IBM Makes Good on Patent Bloop

Not something you see everyday - yet:

IBM has put into the public domain and withdrawn its application for patent number US2007/0162321 - Outsourcing of Services. This patent application covers analyzing work flows, skills, economic costs, etc. Here’s why we are withdrawing it — IBM adopted a new policy a year ago to sharply reduce business method patent filings and instead stress significant technical content in its patents. Even though the patent application in question was filed eight months before the policy took effect in September, 2006, had the policy been in place at the time, IBM would not have filed the application. We’re glad the community pointed this application out so IBM could take swift action.

After Flickr, It Gets Quickr

Not, alas, open source as far as I can tell:

IBM Lotus Quickr is team collaboration software that helps you share content, collaborate and work faster online with your teams -- inside or outside firewall.

Interesting not just for its adoption of Web 2.0 technologies, but its anointing of the Flickr naming meme. (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

Once More unto the Breach

For all you Brits out there, something to ponder and then expatiate upon (nicely, mind):

OpenXML is an ECMA standard which has been submitted to ISO for endorsement as an international standard using the "fast-track" procedure.

...

The relevant BSI Technical Committee has set up a special panel to consider the UK position on the document and to submit technical comments. If you wish to submit comments, download your FREE copy please use the link below.

Download Draft International Standard ISO/IEC 29500 DPC here.

Please return the comments form electronically by 30 June 2007 to:

csc@bsi-global.com

So you know what to do. (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

ODF: The Speech

A rather fine little speech about ODF and the virtues of openness, made by IBM's Bob Sutor as part of his testimony to the Texas House and Senate regarding the open document format legislation. Here's the nub:

to be clear, EVERYONE can implement a true open standard. This bill is about choice. ODF and open standards for file formats will drive choice of applications, innovative use of information, increased competition, and lower prices. Personally, I think these are good things.

In closing, the world is shifting to non-proprietary open standards based on the amazing success of the World Wide Web, a success that was far more important than any single vendor’s market position or ideas for what was right for the world.

Do read it if you can: it has some nice rhetorical rhythms to it.

EU in SL?

Apparently:

The European Union is looking into entering the virtual world and opening up an office in Second Life - an increasingly popular internet-based virtual world - which the Swedish government and the French presidential candidates have already entered.

Some would say the European Union's grasp of reality is already pretty tenuous.... (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

The Openness Spreads...to Adobe's PDF

One campaign I have fought over the years has been for people to dump proprietary PDF files and use open HTML instead.

Clearly, I lost that one, but as time goes by, it's becoming less of a problem as Adobe moves PDF closer to being a totally open standard like HTML. Here's the latest news:

Most people know that PDF is already a standard so why do this now? This event is very subtle yet very significant. PDF will go from being an open standard/specification and defacto standard to a full blown du jure standard. The difference will not affect implementers much given PDF has been a published open standard for years. There are some important distinctions however. First – others will have a clearly documented process for contributing to the future of the PDF specification. That process also clearly documents the path for others to contribute their own Intellectual property for consideration in future versions of the standard. Perhaps Adobe could have set up some open standards process within the company but this would be merely duplicating the open standards process, which we felt was the proper home for PDF. Second, it helps cement the full PDF specification as the umbrella specification for all the other PDF standards under the ISO umbrella such as PDF/A, PDF/X and PDF/E. The move also helps realize the dreams of a fully open web as the web evolves (what some are calling Web 2.0), built upon truly open standards, technologies and protocols.

(Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

IBM Gets Open Source Religion - Seriously

A post on Bob Sutor's blog points to IBM's mega-site devoted to open source. Interesting enough, but even more interesting his comment on it:

It’s hard to think of any part of IBM’s business that is not now affected by open source

One of the first, but certainly not the last.

Open Source Disaster Management System

No, really: it's called Sahana. (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

Eclipse Becomes Even Healthier

I've written elsewhere about the stunning rise of Eclipse. The news that IBM, the original donor of code, has given some more software to the project, this time in the field of healthcare, is notable. It shows that what began as a rather specific tool for Java programmers is now turning into a general platform. I predict that Eclipse will one day be the main such platform for every kind of development project, whatever the domain. (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

More ODF Support Out in the Open

Alfresco, probably the leading open source enterprise content management company, has announced that it will support ODF. Not earth-shattering in itself, but a useful, incremental, step forward. (Via Bob Sutor's Open Blog.)

ODF Viewer for Firefox

As ODF continues its long march to conquer the world, the number of ODF documents that you come across online will increase. This makes an ODF Viewer for Firefox an indispensable tool. And there's one on the way - but be careful, it's alpha code only at the moment. (Via Bob Sutor's Blog.)

ODF a Standard in Malaysia?

The word is spreading: it seems that ODF is likely to become a standard in Malaysia, too. (Via Bob Sutor's Blog.)

ODF A.G. (After Google)

It's curious the low-key way that Google has joined the ODF Alliance. But there's no mistaking the impact and importance of that move. IBM's Bob Sutor has some interesting observations in this context. Two in particular:

It is up to Google to say what they want about this, but, as I noted last night, ODF Alliance membership jumped by 20 members in the few days following the news of their membership.

and

OpenDocument is bringing on a Renaissance of document creation and publishing. That which we used to know is being rediscovered and combined (mashed together) with what we have learned recently.

The orthodoxy of "this is how you create office documents" is going to fall by the wayside, though there will opposing kingdoms and battles and heretics and maybe even a few heros emerging.