[linux-audio-user] Re: Is the Linux desktop really here?

[Mark Knecht]

On Wed, 2003-12-10 at 10:13, Juhana Sadeharju wrote:
> [ someone ]
> >As someone who runs a business, why would I want to pay someone $600 to
> >fix 10 documents when I can buy Microsoft's tools for $300 and have
> >guaranteed compatibility? That's a tough sell...
> 
> Hello. We should have a law which says the file formats should be
> open formats. People who write and make documents should have a vendor
> independent access to the documents.
> 
> At meanwhile, why one should be able to read Word and Excel documents
> in Linux? One can always ask clients to print to the good old paper
> or to an image file.
> 
> Regards,
> Juhana

Juhana,
   We should have a law? That's a big step. It's more likely to end up
looking like DRM than something that opens word processing formats to
the world...

   But, really, why should we have a law at all? It's my business to
buy, use and get stuck inside a proprietary format that I cannot get out
of, isn't it?

   Beyond that, if my vendors and customers have chosen to be stuck in
this proprietary format, and if I want to do business with them, then I
have to use this proprietary format. Isn't that our business and not
yours or our respective governments? (Where do you live BTW?)

   I don't think we need a law. Far from it. A lot of good it would do
to have the U.S., France and Germany arguing about what format to
choose! ;-)

   Better to let the market decide. I see the cost of M$ Office and
Crossover Office as a small price to pay, or M$ Office and Windows XP
even, vs. getting a bunch of legislators involved and getting a decision
on this in 2010. By the time there is a law the world will have moved on
making the lay ;-)

   I doubt this argument means a hill of beans to someone sitting at
home, but this is the way business works. You make your choices and you
get the rewards or pay the consequences.

Cheers,
Mark