UDC picks BMD candidate
SHARE | Thursday, 04 July 2019	| By Tebogo Mmolawa
UDC's; Ntsima and AP's; Mmolotsi
In a surprising turn of events, strange bedfellows the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) and Botswana Movement for Democracy (BMD) are united behind Francistown South parliamentary candidate, Tiroyaone Ntsima.
Ntsima, who is a BMD activist, has been unanimously endorsed by the coalition partners in Francistown South constituency to challenge the incumbent, Wynter Mmolotsi, the Vice President of the Alliance for Progressives (AP).
The announcement was made by BCP vice president, Dr Kesetegile Gobotswang during the party's leadership forum that was held in the second city recently. The declaration brings to finality a matter that has been dragging for far too long after the expulsion of the BMD from the coalition. After BMD was kicked out some BCP activists showed interest to contest in the constituency. Their main reason was that they have a huge following and thus stand a better chance to give the incumbent Mmolotsi a run for his money.
Since the 2014 General Elections, political dynamics in the constituency have changed. In the previous polls, Mmolotsi contested under the UDC ticket but currently he is the vice president of the Alliance for Progressives – a breakaway formation from the BMD.
Among those that were harbouring ambitions of contesting for the constituency was David Tawele and BCP Youth League president, Thabologo Furniture. Some within the BCP, among them being Gift Keakitse, were pushing for the UDC leadership to order primary elections in the constituency for the duo to battle it out.
Some within the alliance strongly believe that Ntsima is a political novice who cannot match Mmolotsi. They insist that the coalition could have opted for a more experienced politician to face the incumbent.
Ntsima has confirmed the latest developments within the UDC. "Yes, it is true that the UDC National Executive Committee has confirmed me as the candidate for Francistown South. After BMD was expelled, UDC president Duma Boko said during a press conference in Gaborone that all BMD candidates willing to contest under the UDC ticket could apply to do so and I swiftly seized that moment," the youthful Ntsima said.
Now that the matter has been put to rest, Ntsima revealed that he has instantly intensified his campaigns in the constituency, adding that he has had a good working relationship with BCP members who have been supporting his candidature.
"With the help of other coalition partners, I am confident that we will win the constituency during the upcoming general elections. I am aware that Mmolotsi has turned the constituency into his fortress but we will oust him," he declared.
According to Ntsima, a consensus was also reached concerning all the seven wards in the constituency. He stated that Botswana People's Party and Botswana National Front were given one ward each while the remaining five went to BCP.
Ntsima has also confirmed that he will soon dump the BMD to join one of the parties under the Umbrella. He will now face Mmolotsi and the ruling Botswana Democratic Party's Modiri Jojo Lucas at the October polls which political observers have predicted that they will be tightly contested. It remains to be seen whether the new political formation, Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) will field a candidate at the constituency but sources have hinted that Ford Moiteela might throw his name into the ring.


Hayek and the Common Law
Why Doesn't Hayek Answer the Questions That I Feel Are Important?
Bruce Caldwell • December 31, 2009 •
I have attended a lot of Liberty Fund meetings on Hayek and have noticed that as a rule economists tend to like Hayek's ideas much more than political philosophers (whether housed in philosophy or political science departments) do. The fascinating and instructive exchange between Sandefur and Hasnas has helped me to understand why. Hayek doesn't answer the questions they feel are important.
For economists the existence of spontaneous orders is obvious. I am writing from home so do not have the texts in front of me, but I believe that Hayek in his 1933 inaugural lecture said something like recognizing the existence of such an order (though I think the word that he used there was "organism") was the beginning of economics as a discipline. That sounds about right. That a whole new field studying complex adaptive systems has emerged since Hayek first began writing about these issues suggests at a minimum that economists are not alone. Because such orders when humans are involved contain intentional action which gives rise to unintended orders does provide complications, but I think that Hasnas' careful discussion in his second reply answers the questions that Sandefur raised.
In his latest post, Sandefur writes,
In Law, Legislation And Liberty and The Constitution of Liberty, Hayek is not writing simply as an economist: he's writing as a lawyer, and he promises us a clear-cut conceptual distinction — he even comes up with Greek names (taxis and kosmos) and always speaks of spontaneous and constructed orders as though they are conceptually distinct; this distinction is crucial to his prescriptive sociology.
This gets at, I think, a key reason why he and I read Hayek so differently. I am not trained as a lawyer and I never thought of Hayek in either Law, Legislation and Liberty or Constitution of Liberty as writing as a lawyer. (I do not have either text at home with me, so cannot check whether he anywhere "promised us a clear-cut conceptual distinction," but perhaps Sandefur has a particular passage in mind that he might provide.) More important, I don't think Hayek saw himself as doing so, either. That may account for why he does not set his problem up in the way that Sandefur would prefer, or provide answers to questions he'd like to have answers to.
Economists sometimes feel a similar frustration. Hayek always wrote at a very abstract level. A lot of economists who hope to find in his writings direct answers to specific policy questions will not come away satisfied. I challenge our audience to tell me what Hayek thought about anti-trust policy. I think that he had good reasons to keep things vague — the Mont Pelerin Society had members from countries who defined a liberal society very differently, and he wanted to keep them talking to one another. But in the end it is also true that Hayek was no policy wonk, and those who are would probably do better reading either Milton Friedman or the Cato Handbook for Policymakers (the latest copy of which I would be delighted to receive from our good host as a belated Christmas present!) than him. [I'll see to it. — Ed.]
I'd like briefly to defend Hayek's recourse to evolutionary theory and in particular his claim that our morals are a product of evolution. Both Sandefur and Hasnas see this as a weakness, whereas I see it as a strength, at least for what I think Hayek was trying to do. I read Hayek as a scientist trying to explain how we moved from a hunter-gatherer society to what he termed "the great society," and also to explain why humans so often hate markets, even though the evolution of a market society was fundamental in the movement to the great society. The evolution of our morals also played a fundamental role. In the end, Hayek was no foundationalist when it came to morals. This was the reason why Bill Bartley, the Popperian philosopher who was the first General Editor of Hayek's Collected Works and who as a follower of Popper argued that Popper's whole enterprise involved replacing the problem of justification with that of criticism, was so attracted to Hayek's late work, what Bartley called his evolutionary epistemology and his evolutionary ethics.[1] Bartley was pleased with Hayek's lack of foundations. And it is why people with specifically normative concerns, people like Hasnas and Sandefur who are seeking for that elusive "Archimedean fixed point," find this aspect of Hayek's work so unsatisfactory. Hasnas finds Hayek to be a bad moral philosopher. I think it is more accurate to say that he was a good scientist and social theorist, and not really a moral philosopher at all, at least not of the foundationalist variety.
I'll close by saying that the Austrian wertfreiheit tradition which feels so comfortable to those trained as economists — we tell ourselves that our task is not to make judgments, but to evaluate whether a particular set of means will achieve the ends that people say they want to pursue — is probably also part of the "problem."[2] We consider this stance a "virtue," but that is as far as we feel comfortable to go normatively.
[1] For more on this see my paper "Clarifying Popper," Journal of Economic Literature 29, March 1991, pp. 1–33, especially the section on "Popper on Critical Rationalism."
[2]Although Robert Nelson is probably right that as the 20th century progressed the economics profession moved from "neutral policy experts" to advocates for efficiency in policymaking. See his "The Economics Profession and the Making of Public Policy," Journal of Economic Literature 25, March 1987, pp. 49–91.
Also from this issue
Lead Essay
Four Problems with Spontaneous Order by Timothy Sandefur
In his lead essay, lawyer and legal theorist Timothy Sandefur proposes that Friedrich Hayek's understanding of law and justice is flawed: Spontaneous order may be a descriptively accurate concept, but it has little or no effective normative content. Depending on how one chooses to focus, those who wish to reform a spontaneous order are either constructive rationalists — thus, outside the order, and presumptively bad — or they are manifestations of the spontaneous order itself, which changes over time. He suggests that the Hayekian approach to legal reform is simply "be careful," and that this is not terribly helpful advice.
Response Essays
Four Solutions to Sandefur's Problems by John Hasnas
In his response essay, John Hasnas offers solutions to Sandefur's problems. He suggests that genuine spontaneous orders can be recognized as having no final decision makers, and hence as recognizing a multitude of individual choices. Constructed orders have a final decision maker, and do not respect individual choice. The normative benefits of a spontaneous order are therefore clear: It offers a greater scope for peaceful cooperation, while tending to reduce coercion incrementally. Still, Hasnas admits, spontaneous orders will always be "riddled with injustice," in part owing to our own limited knowledge and virtue. He suggests that one key missing insight helps rescue much of Hayekian legal thought: the notion that laws, too, respond to market forces.
Liberty between the Lines in a Modernist Age by Daniel B. Klein
Daniel Klein argues that much of the fuzziness in Hayek's writing was strategic — designed to bring lapsed liberals back into the fold, or to appeal to people who would never accept an unvarnished liberalism. Still, Klein finds great value in Hayek's work. He argues that, while out of fashion at the time, Hayek's own willingness to be indeterminate, and to embrace indeterminateness, was both consistent with the Smithian understanding of the social order — and predictive of some of the best work being done today in economics and in other social sciences.
Making Sense of Hayek on Spontaneous Order by Bruce Caldwell
Bruce Caldwell proposes two solutions to Sandefur's problems. The first is to acknowledge that Hayek was a rule utilitarian, albeit one who recognized that the rules we have inherited are the products of a spontaneous order. The second is to claim that Hayek wasn't proposing any normative conclusions at all — he was simply making observations in a value-neutral way, as might befit a member of the Austrian School, which was deeply influenced by Max Weber's ideal of a value-neutral social science. Both approaches have their strengths and weaknesses, Caldwell admits, yet in the end he cannot accept Sandefur's claim that there is no meaningful distinction between spontaneous and designed orders. Although the difference can be difficult to put into words, we know them when we see them.
Unmade, Amoral Orders Composed of Made, Moral Orders? A Response to John Hasnas by Timothy Sandefur
The Light "Between the Lines" Is Doing All the Work: A Response to Prof. Klein by Timothy Sandefur
Once More unto the Breach: A Reply to Timothy Sandefur's Response by John Hasnas
The Mind-Society Spiral by Daniel B. Klein
Is "Know It When I See It" Enough? by Timothy Sandefur
Reflections on Dead Horses, Semantic Confusion, and Straw Men by John Hasnas
1 1/2 Cheers for Tim's Impetus by Daniel B. Klein
Why Doesn't Hayek Answer the Questions That I Feel Are Important? by Bruce Caldwell
A Bit of Backpedaling by John Hasnas


Manufacturing, agri sectors perk up economic growth from April till Nov
Dec 2, 2020 @ 16:24
By Adrian Lim
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 2: The manufacturing and agriculture sectors were the main contributors to the economic growth of the country during the Covid-19 pandemic between April to November this year.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Economic Affairs) Arthur Joseph Kurup said a few economic indicators have shown signs of economic recovery for the country in recent months.
For instance, he said the manufacturing index has risen by 2.1 per cent in September 2020 as compared to a contraction of 2.1 per cent in August 2020.
"The sales of manufactured goods have increased by 3.7 per cent in September 2020 to RM121.2 billion and crude palm oil prices (CPO) have climbed up to RM3,422 per tonne recently from the lowest point of RM2,047 per tonne in May this year.
"The Standard Malaysian Rubber (SMR 20) rubber price was traded at RM6.33 per kilogramme in November as compared to the lowest price of RM4.73 per kilogramme in April 2020.
"Based on those developments, it means that the manufacturing and agriculture sectors are among the main contributors for the economic growth during Covid-19," he said in Parliament today.
Arthur was replying to Kota Samarahan MP Rubiah Wang who asked the government as to what are the five biggest economic sectors of the country and which sectors contributed major economic growth during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Arthur disclosed that the five biggest economic sectors of the country were services which contributed 57.7 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP) followed by manufacturing (22.3 per cent), agriculture (7.1 per cent), mining and quarry (7.1 per cent) and construction (4.7 per cent).
He asserted that the economy for the country is expected to return to the growth path next year between 6.5 per cent and 7.5 per cent after projected to contract by 4.5 per cent this year.
To a supplementary question by Rubiah on the efforts by the government to assist the tourism industry which was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, Arthur who is also Pensiangan MP said the tourism industry will only be able to chart a recovery path once a vaccine for the virus is available for the public.
He added the recovery for the tourism sector is also depending on foreign countries opening up their borders.
In the meantime, Arthur said the government has rolled out the domestic travel bubble by promoting domestic tourism as part of the efforts to rejuvenate the tourism industry in Malaysia.
He added the economic stimulus packages introduced by the federal government have also managed to lower the unemployment rate to 4.6 per cent in September 2020 from 5.3 per cent in May 2020.
Those include two rounds of wage subsidy schemes amounted to RM18 billion and economic stimulus packages such as the Prihatin Economic Stimulus Package (Prihatin), the National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) and the Prihatin Supplementary Initiative Package (Kita Prihatin) announced by the federal government.
Arthur added various incentives and assistance announced in Budget 2021 will also aid airline workers who were retrenched and reduce the impact of Covid-19 pandemic for tourism industry players affected by the coronavirus. —DayakDaily
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Projek pembinaan jalan baharu Long Lama boleh dipohon semula dalam RMK-12
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Worst of Covid-19's impact will be felt by Malaysia's most vulnerable
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JPJ dan Polis berkolaborasi dalam ops Covid-19


Aurora Semerano, MD
@semerano_aurora
Kamel H, Navi BB, Parikh NS, Merkler AE, Okin PM, Devereux RB, Weinsaft JW, Kim J, Cheung JW, Kim LK, et al. Machine Learning Prediction of Stroke Mechanism in Embolic Strokes of Undetermined Source. Stroke. 2020;51:e203–e210.
In 2014, when the concept of embolic stroke of undetermined source (ESUS) was proposed,1 confidence existed that ESUS could represent a single entity which would have benefitted from a unified treatment. However, after two randomized clinical trials did not show benefit of direct oral anticoagulation for secondary prevention of ESUS patients,2,3 it is now common opinion that these patients rather represent a heterogeneous population and are likely to benefit from tailored, personalized therapies. Today, ESUS represents a useful definition to identify patients deserving extended diagnostic workup, while prevention therapy for these patients remains elusive, and clinical stroke recurrence is still an issue. Both subgroup analyses from the above-mentioned clinical trials and new research studies have been developed or are ongoing, to better understand the pathophysiology of ESUS and help in patient selection.
In such a phenotypically heterogeneous population, one big effort is to identify patient subsets with a single or group of underlying mechanisms likely to respond to an established treatment. With this right purpose of uncover the "hidden structure" in a complex scenario, the recent study from Kamel et al.4 employs a machine learning approach. Firstly, a supervised machine-learning algorithm was developed to distinguish cardioembolic versus non-cardioembolic strokes in a population of 1083 patients with known stroke etiology, by entering data about demographics, comorbidities, vitals, laboratory results, and echocardiograms. After the learning process, the system finally resulted to distinguish cardioembolic from non-cardioembolic strokes with excellent accuracy (area under the curve, AUC=0.85).
Secondly, the classifier was applied to a population of 580 ESUS patients and predicted that 44% of ESUS cases (95% credibility interval, 39%–49%) could result from occult cardiac embolism in the studied cohort. When comparing ESUS patients with the lowest and those with the highest quartile of likelihood for occult cardioembolism, patients with the highest probability of a cardioembolic mechanism resulted to be older; more likely White; with a clinical history of coronary artery disease, heart failure, and peripheral vascular disease; they were less likely active smokers; and they presented more severe strokes, lower ejection fractions, larger left atria, and lower blood pressure.
Finally, in order to test the validity of the classifier, the results of the prediction model were compared with the diagnosis rate of atrial fibrillation after hospital discharge, since ESUS patients routinely underwent 30 days of continuous heart-rhythm monitoring with an external loop recorder in the authors' center. Interestingly, atrial fibrillation was detected in 9.1% of patients in the highest quartile vs. 2.9% of those in the lowest quartile of predicted likelihood for a cardioembolic source.
The presented article is an encouraging example of how machine learning techniques can complement and extend conventional statistical methods in stroke medicine, providing unique tools to better understand complex data sets. Which are indeed the potential clinical implications and perspectives of this study? The proposed machine-learning approach may assist in setting the stage for future clinical trials, helping in the definition of appropriate eligibility criteria. It is interesting to note that the two ongoing randomized clinical trials,5,6 which are assessing the efficacy of oral anticoagulants in secondary prevention in ESUS, include a selected population of patients with markers of cardiac disease, being illustrative of the most recent attitude towards a personalized treatment in stroke medicine. Also, machine-learning could represent a tool to help in the decision about the intensity and the most appropriate protocols of the diagnostic workup of these patients. In addition, the data-driven comparison between the two distinguished (cardioembolic vs. non-cardioembolic) stroke subpopulations may provide novel pathophysiological insights.
Limitations are also extensively discussed in the article. Results need validations in other cohorts since local factors can influence the performance of artificial intelligence models. Also, the final validity assessment by means of post-discharge diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (lasting > 30 seconds) represents indirect, though not definitive, proof of an underlying cardioembolic mechanism, and longer-lasting atrial fibrillation could be proposed as an alternative validation criterion. Brain imaging features from a subset of patients were also analyzed, but did not result to add value to the prediction model. However, comprehensive data from imaging of large vessels should be the object of further investigations. Future machine-learning approaches focusing on other occult stroke mechanisms (e.g., non-stenosing large artery atherosclerosis) and/or examining recurrent stroke rates to identify the characteristics of patients at the highest risk are only two further examples of possible applications of artificial intelligence to stroke etiological investigation.
Artificial intelligence is an exciting resource in stroke research, with promising implications in various aspects of clinical stroke care.7,8 It is daily practice for every stroke physician to report big amounts of data in electronic records, which often result to be underutilized in the busy clinical setting, and can be hardly handled by conventional statistical methods. Nonetheless, it is now emerging that they may turn into information able to potentially influence clinical evaluations if properly integrated and interpreted by machine-learning approaches. Intensifying the dialogue with data scientists, as well as providing specific training for interested residents, fellows, and specialists, are both desirable for the present and the future of stroke medicine. Public dissemination in scientific literature with reported details about employed methods, data transformation, handling of missing data, etc., is pivotal for research generalizability and development of useful clinical algorithms.
1. Hart RG, Diener HC, Coutts SB, et al. Embolic strokes of undetermined source: the case for a new clinical construct. Lancet Neurol. 2014;13(4):429-438.
2. Hart RG, Sharma M, Mundell H, et al. Rivaroxaban for Stroke Prevention after Embolic Stroke of Undetermined Source. N Engl J Med. 2018;378(23):2191-2201.
3. Diener HC, Sacco RL, Easton JD, et al. Dabigatran for Prevention of Stroke after Embolic Stroke of Undetermined Source. N Engl J Med. 2019;380(20):1906-1917.
4. Kamel H, Navi BB, Parikh NS, et al. Machine Learning Prediction of Stroke Mechanism in Embolic Strokes of Undetermined Source. Stroke. 2020.
5. Kamel H, Longstreth WT Jr, Tirschwell DL, et al. The AtRial cardiopathy and antithrombotic drugs in prevention after cryptogenic stroke randomized trial: rationale and methods. Int J Stroke. 2019;14:207–214.
6. Geisler T, Poli S, Meisner C, et al. Apixaban for treatment of embolic stroke of undetermined source (ATTICUS randomized trial): Rationale and study design. Int J Stroke. 2017.
7. Shameer K, Johnson KW, Glicksberg BS, Dudley JT, Sengupta PP. Machine learning in cardiovascular medicine: are we there yet? Heart. 2018;104(14):1156-1164.
8. Mouridsen K, Thurner P, Zaharchuk G. Artificial Intelligence Applications in Stroke. Stroke. 2020;51(8):2573-2579.
October 12th, 2020|clinical, pathogenesis|Comments Off on Machine Learning as a Tool for Etiological Investigation in Stroke Medicine
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Ischemia in Intracerebral Hemorrhage: The Blood Pressure Conundrum
Lefties are Never Right: Is Atherosclerotic plaque in the Left carotid artery more vulnerable than on the Right?
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Poststroke Angiogenesis: Architect and/or Demolition Crew?
Regulatory T Cells in Females Provide Endogenous Neuroprotection, But Increase Secondary Neurodegeneration in Males in Neonatal Encephalopathy in Mice
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United for Equality in Sports & Entertainment is a Nonprofit Organization
Football Banners and Their Roles in a Successful Match
August 7, 2020 August 7, 2020 by uese
The history of banners and its use in society can be traced back to as late as the nineteenth century. Banners presented a means of expression for revolutions and demonstrations.
These banners played a significant role in our communications and appearance, and this trend has not stopped.
The Roles of Football Banners in a Successful Match
The use of banners in the world of sports has a history to it as well, and this dates way back too. They serve for football, baseball, softball, basketball and all kinds of sports.
Sport team banners are affordable and effective in displaying support. The production of these banners requires skills and expertise. They are a visual expression of visual and textual artistry.
The game of football is loved and watched by many, as it is one of the most popular games with a huge fan base. Banners are a useful tool for use in the game. Football is gaining popularity, and it keeps increasing.to the supporters, football is more than a game; it is a culture/tradition, an art of expression. It gives people an identity, a family, a group they belong to and connect. Supporting a team goes beyond being interested in a sport; it is an identity. Through this means, you form connections, mark out distinctions and have a sense of belonging to a group. It offers you the opportunity to celebrate with your favourite football team and enjoy the excitement that comes with it. Football has the potential to foster lasting bonds and friendships between people and associations.
In the game of football, you show your support to a team and state clearly that you belong with them and not with the opposite side. What better way to show and express your support than with a football banner? Showing your commitment to a football team arouses strong feelings among the supporters.
Both men and women play football as a sport. Football banners portray a powerful message of encouragement to the team and an identification. They are a common feature to see in football matches, be it a local club or an international organisation. You can celebrate your team using these banners.
Team sports banners contain texts, logos and images in some cases. You should know to the extent that your audience is knowledgeable, so you should consider this when you want to get a banner for your football team. The images may be of your team players, a logo or team mascot.
What comes to your mind first when you see a football banner? Is it the colours that attract you or the images? Team sports banners go beyond what you can see. They are an expression of words. Before you purchase a football banner, consider the words or inscriptions that will appear on it, as well as the material to use, the colours and the images. Ensure to use durable materials that will last longer and stand the test of time. You can express the team's colour on this banner and its logo.
Team sports banners are a popular item to see at football pitches. As a coach, you can spur your team to become better and win at their games. When a layer sees his or her name on a team sports banner, it creates a feeling of motivation and satisfaction. These banners also provide a lovely backdrop for photos of the soccer team.
Features of Football Banners
Team sports banners should be durable because they serve indoor and outdoor purposes. Sometimes, they may get wet or muddy if not adequately taken care. To avoid a tear of destruction, the best material to use is vinyl as it is durable for this purpose.
Banners are of different sizes. However, we recommend a rectangular shaped banner with 5' x 3' dimensions. Also, use a team sports banner with pole pockets. It is easier to use Pole pockets with a display stand. All you have to do is slide the poles into the pockets when you want to put it in the field. Poles pockets are preferred to grommets because grommets are smaller and require more work during the installation. Also, more accessories grommets need more than with pole pockets.
You don't have to break the bank to get the best team sports banner for your team. Many online stores provide templates for football banner designs, or you can put on your thinking cap and design something unique for the team, like a hand-crafted football banner. Nothing says "I support you" to a football team louder than a football banner. Therefore, your team should have one. You never know, you may draw sponsors to your team and win more fans with it.
With that in mind, use bold and readable texts for your football banners so they can easily be seen from anywhere in the field and ensure the colours used are not too flashy.
The aim is to show support to a team and motivate the players to do well, so it is essential to consider these factors before you set out to buy a football banner for your club.
A Guide to Different Types of Soccer Banners
Important Things to Consider Before Getting a Baseball Banner
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The News Scroll 30 July 2020 Last Updated at 4:43 pm | Source: PTI
Send accused in judicial custody after COVID-19 test: Odisha prison authority to police
Outlook July 30, 2020 16:43 IST Send accused in judicial custody after COVID-19 test: Odisha prison authority to police
Bhubaneswar, Jul 30 (PTI) The Odisha prison authority has asked the police to conduct RT-PCR test to detect coronavirus infection in accused before sending them to judicial custody, an official said on Thursday.
According to sources in the state prison directorate, 96 inmates of 10 prisons in the state were found to have been infected by the novel coronavirus. Seventeen staff of four jails have also tested positive for COVID-19, they said.
The officials expressed anxiety over the viral infection spreading in prisons despite several precautionary measures. They said the highest 54 cases of coronavirus infection have been detected in prisons of Berhampur circle, that also includes Ganjam district which has been hit hardest by the pandemic in Odisha.
"We have urged the police to conduct RT-PCR tests of the arrested persons before sending them to jails," Director General, Prison, S K Upadhay told PTI.
A total of 17,509 inmates are lodged in the 85 prisons of Odisha, an official said, adding the first confirmed case was found in the Puri jail on May 17 when an accused arrested by Kumbhapada police station tested positive.
Adequate measures under COVID-19 protocol are being taken to check the spread of the virus in jails.
Upadhay said 16,789 inmates have been released from jails across the state on parole to decongest prisons in the wake of the pandemic. Besides, the authorities have shifted over 1,200 inmates to other prisons in order to reduce crowding, Upadhay said.
Of those released on parole by July 28, 16,639 are undertrials and 150 convicts, he said.
The highest 5,231 inmates were released on parole under Berhampur circle keeping in view the vulnerability of Ganjam district, which has so far reported 9996 positive cases and accounted for 90 deaths.
Odisha has a caseload of 30,378, while the death toll has mounted to 169.
Meanwhile, authorities of the special jail in Bhubaneswar conducted antigen tests on 150 inmates and all the prisoners are being given a herbal concoction (''Kadha'') to boost immunity, said jail superintendent Dhiren Kumar Barik.
This apart, isolation wards are being disinfected in all jails as soon as the arrival of a new inmate, a senior official at the prison directorate said, adding inmates in some jails are also being given homoeopathic medicines to boost their immunity. PTI AAM SNS NSD
Disclaimer :- This story has not been edited by Outlook staff and is auto-generated from news agency feeds. Source: PTI
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Information on 1kb9
PDB: 1kb9
Compound: ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase complex core prot
Classification: OXIDOREDUCTASE/ELECTRON TRANSPORT
KEYWORD: 3D-structure Electron transport Inner membrane Mitochondrion Oxidoreductase Respiratory chain Transit peptide
EC: 1.10.2.2
SCOP: d.185.1.1 Alpha and beta proteins (a+b) LuxS/MPP-like metallohydrolase LuxS/MPP-like metallohydrolase MPP-like Cytochrome bc1 core subunit 1 Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO:
GO: metalloendopeptidase activity proteolysis and peptidolysis
KEYWORD: 3D-structure Electron transport Heme Mitochondrion Respiratory chain Transmembrane
SCOP: f.32.1.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides a domain/subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) a domain/subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) a domain/subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Mitochondrial cytochrome b subunit, C-terminal domain Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
SCOP: f.21.1.2 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Heme-binding four-helical bundle Transmembrane di-heme cytochromes Cytochrome b of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Mitochondrial cytochrome b subunit, N-terminal domain Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: membrane oxidoreductase activity electron transport
KEYWORD: 3D-structure Electron transport Heme Mitochondrion Respiratory chain Transit peptide Transmembrane
SCOP: a.3.1.3 All alpha proteins Cytochrome c Cytochrome c Cytochrome bc1 domain Cytochrome bc1 domain Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
SCOP: f.23.11.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Single transmembrane helix Cytochrome c1 subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase), transmembrane anchor Cytochrome c1 subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase), transmembrane anchor Cytochrome c1 subunit of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase), transmembrane anchor Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: mitochondrial electron transport chain electron transporter activity heme binding electron transport
CHAIN: E
KEYWORD: 2Fe-2S 3D-structure Electron transport Inner membrane Iron Iron-sulfur Metal-binding Mitochondrion Oxidoreductase Respiratory chain Transit peptide Transmembrane
SCOP: b.33.1.1 All beta proteins ISP domain ISP domain Rieske iron-sulfur protein (ISP) ISP subunit of the mitochondrial cytochrome bc1-complex, water-soluble domain Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
SCOP: f.23.12.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Single transmembrane helix ISP transmembrane anchor ISP transmembrane anchor Iron-sulfur subunit (ISP) of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase), transmembrane region Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: membrane ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase complex ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase complex (sensu Eukaryota) oxidoreductase activity ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase activity electron transport
CHAIN: F
KEYWORD: 3D-structure Electron transport Inner membrane Mitochondrion Oxidoreductase Respiratory chain
SCOP: f.28.1.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Non-heme 11 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Non-heme 11 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Non-heme 11 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Non-heme 11 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
CHAIN: G
SCOP: f.27.1.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides 14 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) 14 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) 14 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) 14 kDa protein of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase activity electron transport mitochondrial electron transport, ubiquinol to cytochrome c
CHAIN: H
SCOP: f.23.13.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Single transmembrane helix Ubiquinone-binding protein QP-C of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Ubiquinone-binding protein QP-C of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Ubiquinone-binding protein QP-C of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase complex (sensu Eukaryota) ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase activity electron transport
CHAIN: I
KEYWORD: 3D-structure Electron transport Inner membrane Mitochondrion Oxidoreductase Respiratory chain Transmembrane
SCOP: f.23.14.1 Membrane and cell surface proteins and peptides Single transmembrane helix Subunit X (non-heme 7 kDa protein) of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Subunit X (non-heme 7 kDa protein) of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Subunit X (non-heme 7 kDa protein) of cytochrome bc1 complex (Ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase) Baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
GO: mitochondrial membrane ubiquinol-cytochrome-c reductase activity mitochondrial electron transport, ubiquinol to cytochrome c
Homologous structures to 1kb9 classified in ArchDB
1a0q L - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1ad0 A - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1ay1 H - percentage of sequence identity: 70
1b0w A - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1bww A - percentage of sequence identity: 69
1bz7 A - percentage of sequence identity: 78
1c5d A - percentage of sequence identity: 62
1clo L - percentage of sequence identity: 60
1d5i L - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1dn0 B - percentage of sequence identity: 60
1dqq B - percentage of sequence identity: 69
1dzb A - percentage of sequence identity: 66
1emt L - percentage of sequence identity: 81
1ezv D - percentage of sequence identity: 100
1fe8 L - percentage of sequence identity: 81
1fgv L - percentage of sequence identity: 74
1fns L - percentage of sequence identity: 81
1gaf L - percentage of sequence identity: 66
1h0d A - percentage of sequence identity: 60
1i7z A - percentage of sequence identity: 60
1igm L - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1iqw L - percentage of sequence identity: 60
1jfq L - percentage of sequence identity: 83
1jhl L - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1l7i L - percentage of sequence identity: 64
1mam L - percentage of sequence identity: 81
1ndg B - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1ndm B - percentage of sequence identity: 73
1nmb L - percentage of sequence identity: 80
1ors A - percentage of sequence identity: 61
1rie - - percentage of sequence identity: 65
1uac H - percentage of sequence identity: 68
1wtl A - percentage of sequence identity: 65
null nu - percentage of sequence identity: 0


MAYOR LONDON BREED AND BUSINESS LEADERS ANNOUNCE COMMITMENT TO SAN FRANCISCO
Written on March 3, 2022 .
Contact: Mayor's Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org
*** PRESS RELEASE ***
Major businesses join City in committing to return to work plans starting in the month of March
San Francisco, CA — Today, Mayor London N. Breed and business leaders announced plans to commit to returning to in-person work in San Francisco throughout the month of March. Mayor Breed has worked with the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and business leaders on implementing return to in-person work policies through the "Welcome Back to SF" pledge as the Omicron surge subsides.
As one of the highest vaccinated cities in the country, San Francisco is poised to welcome workers back to the office. The Omicron surge tested and proved the efficacy of vaccines—despite a peak case rate 6.5 times the peak of the largest previous surge in January 2021, San Francisco's COVID mortality rate during the same period was less than half what it was in January 2021 and even lower amongst vaccinated individuals. After two years of primarily remote work policies by office-based industries, San Francisco's office core, comprised of the Financial District, East Cut, Union Square, Yerba Buena, Civic Center, and Mission Bay neighborhoods, has not shown the same degree of economic recovery as that of other City neighborhoods. The decrease in the number of workers has had significant repercussions for the small businesses that cater to offices and their employees.
City and County of San Francisco workers, many of whom have been telecommuting since the start of the Omicron surge, are scheduled to return to the office in varied capacities beginning Monday, March 7. Joining the City in this commitment to implement policies to bring employees back to offices are companies including Bank of America, Blackrock, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, FibroGen, Gap, the Golden State Warriors, Google, HOK, Invitae, JP Morgan Chase, Kilroy, Mastercard, Meta, Microsoft, Orrick, Salesforce, the San Francisco Giants, the San Francisco Symphony, SPUR, Uber, United Airlines, University of California San Francisco, Visa, and Wells Fargo.
By pledging to Welcome Back to SF, each of these companies is committed to implementing return to in-person work policies in March. However, in the wake of widespread telecommute policies adopted during the pandemic, return to office policies may vary across companies. Regardless, the Welcome Back to SF pledge signifies a critical milestone in the resumption of economic activity and progression towards adopting long-term operating models that respond to the needs and considerations of individual businesses and their employees.
"By committing to San Francisco, these businesses and many more are investing in this City and what makes it special – the people who live and work here," said Mayor Breed. "We are excited to welcome people back to downtown to work, to dine, and to experience the arts and culture that make this City special. This March is the start of a new beginning for this City, and I want to thank all the businesses and workers who are committed to supporting our city and our small businesses."
"We cannot overstate how important workers returning to their offices is to our survival and ultimately to the richness of San Francisco," said Denise Tran from Bun Mee. "We have been tightening our belts and doing the best we can over the last two years, but without workers filling our downtown, it has been difficult. We've missed the bustle, the laughter, and the energy of having a full house each day. We depend on each other and can't wait to welcome the return of employees downtown."
The City has also partnered with several downtown stakeholders, including Boston Properties at Embarcadero Center, East Cut Community Benefits District, the Ferry Building, Union Square Alliance, Transbay Joint Powers Authority, Westfield San Francisco Centre, and the Crossing at East Cut to curate a series of events spanning the last week of March as part of efforts to welcome workers back downtown. More details on programming will be announced soon.
Additionally, through a $12.2 million investment by the City, Welcome Ambassadors are stationed throughout San Francisco's office core, including transit hubs and popular congregation points, to provide a welcoming atmosphere for returning office workers, residents, and tourists. Welcome Ambassadors also assist with street cleanliness, and maintenance. These Ambassadors supplement similar existing programs within each of the four Community Benefits Districts that serve San Francisco's office core.
Support from the Business Community on Returning to SF
Sonia Syngal, CEO of Gap Inc: "Our culture is fueled by teams connecting meaningfully with each other to create and innovate for our customers. With that as our north star, we have spent the last year and a half completely redesigning our 2 Folsom San Francisco office with more agile workspaces, supported by technology that enables new ways of working. As we welcome more employees back to the office, there's a palpable energy with teams working together in a new, beautiful environment where they are inspired to do their best work. And we look forward to contributing to the revival of downtown San Francisco through the opening of four new retail stores – Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta – on the ground floor of our 2 Folsom building later this year."
Enrique Conterno, Chief Executive Officer of FibroGen: "We are proud to be part of the vibrant Mission Bay community, which is a factor in our attraction and retention of great talent. We have remained open throughout the pandemic, and we're delighted that more of our employees feel safe returning to the office, which we believe helps to deepen connection, foster collaboration, progress our science and invest in the local community in which we operate."
Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO: "One thing that the pandemic has taught us is that the benefits of in-person collaboration and camaraderie cannot be replaced. While we have not yet mandated in-person work, more and more colleagues have been returning voluntarily to our Mission Bay offices recently, and it has been reinvigorating to be with them in person again. As this trend continues, the city of San Francisco will benefit as well. Employees heading back to the office – and the coffee they may grab along the way – directly impacts small businesses and services, only strengthening the backbone of our economy. Alongside other company leaders, I have been working regularly from the office each week, and will be encouraging my team to do so. While we've made things work virtually the last two years, better days are ahead for the Bay Area."
Brandon Schneider, Warriors President & Chief Operating Officer: "In the live entertainment industry, it is no secret that nothing tops in-person interactions and experiences. I am so proud of how the Warriors organization has responded throughout the pandemic in a virtual setting, offering resources for all different facets of our community in need. However, our return to the office has elevated our ability to impact the community's ongoing needs, offer world-class events and games at Chase Center, and foster a more inclusive, engaging and exciting future for Dub Nation, San Francisco, and the entire Bay Area community. We applaud Mayor Breed's leadership throughout the pandemic in keeping San Franciscans safe, and are excited for this next phase of welcoming our employees back to the office!"
Brent Hyder, Salesforce President and Chief People Officer: "Our employees are looking for ways to safely connect in person, and we're proud to welcome hundreds and soon-to-be thousands of employees to Salesforce Tower daily. As the largest private employer in San Francisco, we are deeply committed to the city and are excited our offices are buzzing again."
Thomas Li, Meta's San Francisco Community Engagement Lead: "Bringing the world closer together and connecting people – is our mission and our business. It's about more than just working remotely; the future of work has community-building at its heart. We look forward to continuing to build that community right here in San Francisco both in and out of the office. We've always taken pride in creating vibrant office communities for employees, clients, and partners. We're committed to San Francisco – as are many of our employees who live here, raise families here and put down roots here. We can't wait to welcome our teams back to the office as well as this new chapter of the future of work."
Andrew Livingston, Orrick's San Francisco Office Leader: "We are excited to make our offices more accessible this month and expect to transition to the next phase of our hybrid working model in April. While our approach to the workplace will change, we will always have a strong presence in this great community to which we trace our roots. Our team is greatly looking forward to reconnecting in person."
Ed McLaughlin, Mastercard's President of Operations and Technology: "As much as technology has helped us collaborate throughout the pandemic, there's no replacing human connections. They help reinforce who we are and what defines our culture. We look forward to our teams continuing to come together in our San Francisco office to maximize all the city, its small businesses and the broader Bay Area have to offer."
Shawn Villaron, Microsoft Bay Area Regional Site Leader and Vice President for PowerPoint: "At Microsoft, we understand there is a deep connection between the community and the work we are doing to achieve our mission. We are excited to join other businesses and fully open our facilities in San Francisco to employees, visitors, and guests, as we value the ability to bring people together. With flexibility and inclusion at the core of our workplace approach, we look forward to this next chapter of our hybrid journey."
Joshua Adler, MD, Chief Clinical Officer of UCSF Health: "Since the pandemic began two years ago, thousands of our care providers, researchers, and frontline workers have continued to come on site every day to our hospitals, clinics and laboratories to serve our public mission. With all that we have learned about preventing transmission in the workplace, we feel very confident about bringing more of our workers back on site."
Rob Tibbets, Marketing Principle for HOK: "HOK is thrilled to welcome its entire staff back to San Francisco – the city we all love. We look forward to the regeneration of our small business neighbors."
Dave Graham, head of Google's San Francisco office: "We've long believed in the power that comes from having people come together in person to build community, drive innovation, support creativity and solve complex problems — it's why our campus will play an important role in supporting a flexible hybrid future. Many of our employees in San Francisco have already been coming into the office voluntarily to work and connect with colleagues, and we're excited that our local Google community will grow even more vibrant as we soon embark on our new hybrid work week journey in the city."
Jason Strle, CIO Enterprise Functions Technology and San Francisco Bay Area Site Leader for Wells Fargo: "The health and safety of our employees is our top priority and we have prepared for a safe return into the office after two years. We believe in individual and collective benefits from in-person interactions and human connections, including networking, career development, team building, and key business collaboration. We also believe that we benefit from flexibility and will offer flexible schedules to many of our employees. Our customers, clients and company benefit from employees who are empowered to work in a way that fits, including balancing personal schedules, caring for their wellbeing, and pursuing their passions."
Matthew Spivey, Interim Chief Executive Officer of the San Francisco Symphony: "Ever since the San Francisco Symphony returned to giving in-person performances at Davies Symphony Hall last spring, our musicians have been sharing the joy and energy of live music making with our community again. We see firsthand the vibrancy and liveliness that the arts and our audiences bring to our neighborhood and our city as a whole. This month, the rest of the Symphony staff will also be returning to our offices, joining many of our neighbors in collaborating safely in person again in the heart of San Francisco."
Alicia John-Baptiste, SPUR President and CEO: "At SPUR, we believe that part of what makes cities so important is the way they bring people together. During the pandemic, we've seen many neighborhoods pull together as people started living much more local lives, and that community cohesion has been a real benefit to many. But there is something special about downtowns – where hundreds of thousands of people can come together in community, for arts and culture, for work, to make their voices heard, to explore and learn – and that's been missing for so much of the past two years. I'm looking forward to seeing our downtowns return, with all their vitality."
Rodney Fong, President and CEO of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce: "San Francisco's business districts are the economic core of our city and their vibrance is key to the economic recovery. The Chamber of Commerce is back in the office in a hybrid model. We are eager to work with our member businesses and Mayor Breed to bring San Franciscans and Bay Area residents back to the office to reinvigorate neighborhoods that have suffered during the pandemic."


You are here: Home / ODF / The OOXML Compatibility Pack
The OOXML Compatibility Pack
2006/09/06 By Rob
Just saw something worth noting. I was on a machine running Office XP and tried to open an Office Open XML (OOXML) formatted document. I don't know why I tried that, but I did.
Word was smart enough to put up the following dialog:
Now, that is something I hadn't seen before. I think we all knew that Microsoft was planning a compatibility pack for enabling OOXML on Office 2003 and Office XP. But my 2002 version of Windows XP knows about OOXML? I guess this wisdom must have come down in a previously downloaded Office patch.
In any case, if you click yes, you are directed to this page where you are offered a download of "Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats (Beta 2)". I had the pre-req's, which included Windows XP SP2 and Office XP SP 3. So downloading a few file conversion filters should be simple and small, right?
Well, simple, but not so small. I was suprised to see that the convertors download was 43MB. That seems a bit large. In comparison, you can download a complete copy of OpenOffice.org, with included support for ODF documents and the Office binary formats, and the entire product is only a 93MB download. The 0.2 ODF Add-in for Word is only 1MB in size. So why does adding OOXML support to Office XP require a 43MB download?
In any case, once it is downloaded and installed, the integration with Office appears seemless. You can open OOXML files from the Windows Explorer by double-clicking on them, you can browse and load them as expected from the File Open dialog in Office, you can re-save files in OOXML format via the File Save, you can create a new document and save it as OOXML, you can even configure Word XP so the OOXML formats are the default format for all saved documents in Word. In fact, you can do all of those things that the Microsoft-supported ODF Add-in is not doing.
As reported earlier, the Microsoft support for ODF puts this ISO standard at a distinct disadvantage, providing no shell integration, removing it from its expected place in the File/Open and File/Save menus, and preventing users from making it the default format in Office.
So, let's update the file format support matrix:
DOC Format in OpenOffice
ODF Format in Word 2007
OOXML Format in Word XP
1. Format supported in default install Yes. No. Requires a download and install of separate, unsupported Add-in. No, but you are prompted to download a free converter pack the first time you attempt to open an OOXML file
2. File Open integration Yes. No. ODF is not listed in the default File Open dialog and doing a Control-O will not show ODF documents. However, ODF import is available in a separate menu item elsewhere in the menu system. Yes.
3. Save new document integration Yes. No. In fact no ODF save ability exists in the current version of the Add-in. There is a place holder for the ODF save operation, though it is on its own menu, and would not be shown when doing a simple Control-S to save a new document. Yes.
4. Can be made the default format Yes. No. Although other non-Microsoft formats, such as "Plain Text" can be made the default format, ODF cannot. Yes.
5. Simple round-tripping Yes. No. When an ODF document is loaded, its name is automatically changed and it is made read-only. So loading sampler.odt results in Word having a read-only version of sampler_tmp.docx. Attempting a simple Control-S to save will give an error. Yes.
6. Shell integration Yes. No. Yes.
I tip my hat to Microsoft for the way they have provided OOXML support in earlier versions of Office. Aside from the size of the download, the process was simple and the integration was seamless. That's the way it should be. But what makes them think that customers using ODF format would want anything less than this? That fact that they've been able to integrate OOXML so well only increases the shame in having integrated ODF so poorly.
Filed Under: ODF, Office, OOXML
I see no reason why the support of MS Office for ODF should be simular to their own formats.
Users of MS Office are better of with a format that supports all of the functionality.
ODF support is only usefull for compatibility reasons. So I find it very logical that the support is via a plugin simular to support for other Office documents formats like PDF or XPS.
It seems you are of the opinion that alle Office progrmas should support ODF as a native file format but quess what, some parties think their format is better for them and will only offer limited support.
Live with it !!
You know what is better off for Office users? If so, I am awed by your prescience. Personally I would not presume.
However, some organizations have already spoken for themselves and said that they want to use ODF. Some have also said that they want to continue to use MS Office at the same time. So for them, the Add-in support being offered by Microsoft is clearly inadaquete.
"Live with it!!" you say? Remember, these are paying Office customers. They would just prefer to use an open file format. They deserve far more than scorn.
hAl says
ODF does not support full MS Office functionality. It would not be prudent to use that format unless you would also limit your users in using MS Office functionality.
So that is why MS Office users are better of with Office Open XML.
There is no real advantage in using ODF over Office Open XML. I have followed your blog for a while and also those of some OOXML supporters and except for some nitpicking on minor issues the formats both have it's own merits.
The clear merit for OOXML is competability with all of MS Office functionality including that of former formats. ODF does not offer any advantage icm with MS Office.
The fact that some organisations have said they want to use ODF with MS Office is probalby due to concern about the openness of the OOXML format still often raised as arguments for ODF, but those issues are all in the past now that MS has given it's covenant not to sue.
THE most important reason for using ODF is when you plan to use OpenOffice as your Office suite as it is basically build on the format of that suite. The ODF format will be good for supporting the functionality of that suite.
As each format is open enough you should let your choice not be led by the format but by the functionality you need from your Office applications. At this moment the functionality offered by MS Office seem the better option especially if you need spreadsheet or presentations functionality where I find OOo to be weak.
OOo is certainly an alternative with it's own merits (I like the standard PDF support) and if it fits your need why not. It is definitly cheaper than MS Office.
Certainly the format is not a merit to me as long as there is a method of converting the format which there clearly will be.
Hi hAl,
You say that "The clear merit for OOXML is competability with all of MS Office functionality including that of former formats." Are you quite sure of this? I have not heard Microsoft make this statement, and I would be surprised if they did. I've heard them say that alternatives like ODF did not support the full range of Office functionality, but I have never heard them say that OOXML does indeed support the full range of Office functionality.
I think there is a good reason for this. My reading of the OOXML specification leads me to believe that OOXML does not represent everything that Office can do. In particular, OOXML does not specify macros or scripting, both important Office features. OOXML leaves these features unspecified, as amorphous blobs.
No doubt, Office 2007 can handle these features, and will find some way of saving them to the document, but it will be by using using binary blobs that are not explained in OOXML.
In any case, as individuals we regularly choose based purely on features and price (if that is a constraining factor). That's fine. But organizations, small and large, and government agencies, etc., would be in a horrible mess if every individual in their organization, or even every department, made their IT decisions in a completely uncoordinated fashion. Diversity and competition is good to have in the marketplace, but you don't necessary want that within an organization. So, IT standards emerge and corporations and government agencies make choices and adopt standards. So, the format war may be something that the average person will never care about, but to those who set IT policy, it is a very important question.
Honestly, I don't see these IT policy decisions being made on the basis of feature checklists, like the feature-wars we had between spreadsheets and word processors in the early 1990's. I was around back then, working on Lotus SmartSuite, and all companies competing then were tossing in features of marginal merit (my opinion) to each release to feed those checklist-hungry editors of magazine reviews. Art Borders in Word? Talking Paperclips? The hangover from that feature orgy was a decade of security flaws in Office.
For the average user, today almost any modern word processor has more features than they need. If anything, I see users migrating to the simplicity and easy-access of web-based alternatives. 95% of the time I can manage with the word processing facilities in Blogger, MoinMoin or email. The other 5% require OpenOffice.org.
Finally, you mention that ODF was based on the formats from OpenOffice.org. I won't dispute the fact that ODF came from OpenOffice.org, but I do think that this is merely a statement of historical fact, not a limitation. By your same argument, you could say that the most important thing about HTML is it is based on the format that NCSA Mosaic used. But HTML and ODF have moved out beyond their original applications and their spread continues.
From the Ecma 1.4 draft:
"The goal is to enable the implementation of the Office Open XML formats by the widest set of tools and 5 platforms, fostering interoperability across office productivity applications and line-of-business systems, as well 6 as to support and strengthen document archival and preservation, all in a way that is fully compatible with the 7 large existing investments in Microsoft Office documents."
So competability with MS Office document which essentially represent office features is mentioned as a main goal for the OOXML format.
I am not exactly sure how VBA script is added but I did notice that OOXML in it's standard uses different filenames for macro enabled files so you can easily identify potentially dangerous script files.
VBA script might be a part of .NET and therefore doe not need separate doucmentation except on how to embed a .NET object.
Currently I find both formats lacking somewhat in embedding information. Basically I have not seen any limititation to ODF to what you can embed in the format but not quite the information on how to handle that embedded data ?
I think both formats should take care in describing the behaviour more exact as this is a major new source for introducing virusses.
For the average user, today almost any modern word processor has more features than they need.
You know what is better off for word processor users? I am awed by your prescience.
If you could articulate a single benefit that ODF provides over Open XML for the "average user", perhaps more people would be persuaded.
Surely, having a goal is not the same thing as the achievement of the goal. I'd like to hear Microsoft state unequivocally that the OOXML specification which will be voted on by Ecma will specify the storage, the syntax and the semantics of macros, scripts and OLE embeddings.
I encourage anyone who is considering OOXML as a solution to their problems to ask the same question, "Does OOXML specify the storage, syntax and semantics of macros, scripts and OLE embeddings"? If the answer is not simply "Yes", then we do not have a complete and open specification.
If Microsoft wants to claim the OOXML is both an "open standard" and at the same time say that it is fully compatible with the "large existing investments in Microsoft Office documents", then they will have problems if things like macros are not specified. Where do you think this large investment comes from? It isn't just text and styles. A large part of the investment is in script automation. If that part is not specified, then the value proposition fly out the window.
I'd like to see the scripting formats included in the Ecma specification, reviewed by Ecma's community process, with a patent covenant, etc. References to propriatary specifications on MSDN are insufficient. You can't make an open standard by merely referencing to a stack of proprietary technologies.
If MS decides to add the VBA script as CLI objects then it is already in an open Ecma standard (335).
The .NET framework is just a free implementation of that.
jonbailor says
"Well, simple, but not so small. I was suprised to see that the convertors download was 43MB. That seems a bit large."
FYI – The Beta 2 Technical Refresh version of the Compatibility Pack is 26.6MB (http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/beta/converter.mspx)
The scripting format oculd be added as CLI components.
CLI is already an Open Ecma standard.
Using CLI wouldn't require any need for descrbing the format in OOXML.
p.s. I wrote simular comments in the days before. This is my 3rd try. Are those lost…???
hAl,
Sorry, I've been on the road, at the OpenOffice.org conference in Lyon, and now taking a few days off for a mini-vacation in Paris. Finally got a wireless connection. As I've said before, all comments go into a moderation queue so I can remove the ones which are spam or simply obscene.
In any case, I only see two comments from you in the queue, so if there is a third one, please resend.
To your point on CLI — For OOXML to specify something which is compatible with "billions of existing documents", then the scripting interfaces need to be specified, by inclusion or by reference. This means the the storage formats, the language syntax and semantics, the Office object model, etc. As you know, the CLI only specifies the language type system and the virtual machine.
I want to provide my opinion on two issues from different posts:
1. "It seems you are of the opinion that alle Office progrmas should support ODF as a native file format "…
MSOffice has the ability to save as RTF or even ASCII format. When saving to these formats all pictures and lots of formatting information is lost. Why does Microsoft not include the ODF export at the same location as the RTF and ASCII export? I find only the answer Rob gave us: Trying to exclude ODF as much as possible. If MS has a technical or usability reason I would really like to hear it.
1. "If you could articulate a single benefit that ODF provides over Open XML for the "average user", perhaps more people would be persuaded."
The most important benefit for the average user is, that ODF is used as the native format by many office applications, OOXML is used natively only by MSOffice. The second advantage is, it is standardized, so the documents created today will be fully readable in 20 or 50 years, OOXML which contains macros will most likely not be as long – time stable as ODF with macros. The third advantage is, that there are several applications available at zero license cost which natively use ODF. The average asian or african user currently steals MSOffice to be compatible with that ugly "MSOffice97 de-facto standard" in the industry. Not stealing MSOffice is currently no option for a small welding company at a chinese village, because he could not communicate with his business partners effectively enough.
The ODF-creators explicitly begged MS repeatedly to join into the ODF specifying process. MS refused to participate, which leaves us with two XML standards, one which is completely new, one which reuses several established standards. Microsoft deliberately messed up an opportunity to standardize the office application file formats, at least that is what it looks like from the outside. It is quite comparable to what happend to the HD-DVD standard. It got messed up by some companies who thought "we can make a thing which has 5% more storage and is 10% faster". WOW! Really an advance! What they are ending up with now is a Market which is no market at all. Nobody buys HD drives unless they can read and write whatever is in widespread use. The rest of the economy is paying billions for this underuse of technical ability.
Gustl
For the visitors of this page, there is now an OOXML converter from Sun, also. Please look here:
http://www.sun.com/software/star/openoffice/
While I'm not too knowledgeable about ooxml, I wonder how long it will be supported by Microsoft. And if they quit, who can support it?
Support Open Document Format | Dreambox says:
[…] [Robweir, OOXML] http://www.robweir.com/blog/2006/09/ooxml-compatibility-pack.html […]


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With the Modi government set to double the target of the upcoming phase of JNNSM to 3,000 MW, solar is expected to emerge as India's new prospective energy resource
Power or electricity is a critical resource behind the development of infrastructure and directly influences a nation's economic growth. Among the main achievements of the country since independence the development of the power sector could be considered as significant from the point of view of generation capacity. With a power generation capacity of only 1,362 MW in 1947 it has today emerged as the sixth largest global power generator with a capacity of 2,34,600 MW. The country's present per capita power consumption stands at 733.54 kilowatt-hours per year (kw/yr).
However, in a country with cities bursting at their seams with a population which threatens to multiply like piranhas in a feeding frenzy, the demand for power is a major concern. Technical advancements have today enabled the country to generate power from renewable sources, of which solar prevails as the most exciting sector. With around 300 days of sunshine each year, India enjoys ideal conditions for overcoming its energy deficit with the aid of solar power in the future. With much of the country not having the support of an electrical grid, solar power is expected to emerge as a boon, especially for water pumping, to begin replacing India's four to five million diesel powered water pumps, each consuming about 3.5 kilowatt of off-grid lighting.
Power shortages are estimated at about 11 per cent of total energy and 15 per cent of peak capacity requirements which is likely to increase in the coming years.
Growth Prospects
According to the report published by Bridge To India, India has the potential to install 145 GW of solar power capacity across various project sizes by 2024. The report states the capacity addition potential across four plant sizes: residential rooftop (1-5 kW), industrial and commercial rooftop (10-500 kW), utility-scale projects (5-50 MW) and ultra mega solar power projects (1-3 GW). Furthermore, the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) from solar energy is now at par with that of imported coal. While the LCOE for imported coal is expected to increase with a compounded annual growth rate of 12 per cent over the next ten years, the LCOE for solar power is expected to fall with a CAGR of 4 per cent. Solar power is expected to match LCOE of new domestic coal-fired power plants in 2019. Furthermore, commercial, industrial and utility-scale projects are expected to have the highest potential for capacity addition in the next ten years, according to industry experts.
In addition, ultra mega solar power projects with capacities of up to 4 GW have been planned by the Indian government. The segment is anticipated to witness a cumulative capacity addition of up to 2 GW by 2024. Such projects are being planned across India, and will also be supported by dedicated transmission corridors. The Central government has announced a financial package of $83 million for four such projects this year. Also, under the National Solar Mission, India plans to have a cumulative installed solar power capacity of 22 GW. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy hopes to have 100 GW capacity installed by 2030.
JNNSM: GROWTH DRIVER
The Modi government has set its eyes to double the target of the upcoming phase of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) to 3,000 MW, the largest-ever tender for solar power in the country. The second batch of bidding under the second phase of JNNSM hopes to achieve 10,000 MW of grid connected solar power by 2017. The cumulative target of the mission is to have 20,000 MW of grid connected solar power by 2022. The current solar power capacity of the country is 2,600 MW.
Since many regions currently have no working power grid, off-grid solar installations (or 'microgrids') play an important role alongside large-scale solar power plants. The growth in solar sector has been tremendous in the recent years, primarily due to the government's initiatives such as tax exemptions and subsidies. Due to the technical potential of 5,000 trillion kWh per year and minimum operating cost, solar power is considered the best suited energy source for India.
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