Re: Java helps prove consumers want technology unbundled

[Paul Rickard <mail@msbc.simplenet.com>]

hopper@omnifarious.mn.org

>> However, to be perfectly fair to Sun, it must be noted that they have
>> claimed at various times that to submit to an open standards-setting
>> process in the current climate would result in Microsoft somehow
>> gaining control of the standard, or at least would increase the
>> probability of that outcome.  While such an argument is obviously
>> self-serving, I cannot say with 100% confidence that they are wrong,
>> since I do not participate in the standards-setting process myself and
>> therefore am not in a position to evaluate their claim.
>
>	I understand Sun's trepidation here.  If they would open up
>their test suite to the public and/or if they would release a full Java
>implementation as Open Source, but still maintain control of the
>trademark, they'd end up with a de-facto standard without having to
>expose Java to a Microsoft stacked standards process.
>
>	About the only standard's body that I think Microsoft would have
>a hard time corrupting would be the IETF.  If people can't already tell,
>I have lots of respect for them.  :-)

    I have said for some time that Microsoft failed to competely corrupt 
and Windowize Java only because it was a technology controlled by a 
company, not a standards body. Look at the W3C and how easily Microsoft 
took it over, simply by having several employees 'volunteer' to help with 
the standards. Standards that eventually took on most of the proprietary 
IE 3/4 tags and ignored proprietary Netscape 3/4 tags. This is also, I 
feel, why AOL has waited to long to submit instant messaging to these 
same standard bodies, since Microsoft could swallow up that one just as 
easily.


======== Paul Rickard, Editor of The Microsoft Boycott Campaign =======
--------------------------------[ Http://www.msboycott.com ]-----------