DIS ballot period for Ecma 376/DIS 29500

Ecma International has announced that they've heard from the JTC 1 Secretariat that Office Open XML has moved to the next phase of the ISO/IEC standards process. This phase, known as the DIS ballot period, will include detailed review of any technical questions and comments within the technical committees of all the nations involved in the standards process.

From the Ecma announcement:

“Ecma International welcomes the continuation of the ISO/IEC DIS 29500 process for Ecma-376: Office Open XML File Formats with the 5-month ballot by the national members of ISO and IEC” said Dr. Istvan Sebestyen, new Secretary General of Ecma International. ”We look forward to working with ISO/IEC and their Member Bodies and National Committees to address any technical issues that they may have about Office Open XML and look forward to Ecma-376 Office Open XML becoming an ISO/IEC standard”.

Let your voice be heard

If you're a developer working with Open XML and you'd like to see it become an ISO standard, there's something you can do to make a positive difference: contact your country's ISO representatives and let them know how Open XML is proividing unique benefits to your organization and your customers. The standards process is driven by local participation in each country, so make sure your country's representatives know what's at stake.

You can find email addresses and other local contact info for your country on ISO's list of member bodies. Let them know in your own words how standardization of Open XML will benefit your local software economy or provide unique benefits to local citizens. if you think things like custom XML schema support, content controls, SmartArt, documentation of formulas and digital signatures, and other unique areas of Open XML functionality are important, now is the time to speak up.