Comment

Comment on LibreOffice criticizes EU Commission over proprietary XLSX formats

“bribed” is a gross simplifiction of the almost hilariously evil plot they pulled to get OOXML certified. They actually bribed a couple of smaller nation states to become IETF members and vote for Microsoft’s standard. It was a major scandal back in the day but formally legal.

source

Sort:hotnew top

Exatron@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I remember that plot also gumming up IETF business because the bribed nations just stopped participating after voting for Microsoft.

source
Theoriginalthon@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
I remember, only trouble is a lot of people at the time didn’t care or were paid loads of money to not care.

Also the name Office Open XML right at the time OpenOffice was the only one about before oracle came in and fucked it over

source
utopiah@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
It’s like noticing a car crash and looking back… you know you shouldn’t and yet it’s somehow mesmerizing. So… where can I actually read about this please?

source
- b_tr3e@feddit.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
  Wikipedia for a beginning: en.wikipedia.org/…/Standardization_of_Office_Open… I remember The Register having a more detailed (and pretty snarky) article about it back then, but I didn’t search for it yet.
  
  source
  - utopiah@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    Ah, so niche but of course there is a great Wikipedia article for this, thank you!
    
    I was listening to the podcase episode 318 “Bill Gates and Jeffrey Epstein w/ Tim Schwab” of Tech Won’t Save Us thinking that honestly I had such a low esteem for Gates surely it couldn’t get worst. Well, I was clearly very wrong.
    
    Now to read this after listening to the podcast is a great example showcasing how dearly Microsoft KEEPS on fighting for its monopolistic position. It’s not a “oh it just happen” kind of situation. It’s a constant investment of resources in the worst kind of ways, not into making the product better, but rather this. Again, unsurprising but whenever people argue about Gates being a “good” person or how Microsoft “changed” and isn’t what it was in the 2000s they are unfortunately very naive.
    
    Anyway, digging into this, thanks again.
    
    source
    b_tr3e@feddit.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
    You’re welcome. It was a pleasure to set someomes ideas about Mr Gates right.
    
    source