Sorry James, but Simon’s use of ‘Errorism’ isn’t that new, according to Google, not to mention the Sleek Geeks 2003/2004 National Science Week tour called The War On Error. 🙂
Monthly Archives: September 2005
Massachusetts Confirms OpenDoc is Go
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has now confirmed that its final decision is that their “Enterprise Technical Reference Model” Discipline for Data Formats specifies OpenDocument format as a requirement for office documents, as they did in their final draft.
To quote:
Description – The OASIS Open Document Format for Office Applications (OpenDocument) is a standardized XML-based file format specification suitable for office applications. It covers the features required by text, spreadsheets, charts, and graphical documents. The specification was recently approved by OASIS as an open standard. OASIS has also submitted the standard to ISO for consideration as an international standard for office document formats.
Guidelines – The OpenDocument format must be used for office documents such as text documents (.odt), spreadsheets (.ods), and presentations (.odp). The OpenDocument format is currently supported by a variety of office applications including OpenOffice.org, StarOffice, KOffice, and IBM Workplace.[…] Agencies will need to develop phased migration plans allowing them to configure existing applications to save office documents by default in the OpenDocument format with an implementation date of January 1, 2007. Any acquisition of new office applications must support the OpenDocument format natively.
They also have a FAQ page which shows that they really do “get it” and didn’t buy the claims that vendors would be “locked out” by choosing this format, debunking the myth thus:
QUESTION: Why are you making agencies deploy a single office product? Doesn’t state procurement law require competition among vendors, which you will foreclose?
ANSWER: The Final ETRM Version 3.5 does not require that agencies use only one office product. To the contrary, it offers agencies many choices. Agencies may choose to retain their existing MS Office licenses, as long as they use a method to save documents in Open Document Format. They may also use one of the many office tools that support Open Document Format in native format— OpenOffice, StarOffice, KOffice, Abiword, eZ publish, IBM Workplace, Knomos case management, Scribus DTP, TextMaker and Visioo Writer. Because the Open Document Format is an open standard, it increases the vendor pool available to state agencies by encouraging and permitting vendors not already in this field to develop products that support the standard. Adoption of the Final ETRM Version 3.5 will greatly increase competition among vendors for the sale of office applications to agencies.
They’ve also published all public comments received on this initiative, interesting reading!
World Gone Mad
The world is going barmy through fear – here’s someone getting arrested for wearing a rain jacket, carrying a rucksack with a laptop inside, looking down at the steps while going into a tube station and checking his phone for messages. I guess he probably considers himself lucky not to have been shot on suspicion.
The reason he quotes for being detained are:
- they found my behaviour suspicious from direct observation and then from watching me on the CCTV system;
- I went into the station without looking at the police officers at the entrance or by the gates;
- two other men entered the station at about the same time as me;
- I am wearing a jacket “too warm for the season”;
- I am carrying a bulky rucksack, and kept my rucksack with me at all times;
- I looked at people coming on the platform;
- I played with my phone and then took a paper from inside my jacket.
Found via Simon Rumble.
Donna’s Visited Countries List
So, here’s my wife’s map of where she’s been to!
SCO’s Attempt to Trademark “UNIX SYSTEMS LABORATORIES” Rejected by USPTO
So, SCO tried to trademark the mark “UNIX SYSTEMS LABORATORIES” (originated by AT&T) back in June 2004, and that has now been rejected (subject to appeal) by the USPTO. You can see all the documents on the case on the USPTO page for US serial number 78438912
The following summarises the reason for rejection, with my emphasis on the word “again”.
Registration of the proposed mark is refused again because of a likelihood of confusion with the marks in the following U.S. Registration Nos.: 1390593, 1392203, and 2241666. Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d); TMEP §§1207.01 et seq. […]
In this case, Applicant’s mark and the Registered marks all share an identical term, UNIX. The term “UNIX” is the dominant feature of the marks. The mere addition of a term to a registered mark does not obviate the similarity between the marks nor does it overcome a likelihood of confusion under Section 2(d). [….]
Therefore, the presence of the highly descriptive wording, “SYSTEM LABORATORIES,” in the Applicant’s mark is insufficient to overcome the likelihood of confusion. In re E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 476 F.2d 1357, 177 USPQ 563 (C.C.P.A. 1973). The average purchaser of the goods or services is likely to believe that Applicant’s goods or services emanate from the same source as the goods and services under the registered “UNIX” marks. Additionally, Applicant concedes that the marks are substantially similar. Since similarity in any one of these elements is sufficient to find a likelihood of confusion, the marks are confusingly similar.
North Korea to Stop Nuclear Program ?
Our ABC is just reporting that North Korea is to stop its nuclear program.
Under the terms of the agreement, North Korea will have the right to a civilian nuclear program if it regains international trust, resolving the main sticking point between Pyongyang and Washington.
Here’s hoping it lasts..
Dell Dumps Itanic
So, Dell are dropping Itanium, apparently because Intel have stopped developing the support chipsets and now leave that up to people like HP and SGI.
Best quote from the article has to be:
Dell’s decision is hardly surprising given its poor sales figures. Dell lives or dies by high volumes, but last year shipped just 1,371 Itanium servers. That’s up from just 12 the previous year, but it was enough to give Dell five per cent of the IA-64 market.
My Visited Countries (MEME in progress)
When you can’t beat them..
Google Blog Search
If you want to know more about Google’s Blog Search then my mate Rich has a nice little article about it on his blog.
Too Important To Discuss ?
So the Liberals pushed through the bill for the sale of Telstra keeping discussion to a minimum. I thought democracy was about talking about things! If this goes horribly wrong (which it’s quite likely to) then it’ll be a case of “Act in haste, repent at leisure”. Except it’ll be the Australian public who suffer, even though 70% of Australians oppose the sale.
To sell off the telco, the Liberals:
- Introduced the 5 bills to Parliament on Thursday;
- Held a one day Senate inquiry on Friday, giving people about 12 hours to read the bills beforehand;
- Brought the 5 bills to the Senate today and got them passed by supressing discussion through a guillotine motion.
This is the same company that has 14% of all phone lines faulty, admitted massively under-investing in its network and then its directors awarded themselves massive pay rises.