Office Open XML (OOXML) document-format is going to become an ISO standard. (Supposedly, the vote is still too close to call and neither ISO nor Microsoft is yet discussing the final results. But a number of sites are speculating that OOXML did manage to get enough votes to secure ISO standardization status.) Update: The official statement from the   ISO  Central  Secretariat's office: "Because  ISO needs  first to inform its worldwide membership of national standards  bodies of these results,  a press release on this subject will be issued on  Wednesday, 2 April 2008." No doubt word of the official count will leak well before that....  Some -- and ... ]]>
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<title>Microsoft OOXML standardization bid: The clock is ticking</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1300</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:18:44 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1300</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The politicking is almost over. At midnight (Central European Time) on Saturday March 29, voting regarding whether Microsoft's Open Office XML (OOXML) document format will get ISO standards approval will close. For the past month -- ever since the ISO Ballot Resolution Meeting (BRM) in Geneva ended -- both Microsoft and many of the backers of the rival Open Document Format (ODF) ISO standard have both been claiming mini victories. ("Denmark says yes!" "Cuba says no!") The final results of the seemingly never-ending OOXML standardization debate are expected to be announced by ISO on Monday March 31 (if someone doesn't leak them before that). The battle over OOXML standarization is all about money and marketshare. Microsoft wants OOXML to qualify as an ... ]]>
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<title>Will OOXML get the ISO standards nod? It's not a given</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1231</link>
<pubDate>Sat, 01 Mar 2008 08:28:10 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1231</guid>
<description><![CDATA[While there's still a month left before the final votes are tallied, Microsoft's bid to gain ISO standards approval for its Office Open XML (OOXML) document format is anything but guaranteed. Friday February 29 marked the end of a week-long ballot-resolution meeting in Geneva, where participants debated whether or not to approve Microsoft's OOXML as an ISO standard. Representatives now have a month to vote. Based on accounts from some of the attendees of the meeting, it's hard to predict what the final outcome will be. Microsoft officials were upbeat in their analysis, with Office Program Manager Brian Jones going so far as to say that he was going out to celebrate after the close of the Geneva meeting. "There were many technical ... ]]>
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<title>OOXML vs. ODF: What's happening this week</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1215</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:56:29 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1215</guid>
<description><![CDATA[From February 25 to 29 in Geneva, the next step in the seemingly never-ending show-down over whether Microsoft's Office Open XML document format should be granted ISO standard status is taking place. Microsoft is interested in gaining ISO's approval for OOXML so that it can tout the format as being "open" and "standard-compliant" -- two criteria that a growing number of business and government customers are requiring when purchasing software. Many of Microsoft's competitors have been agitating against Microsoft receiving ISO standards approval for a variety of reasons. Many Microsoft competitors are hoping that failure to gain ISO standardization for Office will give them a way to better chip away at Microsoft's 90+ percent desktop office-suite marketshare. The week-long "DIS-29500 Ballot Resolution ... ]]>
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<title>IBM, Google quietly supporting OOXML?</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1121</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Jan 2008 06:24:21 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1121</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In spite of their public opposition to Microsoft's attempt to get the ISO standardization nod for its Office Open XML (OOXML) document format, IBM and Google quietly are supporting OOXML. That's according to two blog postings from the end of last week by Microsoft execs involved in the OOXML vs. Open Document Format (ODF) standards battle. In a blog post entitled, "Speaking of odd contradictions ... " Gray Knowlton, Microsoft Group Product Manager of the Office technical product management team, cited IBM's support for OOXML in two products: IBM DB2 Content Manager v8.4 and IBM Websphere Portal. A company spokeswoman said Microsoft also had discovered IBM is  supporting OOXML in its IBM Lotus Quickr team-collaboration product, as well as in IBM ... ]]>
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<title>Independent study advises IT planners to go OOXML</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1107</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Jan 2008 06:41:24 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1107</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Market researchers with the Burton Group have issued a 37-page study-- not commissioned by Microsoft or any other tech vendor -- that finds Microsoft's OOXML document format to be more useful than the rival ODF format backed by Microsoft's competitors. The new study, freely downloadble (in exchange for registration) from Burton's Web site is entitled "What   s Up, .DOC? ODF, OOXML, and the Revolutionary Implications of XML in Productivity Applications."  Office Open XML (OOXML) is Microsoft's XML file format that it made the default in its Office 2007 suite. Open Document Format(ODF) is the file format championed by Sun Microsystems, IBM, Google and other Microsoft competitors. Microsoft is seeking ISO standards approval for OOXML, largely to appease customers who prefer/require standards-compliant products, ... ]]>
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<title>Microsoft restores Office 2003 users' access to old file types</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1076</link>
<pubDate>Sun, 06 Jan 2008 08:20:13 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1076</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft, justifiably, has come under a lot of criticism for blocking Office 2003 users' access to older file formats -- even if it was in the name of security. But it looks like the public outcry did some good, as Microsoft has detailed options to allow users continue to access the old formats. David LeBlanc, a Senior Developer with the Microsoft Office Trustworthy Computing Group, published to his personal blog on January 4 a number of links via which Office 2003 Service Pack (SP) 3 users can continue to use the older formats. LeBlanc pointed to the .reg files customers can use to change the security settings for the patched apps, as well as links restore the blocked Word, Excel, PowerPoint ... ]]>
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<title>Intense interest in Microsoft Office standard</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1819</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 14 Dec 2007 10:03:39 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Dana Blankenhorn</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1819</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft's spin of its Open XML loss before the ISO as a win remains of intense interest. The original story, from September, was the 7th most popular post here for 2007. In the story I used Microsoft's technical name for its format, OOXML. I wrote the piece in an angry mood, having seen several stories which accepted Microsoft's spin on the news at face value. The post drew strong ratings and 26 talkbacks. We have continued to follow the story, and you have remained interested in it. Our December 6 piece on Microsoft stacking the relevant ISO committee already has 31 talkbacks. The underlying question remains this. Is standards-setting a judicial or a political process? Even if it is a judicial process, should such ... ]]>
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<title>Microsoft starts rolling out more OOXML translators</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1008</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:20:01 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1008</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Over the next three months, Microsoft will be releasing new and updated translators designed to aid  customers who want interoperability between Microsoft's Office Open XML (OOXML) and other document formats, including Open Document Format (ODF). On December 4, Microsoft began rolling out three new translators that it plans to make available this month: A 1.1 update of its translator for Word; an Open XML spreadsheet translator and a presentation translator. Additionally, in February 2008, Microsoft will deliver the final version of its translator designed to provide interoperability between the Chinese-government backed Uniform Office Format (UOF) file format and OOXML. Microsoft announced the creation of the SourceForge-hosted Open Translation Project in July 2006. At that time, the Softies said the translator-focused initiatve was ... ]]>
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<title>OpenDocument Foundation folds. Will Microsoft benefit?</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=951</link>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Nov 2007 05:54:55 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=951</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The OpenDocument Foundation -- a group whose name and charter would lead one to believe that it was backing the OpenDocument Format (ODF), but which ended up backing a different document format instead -- has closed its doors. Sam Hiser, a systems consultant who was Vice President & Director Business Affairs at the OpenDocument Foundation, confirmed that ODF is closing its doors in a blog post on November 13. Hiser and a number of the other OpenDocument Foundation backers earlier this year decided to throw their weight behind a Worldwide Web Consortium document standard, the Compound DOcument Format (CDF), and back away from ODF. The OpenDocument Foundation, at one point, was one of the major critics of Microsoft's attempt to get its ... ]]>
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<title>Will GNOME split give Microsoft Open XML standards win?</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1616</link>
<pubDate>Wed, 31 Oct 2007 06:43:06 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Dana Blankenhorn</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/open-source/?p=1616</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft's efforts to overturn a vote earlier this year denying its Open XML "fast track" standards certification seem to be getting a boost from the GNOME Foundation. GNOME Foundation founder Miguel deIcaza is a Novell employee, and his actions have been closely scrutinized since Microsoft signed its controversial "patent licensing" deal with the company a year ago. OpenXML, also called OOXML, was denied "fast track" International Standards Organization (ISO) approval in September, but a final vote on making it a standard will take place in February, and Microsoft is anxious to get the earlier decision reversed. To that end Microsoft is working with the ECMA TC 45 group to answer detailed questions which accompanied the negative ballots in September, in hopes of changing ... ]]>
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<title>ODF infighting could help Microsoft's OOXML</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=875</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 10:01:19 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=875</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft's battle with backers of the Open Document Format (ODF) standard could end up going the way that so many contests do: Won by Microsoft as much -- if not more -- because of the ineptitude of its competition than by Redmond's prowess. Just as Netscape and Sony ended up their own worst enemies, the ODF camp might unravel before Microsoft's rival Office Open XML (OOXML) comes up for final  international standardization vote early next year. Microsoft lost a vote earlier this year to get OOXML on the ISO fast track. A number of ODF backers are abandoning ODF and throwing their weight behind the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C Compound Document Format (CDF). Microsoft Director of Corporate Standards Jason Matusow blogged recently ... ]]>
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<title>Google scores a win over Microsoft's OOXML</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/?p=737</link>
<pubDate>Sat, 15 Sep 2007 11:14:26 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Garett Rogers</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Google/?p=737</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft's proposal for the fast track of the OOXML standard was recently shot down by the ISO.  Google concludes that Microsoft's OOXML should never be standardized due to things like reliance on proprietary elements and simply not enough time to review the >6000 page document that outlines the standard. for a specification of this size, it was not given enough time for review; the undocumented features of OOXML prevents its implementation by other vendors; dependencies on other Microsoft proprietary formats and their technical defects makes it difficult to fully implement; and the overall cost for vendors of implementing multiple standards (hence the lack of OOXML implementations in the marketplace). If the ISO was to put as much effort into approving this document, it should ... ]]>
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<title>Why Microsoft deserved to lose the OOXML standards vote</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=694</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Sep 2007 08:32:57 -0700</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=694</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft lost its bid to fast track its Office Open XML (OOXML) file-format specification. (It's next-to-impossible to tell from Microsoft's press release announcing "Strong Global Support for Open XML as It Enters Final Phase of ISO Standards Process," but it did lose.)    As readers of this blog know, I believe that the world is big enough for multiple file-format specifications. I don't think the Open Document Format (ODF) deserves to be the only format sanctioned as an "open standard." That said, I also believe Microsoft deserved to lose this vote. Why?    1. Lobbying is legal. But certain lobbying tactics are not. Microsoft officials admitted that one of the company's employees behaved inappropriately in Sweden, attempting to influence partners to vote for OOXML ... ]]>
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