Ian <> wrote on 05/17/2009 05:48:25 AM:
>
> Is OpenOffice.org not a reference implementation? After all, odf came
> out of that project.
>
It comes down to definitions. Some people say a reference implementation
is one that is co-developed with the standard and is a "proof of
implementability" of the feature of the standard. Others say that a
reference implementation's code must be freely available. Others say that
it must pass a conformance test. Others require that the reference
implementation implements all of the features of the standard, including
all of the optional features.
So, by some definitions, OpenOffice.org could be called a reference
implementation. My point was that neither OASIS nor the ODF TC has
adopted a definition or designated a reference implementation, nor does
our process require this. What we do require is that a specification have
three successful implementations which conform to the standard before we
can vote on it as an OASIS Standard. A single reference implementation is
not part of our formal process.
That's my answer wearing my TC Chair hat.
Wearing another hat, as an implementor of ODF, I'd say, yes, of course we
look at OpenOffice and treat it as a reference implementation. I assume
all (or most) vendors recognize that it is the most-established and
fullest implementation of the standard, that most ODF documents in
existence were created in OpenOffice, and that if you want to have
reasonable interoperability you must test your ODF output with OpenOffice.
-Rob
