Re: Versioning and html[5]

On Apr 12, 2007, at 4:45 PM, Håkon Wium Lie wrote:

>
> Also sprach Chris Wilson:
>
>>> Exactly this has already
>>> happened with Office document formats, it's a repeating pattern.
>>
>> Sorry, I'm not registering how you're using Office formats as an
>> example. Office formats are now thoroughly documented, with an open
>> standard describing them.
>
> Office formats are far from being documented -- e.g., there is no
> publically available specification for the "doc"-formats. Supporting
> it, in all its versions, is prohibitively expensive for anyone but
> Microsoft.

Indeed, even OOXML is widely derided as being a "standard" that only  
Microsoft can ever implement, apparently by design. I don't think it  
helps Chris's case to hold it up as a success story.

Regards,
Maciej