Oliver Bell’s weblog

It has been a fun year, it seems that I picked a near perfect time to step out of the corporate fortress and head back into the real world, with the Open XML debate underway and all.

That said, I can’t think of a single individual that I’ve met in the last year that I have not totally enjoyed engaging with, in the Open XML debate alone (and I’m pleased to say that this year has involved a lot more than just that single thread!) I have met a whole range of folks that Microsoft employees just don’t generally get an opportunity to spend time with.

As the year has gone on some of these individuals have moved from being adversarial to folks that I have enjoyed some slightly more social time with… and that is worth a fortune, both in terms of my own personal growth, my increasing understanding of the true diversity of cultures that are represented in this region and how I represent Microsoft.

I think I’ll leave the year with a link to a blog post that I came across earlier this week on Jesper Lund’s blog, the post started off as a tongue in cheek look at some of the blogging techniques that have been used, specifically by our friends at IBM, over the last year. In itself the post is mildly amusing, the interesting part though is the discussion that then ensues between Rob Weir and Gary Edwards in the comments section - it makes for an interesting read, and a fun way to burn some of the spare time that we all have during this season!

You will find the post linked here, below I’ve copied a small extract of one of the comments, I don’t know that any of this has any value but the drama is certainly entertaining.

Don’t click the link unless you have about an hour to spare.

In the words of Gary Edwards from the comments section; (just a teaser)

Interestingly, IBM joined OASIS ODF two days prior to the final vote period. IBM joined the ODF technical Committee on April 14th, 2005, right before the final vote on ODF 1.0 which took place between April 16th and April 30th of 2005. Two days! No meetings. No work. No contributions. Zero participation. But oh what a motherload of media coverage IBM continues to reap.

I’m sure next year holds even more than this year has, I know Microsoft has some big plans for continuing to engage in the standards world and I’m personally looking forward to being a part of it.

Enjoy the holidays and have a great New Year!