Open Malaysia

ODF Alliance Newsletter 8 February 2007

You can download a PDF version of the newsletter: http://www.odfalliance.org/mail_list.php. Please feel free to forward to whom it may be of interest.

19 Nations Report OOXML Contradictions With ISO/IEC Standards

The 30-day period during which the National Bodies to ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee 1 (JTC1) reviewed OOXML for any “evident contradiction” with IEC/IEC standards and policies ended February 5, with an unprecedented 19 nations reporting OOXML contradictions. Ecma now has until February 28 to prepare responses to each contradiction. JTC 1 will then publish the response and contradictions submitted by the national bodies. A decision will then be made on next steps.

ConsortiumInfo.org - http://www.consortiuminfo.org/standardsblog/article.php?story=20070206145620473

ODF Advances in Minnesota, Texas

Efforts to ensure access to vital records and information, now and in the future, advanced in several U.S. states. Sen. Don Betzold introduced S.F. 131, The Preservation of State Documents Act, in the Minnesota Senate requiring that all state documents be created, exchanged, maintained, and preserved in an open file format. An identical bill (H.F. 176) was introduced in the Minnesota House by Rep. Paul Thissen, together with co-authors Rep. Steve Simon and Rep. Melissa Hortman. In Texas, Sen. Juan Hinojosa introduced a bill (SB 446), requiring an open document formats for electronic state documents. The bill would take effect on December 1, 2007, but agencies would be given until September 1, 2008, to comply.

MN H.F. 176 - http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=H0176.0.html&session=ls85
MN S.131 - http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/bin/bldbill.php?bill=S0131.0.html&session=ls85
TX S.B. 446 - http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/Text.php?LegSess=80R&Bill=SB446 ConsortiumInfo.org - http://www.consortiuminfo.org/standardsblog/article.php?story=20070206155518882

ODF v1.1 Approved as OASIS Standard; Spreadsheet Formula and Metadata Enhancements Up Next

ODF v1.1, which incorporates many accessibility-related enhancements, was approved unanimously as an OASIS standard. With the substantial participation and input from the disability community, the enhancements will allow ODF to meet or exceed the accessibility support provided in all other office file formats as well as that specified in the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. Next up is ODF v1.2 dealing with spreadsheet formula and other enhancements such as metadata, which could be completed as early as mid 2007.

OASIS - http://www.oasis-open.org/specs/index.php#opendocumentv1.1
Peter Korn's weblog - http://blogs.sun.com/korn/entry/opendocument_v1_1_is_now

Sun Announces ODF Plug-In for MS Office

Sun Microsystems announced the release of the StarOffice 8 Conversion Technology Preview plug-in application for Microsoft Office 2003. Available as a free download, Sun's plug-in will allow seamless two-way conversion of Microsoft Office documents to ODF. Massachusetts is currently using the converter to meet the January, 2007 compliance date for the start of a phased migration to the ODF format. In addition to allowing the Commonwealth's existing Microsoft Office applications to read and write ODF text files, the converter permits the continued use of of the state's chosen accessibility technologies to meet the needs of people with disabilities.

Sun Release - http://www.sun.com/aboutsun/pr/2007-02/sunflash.20070207.1.xml
ConsortiumInfo.org - http://www.consortiuminfo.org/standardsblog/article.php?story=20070207083913371

OpenDocument Foundation Previews ODF Plug-In for MS Word 1997-2003

The OpenDocument Foundation previewed its ODF plugin for MS Word versions 97-2003, which allows users to create and edit ODF files in their existing Microsoft Office installations. The published version is called "ACME 376"; it is intended to demonstrate the integration of the plugin (while outputting files in an unusable form of XML). The Foundation's "da Vinci" class plugin -- shown in Massachusetts and Europe, which outputs the future ODF version 1.2 -- continues under development.

OpenDocument Foundation -
http://opendocument.foundation.googlepages.com/home
Gary Edwards' blog, OpenStack -
http://openstack.blogspot.com/2007/01/running-on-opendocument-inside-of .
html

MS OpenXML Translator 1.0 Released

Microsoft-funded OpenXML Translator Release 1.0 allows users of MS Office to open and save ODF documents in Word.

MS Open XML Translator - http://sourceforge.net/projects/odf-converter
PC Pro News - http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/103753/microsoft-primes-its-odf-translator.html
Tim Anderson's IT Writing - http://www.itwriting.com/blog/index.php?p=116
Kontrawize - http://kontrawize.blogs.com/kontrawize/2007/02/reading_and_wri.html
Sam Hiser's PlexNex - http://fussnotes.typepad.com/plexnex/2007/02/translator_is_f.html

OpenOffice ODF Toolkit Project Launched

ODF's use is about to expand with the launch the ODF Toolkit project, which is designed to provide a set of API's to work on or with ODF documents directly, without the need for a full-blown desktop application. You can contribute to this effort by joining the new ODF Toolkit project, or subscribe to the dev@odftoolkit.openoffice.org mailing list to participate in all the upcoming discussions.

OpenOffice.org ODF Toolkit Project - http://odftoolkit.openoffice.org/
GullFOSS - http://blogs.sun.com/GullFOSS/entry/odf_toolkit_what_is_it

Adobe Releases PDF for Industry Standardization

Adobe announced it plans to release the full PDF 1.7 specification to ISO via AIIM, the Enterprise Content Management Association. PDF/Archive (PDF/A) and PDF/Exchange (PDF/X) are already ISO standards, and PDF for Engineering (PDF/E) and PDF for Universal Access (PDF/UA) are proposed ISO standards. Adobe intends to provide a royalty-free covenant not to sue for its intellectual property.

Adobe Release - http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/pressroom/pressreleases/200701/012907OpenPDFAIIM.html
Adobe FAQ - http://www.adobe.com/pdf/release_pdf_faq.html

Kerala (India) Draft IT Policy Calls for Adoption of ODF

Kerala could become the first state government in India to adopt ODF. Kerala's draft IT policy notes that standards are very important in the integration of e-governance services of various government organizations, and that "open standards like Unicode and Open Document Format and Open Architectures will be followed in e-governance projects to avoid total dependence on select vendors."

The Hindu - http://www.hindu.com/2007/01/18/stories/2007011801800700.htm

Italy Officially Adopts ODF As A National Standard

Italy has now offically adopted ODF as a national standard. Uni, the Italian national standards body, voted unanimously to recognize ODF once ISO formally published ISO/IEC 26300 on 30 November 2006.

UNI – www.uninfo.polito.it/SC34/SC34_Norme.htm#26300.

South African Research Body, CSIR, Adopts ODF

Citing the role that open standards have in ensuring that scientific knowledge produced in an organization is preserved for posterity, the Pretoria-based Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), a leading research, development and implementation organization, has decided to adopt ODF as part of the organization's migration to open source software and open standards. CSIR word processor, spreadsheet and presentation files will be in ODF wherever possible. The migration is set to be completed by the end of 2007.

CSIR Release - http://www.csir.co.za/plsql/ptl0002/PTL0002_PGE013_MEDIA_REL?MEDIA_RELEASE_NO=7454764

ODF Applications Support Update: IBM Lotus Notes 8

IBM announced the availability of Lotus Notes and Lotus Domino 8 public Beta starting this February. Notes 8 allows customers to use productivity editors that support ODF, and also allow a user to import and export supported file formats used by Microsoft Office and Open Office file formats, edit those files and save them in either the original format or as ODF documents.

IBM Press - http://www-03.ibm.com/press/us/en/pressrelease/20943.wss
InfoWorld - http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/01/22/HNibmcollabintegration_1.html

Upcoming Conferences/Events With ODF Tracks:

Workshop on Open Document Exchange Formats [28 February 2007, Berlin, Germany] http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/en/document/6469/251

BostonPHP January User Group: ODF what's in it for you? [4 April 2007, Boston, MA] http://www.bostonphp.org/component/option,com_gigcal/task,details/gigcal_gigs_id,23/

OASIS Symposium 2007: eBusiness and Open Standards: Understanding the Facts, Fiction, and Future [15-18 April 2007, San Diego, CA]
http://www.oasis-open.org/events/symposium/2007/call-for-participation.php

New Members
For a complete list of the 369 member organizations, see: http://www.odfalliance.org/memberlist.php. Please welcome the following new members: Kashand.org (India); Swiss Open Systems User Group (Switzerland); Adept Softwares Pvt. Ltd. (India); Creative Contingencies Pty Ltd (Australia); Zebra Garden (Sweden); ImanTouch (Cameroon); Bangladesh NGOs Network for Radio and Communication(BNNRC)

***********ODF IN THE NEWS************************

Texas, Minnesota eye move to ODF
States may follow Mass. in ditching proprietary file formats in favor of more widely compatible ones
By Elizabeth Montalbano, IDG News Service
February 06, 2007
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/02/06/HNtexasminnodf_1.html

Texas Bill For Open Documents
Slashdot
http://politics.slashdot.org/politics/07/02/06/232236.shtml

Microsoft's Open XML Format Hits Roadblocks in U.S., Abroad
eWeek
By Peter Galli
February 7, 2007
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2091329,00.php

Open-source tool translates between office file formats
by John Fontana
Network World
http://blog.4spots.com/index.php?p=13

Microsoft's New Standard Stumbles?
Internet News
By Michael Hickins
February 7, 2007
http://www.internetnews.com/dev-news/article.php/3658541

Microsoft Pays Blogger To 'Correct' Wikipedia Entry
Topologi's Rick Jelliffe will offer Redmond's spin on public articles pertaining to the ODF/OOXML standard.
By Paul McDougall
InformationWeek
Jan 23, 2007 02:00 PM
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196903015

No love lost between Microsoft and OpenDocument
Third-party plug-in proves Microsoft's bad intentions toward the free document format
InfoWorld
By Neil McAllister
May 15, 2006
http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/05/15/78282_20OPopenent_1.html

Microsoft push on XML irks industry
The Times of India
R Raghavendra
6 Feb, 2007 0221hrs
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS/India_Business/Microsoft_push_on_XML_irks_industry/articleshow/1565132.cms

Microsoft standards bid faces failure
British Standards Institute 'contradiction' to Open XML application will certainly delay standardisation
Clive Akass
Personal Computer World, 05 Feb 2007
http://www.computeractive.co.uk/personal-computer-world/news/2174199/microsoft-standards-bid-faces