We haven’t yet reached the point at which somebody rhymes OOXML with “hell” and starts chanting. Yet Google’s far from happy with Microsoft’s submission of Office Open XML as an international standard, and has publicly said as much on its corporate blog.
Zaheda Bhorat
“Google believes OOXML would be an insufficient and unnecessary standard, designed purely around the needs of Microsoft Office,” wrote Open Source Programs Manager Zaheda Bhorat. “We join the ODF Alliance and many other experts in our belief that OOXML doesn’t meet the criteria required for a globally-accepted standard.”
The three links in that last sentence were all put there by Bhorat, by the way, and not Murdok. Google appears to be providing as much evidence and support for its position as possible.
Microsoft’s not exactly staying silent, though. A spokesperson told David Meyer, “Everyone wants to use their data in slightly different ways. Furthermore, multiple standards can foster a healthy, competitive industry. By developing tools like the [Office] Open XML-ODF translators and making them widely available, we are promoting customer choice, which is our top priority.”
ISO members have a little more than one month left to agree with either one argument or the other; at the end of March, a voting deadline should at least temporarily settle the matter.
