Computerworld News reports IBM Workplace client to support Open Document Format in ’06. “In a move that could pit it against Microsoft, IBM plans to support the Open Document Format for Office Applications (ODF) in a version of its Workplace Managed Client 2.6 due out early next year.”
Great news! Interoperability and Working Well with Others is Good.
Competition breeds Innovation. “In a move that could pit it against Microsoft?” It seems that journalists have to set up simple Either-Or binary contests when the world is far more complex than that. It’s not IBM vs. Microsoft any more than it is Novell vs. Sun: it’s an ecology of competition, progress, cooperation and differences. Companies will cooperate and join together to advance some standards, and compete on other fronts. IBM is adding another file format to its office product. It’s doubtful that IBM will drop ASCII, RTF, Word Perfect, AmiPro or MS Word format. More adoption of ODF is a welcome sign.