The launch of Microsoft's new interoperability principles have been both cautiously welcomed and sceptically scrutinised as the company goes about convincing the IT industry that it is genuine in its pursuit to provide interoperability with rival products, more consumer choice, less vendor lock-in and greater collaboration with the open source community.
Here, Microsoft Australia CTO Greg Stones gives some obviously polished PR-approved responses to questions from Computerworld regarding the motivations behind support for ODF and PDF, what the software giant is really gaining by providing support to rival formats, and the ambiguities in its Open Specification Promise. He also gives a painfully polished response to CNN's senior editor's claims that the company is trying to eliminate free software.Typical Microsoft PR response to tough questions, but interesting nonetheless....
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Member since:
2005-07-06
I tried to open the first link on the article.... http://www.microsoft.com/interop/principles/default.mspx
using Firefox3. A stock Firefox3, no alterations have been made to the codepages or the fonts, and this Microsoft page was totally unreadable. Well, not totally, but the fonts were too small and ill-defined. In fact, plain ugly. So much so that I closed the page
Of course, I could have messed around with my fonts so that I might end up with something that wont destroy my eyes, but then the onus is on me to go out of my way....
If Microsoft are being truthful about being interoperable, should they not put their money where their mouth is and display a site that we can ALL look at !
Edited 2008-06-18 15:36 UTC
Member since:2006-02-05
Actually the whole page corrupted thing has been happening to alot of people on firefox 3. refresh a few times, and eventually it will render properly
this is what it looks like from my machine on ff3
http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y92/googleninja/?action=view&c...
Member since:2005-07-06
You picture looked pretty small, thats one of the limitations with photobucket, and I see you are using XP.
I was using Firefox3 under Linux... one of the major targets for Microsoft's interoperability programme I should think, yet it looks horrible to me.
here is what it looks like to me
http://www.freewebs.com/raver31/screenie.jpg
Member since:2006-02-05
A quick peek at the css shows us that the font-family is set to Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif. Verdana is very readable at smaller sizes, arial and helvetica are ok, but it look like you are defaulting to your systems sans-serif, which is probably bitstream something or other with anti-aliasing not played with.
If you want the web to look right, do yourself a favor and install the ms core fonts. If you dont want to do that, at least set your system defaults to something better then what its at now.
Member since:2005-07-06
You prove my point exactly. I was using a default Firefox install on a Suse Linux system. Normally there is no problem on websites, but yet, you think I need to add/change fonts on my machine just so that I can look at it the same way someone else can on a different setup ?
This is another example of Microsoft and standards, and another example of someone not blaming Microsoft, but assuming the problem was caused by HOW they used the computer.....
Member since:
2008-02-26
http://boycottnovell.com/2008/06/18/openoffice-org-voice-odf-fud/
<Eruaran> Currently if you attempt to open a .odt document for example in Microsoft Word, you get assailed by dialogues that say the document is corrupted, asks you if you want to ‘fix’ it, and it insinuates you shouldn’t trust it or the source it came from.
Member since:
2005-07-06
Until I see people with microsoft.com addresses on the Samba, Open Office and other project mailing lists, with code submitted from microsoft.com addresses, and I see a commitment from Microsoft to using LDAP schemas that are standard outside of the Active Directory world, and password hash formats that are standard outside of the AD and Windows worlds, and actually communicating with people - all this is just fire and motion, as Joel Spolsky says.
It's sad that they're going around trying to get people to buy this, and it's really sad that they still think they can answer these questions with ridiculous soundbites that don't mean anything at all.
Member since:2005-09-28
Why do people fall for this stuff over and over again? Microsoft have made billions by being nasty but now they're going to start being nice because they are nice?
The old politicians' maxim that "the less you intend to do about something, the more you need to talk about it", applies here.
Member since:
2006-11-17
A thing is worth what you are willing or are forced to pay for it. Microsoft seems to value its own products very highly unless there is a hint of competition. Then it gives away as much as it has to to put someone out of business. What do they do when they can't do that? They call in the lawyers. I wish they would just go ahead and drop the "S" bomb, so they can get laughed out of court. "Linux" infringes a Microsoft patent on how to construct a menu. That's so stupid on so many levels. Only someone being paid by Microsoft would not understand how stupid it is. Nice article if for no other reason a lesson on how to make veiled threats in business speak.
Member since:
2007-01-15
