[Chapter-delegates] ECMA flawed processing of OOXML

[Gene Gaines]

Sir,

Your organization's handling of ISO/IEC DIS 29500 (Office Open XML)
greatly concerns me.

It appears that ECMA is in danger of becoming another "trade"
organization corrupted by its largest members, in this case Microsoft.

(1) ECMA seriously flawed actions in the initial handling of the
absurdly-flawed ooXML document submission, and (2) ECMA public
announcements to date concerning 29500, give the impression that your
organization is concerned about the business interests of your
contributors, not about maintaining and growing the quality of the
Internet, which of course relies on common, open document
characteristics.

If the above is true, then we differ about the future of ECMA in the
standards universe.

You are in danger of becoming another flawed standards organization
that falls grotesque victim to your short-sighted actions taken in
reaction to heavy pressure from its largest members.

Can you see that your participants, such as TC45, are in need of leadership?

One does not need to review details of the bizarre actions of national
standards groups in response to your fast-track.  From merely reading
the OOXML submission is it not clear that Microsoft is acting to
corrupt the document standard process, not contribute to it?

Remarkable.  I have never thought to use such words as grotesque or
bizarre in a standards discussion, but they seem appropriate for DIS
29500.

Have you taken the time to read the OOXML submission?

Eugene Gaines
Gaines Group
21500 Tamarack Ridge Square
Sterling, Virginia 20164
USA