Norway’s official press release on OOXML
As mentioned earlier today, Norway votes no on OOXML. Since this may be of interest for others than those who speak Norwegian, I’ve translated the press release:
«Standard Norge» (The Standardization Organizations in Norway) gives a conditional yes on OOXML ISO/DIS 29500
On a principal level, «Standard Norge» is for a standard that gives the users the best way of access to their existing documents. However, we find too many weaknesses in OOXML to approve the existing documents as a recommendation to an ISO standard.
Many of these weaknesses is anchored in the attempt to unite the old document mass with the needs of future documents. This leads to a complexity that is not appropriate when it comes to openness and interoperability. Norway’s comments and suggestions imply solutions that makes it possible to conduct these needs. The comments reflects the input that we have gathered during the process.
Based on this, and according to ISO’s directives on how a conditional yes have to be expressed, Norway have to say «No, with comments and suggestions for changes».
A ballot resolution meeting in ISO in February next year will work on the comments received, and suggest solutions that accommodate the comments from the member countries. After this meeting, Norway may change their vote to a unconditional yes, If we think that our comments has been adapted.
If the final result of the ballot resolution meeting leads to a plural yes, ISO will release a revised version for the Final Draft International Standard — FDIS.
