Re: OOXML [was Re: GNOME Foundation Board Meeting Minutes :: 7/6/07]

[Jody Goldberg <jody gnome org>]

On Thu, Nov 01, 2007 at 07:08:00PM -0400, Richard Stallman wrote:
>     OOXML is going to be the defacto standard whether we like it or not.
>     To pretend otherwise is to deny that the sun will rise in the East
>     tomorrow.
> 
> Please don't be defeatist!
> 
> We can and should try to make free software read OOXML, because that will be
> a useful feature -- but that doesn't require defeatism about ODF.

How is that defeatism about ODF ?  ODF is not even mentioned.
As with so many other situations this is not a zero sum game.  If
our code/systems/formats are better people will use them.

We weaken ourselves by making this an either or comparison between
OOX and ODF.  It is only by forcing that dichotomy that we set
ourselves up for problems when MS eventually gets OOX through ISO.