KEY POINTS:
For computer users they've become comfortably familiar three-letter abbreviations - .doc, .txt, .pdf, .mp3 - the list goes on, including all sorts of file formats.
You know when you click on a file with one of those extensions that an application on your computer will very likely be able to open it.
That's a type of universal acceptance that has taken place across the software industry and it makes our digital lives easier.
But what about in 10 or 20 years? Will these file formats still be in use and, more importantly, will all the documents created in the past 15 years or so by Government bureaucrats, business people and you at home, still be able to be accessed through whatever applications are commonly used in the future?
You'd hope for everyone's sake the answer is yes. And although the technology industry claims it wants that to be the case, there's strong difference of opinion over how it should be achieved.
Microsoft, the creator of the .doc file format, which most of us use to create documents in the Microsoft Office word processor, believes the answer lies in its new OOXML (Office Open Extensible Mark-up Language) file format, which is set as the default file saving option in Office 2007.
The incorporation of XML into Microsoft file formats is supposed to encourage the long-term re-use of data.
Microsoft wants the powerful International Standards Organisation (ISO) to rubber-stamp Open XML as an industry standard, something that would not only help to ensure the long-term survival of its revenue-generating Office suite, but also mean our Word documents can still be opened in 2037.
To appease its rivals, Microsoft has already passed control of Open XML to an independent body, the European Computer Manufacturers' Association.
Long criticised for forcing proprietary de facto standards on the computer industry that serve to protect its software hegemony, you'd think the move by Microsoft to seek independent oversight of an important standard would be cheered by the industry.
But Microsoft's bid for ISO certification has instead met with strong patches of resistance around the world, where ISO member countries, including New Zealand, get to vote on the matter.
The opposition, led by Microsoft's rivals such as IBM and the open-source software movement, centres on the technical detail of Open XML, though the existence of the already ISO-certified rival format OpenDocument Format also explains the lack of enthusiasm from some quarters.
The debate reached our shores last week when Standards New Zealand held a two-day conference to hear submissions on Open XML. The discussion was reported to be "lively".
Don Christie, the president of the New Zealand Open-source Society, laid out his concerns about Open XML.
"If Open XML goes through as an ISO standard, the IT industry, government and business will be encumbered with a 6000-page specification peppered with potential patent liabilities," Christie said, adding that the process to standardise Open XML appeared to have been rushed.
In contrast, numerous technology companies have lent their support to Open XML, fearing that not doing so could leave them with islands of unusable documents some time in the future.
"I don't think we have anything to gain by rejecting this," wrote tech entrepreneur and Xero.com founder Rod Drury on his blog.
"New Zealand has had huge adoption of Microsoft technologies and we have a long history of developing local technology companies in partnership with Microsoft."
Standards New Zealand will cast its vote tomorrow on whether to endorse Open XML and the final ISO ballets are expected on September 2.
Early signs are that Microsoft probably has the numbers to get its ISO badge. But even if it doesn't, Open XML will still become the de facto file format of the future, simply due to the fact that Microsoft Office is so widely used.
We're going to see these files popping up in email attachments and on the internet as people upgrade to new versions of Office.
For that reason, standardisation of Open XML, whether it happens now or after another round of consultation with industry players, should be a no-brainer. It is unclear yet how widely used the DEAF format will be, but it strikes me that with the ISO overseeing standards for everything from escalators to factory equipment, there's room for a few software file formats, including one devoted to preserving the most popular of file formats.
