Ballardvale Blog: Microsoft's XML Move

Ballardvale Blog: Microsoft's XML Move: "Regarding Microsoft's dominance of the office market, it will continue. True, non-proprietary formats make it easier for IT departments to urge switching to alternatives such as Open Office -- but IT is the tail here, not the dog. What will prevent companies from switching is not the IT costs but the training costs. People are creatures of habit, and after you've become used to the Microsoft way of doing things, everything else looks difficult. If solutions like Open Office want to convert people, they should take a page out of Microsoft's book: it lured Lotus 1-2-3 and WordPerfect customers with extensive Help and compatibility macros.
Microsoft now views Office as a platform (pay attention carefully to the terms used -- five years ago, Windows was a platform, and Office was an application). It will defend Office with its life. I'm sure the XML decision was debated long and hard within Microsoft's halls. And in my mind, it's the correct decision."