How Can We Hold Governments Accountable for Using Exclusive File Formats?

[humanino]

Hey guys,

I would appreciate your opinions on the following (to me, very annoying) issue.

Some people above me in the administration of this place keep sending me emails, with documents I must read, in a format I do not want to use. You probably understand, or even are familiar with this. I mean, there is one format which is defined as being "portable document format" which everyone can use without ever having bad surprises, or "unexpected features".

Then later today, as I was searching for official public information our governements must provide to us the people, bang once again a proprietary format which I cannot read without buying an expensive software, which I do not trust anyway... This really not fair. It does not really matter what exactly this was I was searching on the web (I was trying to figure out how they spend the money I give them for taxes I guess they spend it buying bugged software ) but the principle revolts me.

Is there not an official way to complain about that, not going to legual action ? What do you think ?

 

[chroot]

Well, you can complain, but I doubt it will do much good. What format are you talking about? You can get free, open-source viewers for pretty much any format in existence.

- Warren

 

[humanino]

What format are you talking about? You can get free, open-source viewers for pretty much any format in existence.

I have installed them. However

• those kind of documents are insanly huge for the content they have
• the document I tried to open earlier would not open with the version I have

 

[chroot]

You could probably just call them and have them send you the documents via mail, or fax.

- Warren

 

[Evo]

humanino, have you tried this database for searches?

http://www.osti.gov/energycitations/

 

[humanino]

You could probably just call them and have them send you the documents via mail, or fax.

Indeed that would work. But what I need is a good old ASCII table, which I can play with how I like. If I get this information printed, I will have to copy collumns of budget figures... in the end, I would actually give up

I will update my free software, hopefully that will do.

 

[humanino]

humanino, have you tried this database for searches?

http://www.osti.gov/energycitations/

I did not know this. Thank you very much for this great link

But what I am looking at right now is not scientific, is the way the french governement spends my money I had an argument with a friend of mine, and I thought it would be good to actually look at it with numbers instead of just disagreeing on the basis of opinions