NoOOXML

The repeated voting session again was not legitimate, because it was not the secretary but the general manager who sent out the invitation letters.

Three new JTC1 P-Country members since Friday 24th? What's the rush?

Norway votes "no with comments and suggestions for changes", according to a recent press release from Standard Norge.

New Zealand has cast its vote, and it is a "no". Their motivation is the sound, balanced and reasonable one: many stakeholders have raised many issues which need to be addressed.

Update on the Swedish OOXML review process

IDG.se just published an update on the Microsoft scandal. "Microsoft offered extra 'market subsidies' to partners that participated in the Monday vote about the Open XML format. This appears from internal communication that CS has seen. 'It was badly formulated and would never have gone out' says the business area chief of the company, Klas Hammar."

The Microsoft anti-trust case is due to be reloaded in November 2007. Given the corruption suspicions that are affecting the OOXML standardisation process all over the world, I think we should record and retain any evidence that occurs now, to be used later in the trial.

Palestinian Standards Institute, as a corespondent member at ISO, sent the regional ISO liaison, asking for disapproval of the standard

Australian Standard expert Rick Jelliffe leaves the party line and recommends "No with comments". He also lays his business affiliations open. Rick was one of the most notorious defenders of Microsoft in Australia and developed a new doctrine of National Relevance.

FFII in Sweden comments on the incidents in Sweden.

Korean Software engineers began petition for objection position to ISO JTC-1 Korean Representatives.

It makes a difference if you read about lions and dragons or meet them on your way home. Independend XML specialist Stéphane Rodriguez tested Open XML and his results are a disaster for all of us who care about open standards and quality. His tests also give us some insights how and why DIS 26500 would fail to achieve interoperability and vendor-independence.

Sina.com.cn is reporting that China will vote NO to the ballot on OOXML.

Quick overview of the formal aspects of the voting process for an ISO standard.

The Yes men makes it again in Sweden. I thought this country was not corruptable?

There is a fundamental problem with the "abstain" vote in ISO ballots. This letter has been sent to the JTC1 officials.

Just read CompTIA's Michael Mudd who explains you what international standardization is all about.

It seems that the puppet strategy works fine in Colombia. Of the 12 votes, 7 were of Gold partners of Microsoft, 4 from the Government and 1 was a "call-it-independent". The 2 Universities, 1 Government member and 1 free software association voted NO.

Yesterday Finland decided to abstain on OOXML. Lobbying before the deciding meeting from Microsoft was so intensive that the key ministries were turned to yes-men. Even though a-big-Finn-company-that-must-not-be-named said that a standard this bad should compromise the whole credibility of ISO, the yes-side was too strong. It was a sad day to be a Finn.

Groklaw reports and comments on attempts to influence the ISO-process by spreading false information about the voting process.