Via Scott Abel, we learned about the formation of the OpenDocument Format Alliance. I went straight to the “about” page, which provides the current list of members. The right concentration of UnMicrosoft vendors are there–Sun, Novell, IBM, Corel, and RedHat. But there are a few interesting members, including the American Library Association and the Massachusetts High Technology Council (and yes, if you go to their Web page, that is indeed the unlikely romantic pairing of Ted Kennedy and Mitt Romney chuckling in the picture on the upper left). The Mass High Tech Council caught my eye because they are a famously pro-growth organization that might not always get behind this kind of initiative. Perhaps they have suddenly realized that standards are good for growth? Or perhaps there are enough Massachusetts High Tech companies with an interest in ODF? Novell’s headquarters is in Massachusetts now, but they are not a member of the Council. But Sun has a big campus here, and they are a member. So that might explain it.
Scott’s article has a good roundup of related news coverage.
ODF Alliance
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For more information on why Massachusetts is involved, see: “Massachusetts moves ahead sans Microsoft”
http://news.com.com/Massachusetts+moves+ahead+sans+Microsoft/2100-1012_3-5878869.html
Hi Scott,
Thanks for your comment. I know about the Massachusetts’ government’s role in this, but the Mass High Tech Council is a trade group, representing companies, not the government. Indeed, they are kind of famously anti-government in some ways.
But thanks for the additional context for our readers, in case they hadn’t been aware of how the Massachusetts state government has been a big proponent of open document formats.
Bill