Story: ECMA move is standard fare from Microsoft

Posted by: Captain Ahab (Tuesday 22 November 2005, 3:00 PM)

Can't trust Microsoft on this one. There are too many variables and too many subtle ways they can pollute their supposed future "open standard" to continue tilting things in their own favor.

I'd give it at least 1 - 2 years of implementation (by others) before risking my own data in their new formats. This is more time than I need to feel comfortable with ODF, because it was developed by a consortium of several companies and has been thoroughly reviewed for patent encumbrances and other issues, as well as being closely based on a format that's been in common use for about five years already.

This long delay could have a strategic impact on MS' new formats. My hope is that they'll be stillborn--why do we need another when ODF is here, is implemented in multiple software packages, and can be trusted to be truly open? If MS takes a beating here, it will be bad for them but much better for the competitive market overall, and for users like me and you.