<![CDATA[Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post.]]>Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. However, the articles and comments published in response to Collabora’s and Michael Meeks’ biased posts compel us to provide this background information on the events that led to the current situation.

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Let's put an end to the speculation - TDF Community Blog

Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. However, the articles and comments published in response to Collabora’s and Michael Meeks’ biased posts compel us to provide this background information on the events that led to the current situation. Unfortunately, we have to start from the very beginning, but we’ll try to keep it brief. The launch of the LibreOffice project and The Document Foundation was handled with great enthusiasm by the founding group. They were driven by a noble goal, but also by a bit of healthy recklessness. After all, it was impossible to imagine what would happen after September 28, 2010, the date of the announcement. At the time, nobody could imagine that the companies that had supported OpenOffice.org until then like IBM would create Apache OpenOffice to kill LibreOffice. Also, if the project were to be successful, it would require resources greater than those available, and above all, a deep management experience. Fortunately, the project grew quite rapidly. However, the founders’ different backgrounds and opinions were at the same time the reason for some bold decisions – many of which right – as well as a few mistakes, which are the root cause of some of

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TDF Community Blog (blog.documentfoundation.org)

@libreoffice

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/topic/2b798885-532b-4daa-a375-b743f71a062c/ideally-we-would-have-preferred-to-avoid-this-post.RSS for NodeFri, 17 Apr 2026 11:38:34 GMTSun, 05 Apr 2026 08:30:17 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:47:53 GMT]]>@libreoffice About "The origins of TDC are controversial.". I had to search what 'TDC' is. Maybe replace 'TDC' with 'The Document Collective (TDC)'?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/plaimbock/statuses/116352409476985615https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/plaimbock/statuses/116352409476985615Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:47:53 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:41:33 GMT]]>@catnux
Whoever wrote it is skilled at lawsuit-avoiding innuendo for sure!

@retrolasered @libreoffice

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116352384582108841https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116352384582108841Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:41:33 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:35:23 GMT]]>@libreoffice
Anyone who begins an acronym with "The" is a navel-gazer who shouldn't be in charge of anything.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/RealGene/statuses/116352360339424205https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/RealGene/statuses/116352360339424205Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:35:23 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:26:36 GMT]]>@contrarian @retrolasered @libreoffice Do you think so ? It apppeared to me that they were talking about the beginning of the LO journée, not specifically about the current situation ?
Did Collabora exist before TDF ? Since they are talking about the forks of OpenOffice ?
Indeed the article on TDF's blog is not very clear about that 😊

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.linux.pizza/users/catnux/statuses/116352325827910449https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.linux.pizza/users/catnux/statuses/116352325827910449Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:26:36 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:55:07 GMT]]>@libreoffice
So, getting rid of active developers helps the project in exactly which way?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://ruhr.social/users/mardor/statuses/116352202001889959https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://ruhr.social/users/mardor/statuses/116352202001889959Sun, 05 Apr 2026 12:55:07 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:50:03 GMT]]>@libreoffice

The org also doesn't:

-Let those who feel wounded, unheard, or misunderstood near its PR; it cleans up blog posts and forums, removing any hint of techbro behaviors, and enlists a communicator who understands what is required to help the interested-but-overwhelmed on the path of resistance against the bigger threat to technological sovereignty.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://indieweb.social/users/tarabara/statuses/116351946137784628https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://indieweb.social/users/tarabara/statuses/116351946137784628Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:50:03 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:49:08 GMT]]>@libreoffice

An established organization does not get bogged down in "setting the record straight" activities, it aims higher.

Instead, the org focuses on what it can control: the narrative it owns, one that is only recognized through actions, not words.

The organization doesn't:
-Waste time writing white papers defending itself; it takes a hard look and doubles down on improvement.
-Worry about its ideas being stolen; it builds community and trust by offering what others do not.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://indieweb.social/users/tarabara/statuses/116351942586629833https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://indieweb.social/users/tarabara/statuses/116351942586629833Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:49:08 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:42:18 GMT]]>@MichaelimOdenwald @libreoffice :dr

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/ap/users/115798900176839373/statuses/116351915681764791https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.games/ap/users/115798900176839373/statuses/116351915681764791Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:42:18 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:22:01 GMT]]>@libreoffice

All I want to know is that LibreOffice - fully installable on the desktop for the individual - isn’t going away any time soon.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://archaeo.social/users/ArdentArchivist/statuses/116351835950472502https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://archaeo.social/users/ArdentArchivist/statuses/116351835950472502Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:22:01 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:18:38 GMT]]>@MichaelimOdenwald @libreoffice

🥴
Wo Menschen sind da menschelt's.
🤷‍♂️

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://lassegismo-social.dnsuser.info/objects/125c0079-1869-d245-0e2e-f86403321351https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://lassegismo-social.dnsuser.info/objects/125c0079-1869-d245-0e2e-f86403321351Sun, 05 Apr 2026 11:18:38 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:31:29 GMT]]>@libreoffice Different view:

https://forum.linuxguides.de/core/index.php?article/54-libreoffice-am-abgrund-wie-die-document-foundation-ihre-eigenen-gr%C3%BCnder-vor-die/

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hessen.social/users/MichaelimOdenwald/statuses/116351637234941736https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hessen.social/users/MichaelimOdenwald/statuses/116351637234941736Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:31:29 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:13:36 GMT]]>@catnux I don't think so. This is an accusation against Collabora which has had to move its development outside TDF because of all the hostility, phrased to avoid a libel lawsuit.

@retrolasered @libreoffice

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116351566931732545https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116351566931732545Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:13:36 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:11:13 GMT]]>@libreoffice Reckless revisionist spin.

* "the companies that had supported OpenOffice.org until then would create a project to kill LibreOffice" is ridiculous.
* "One reason given for setting up the parallel organisation was the “alleged inefficiency” of the TDF team" It was all about using app stores.
* "the decision to forfeit TDF membership status of Collabora employees ... has resulted in a positive outcome for the third audit." It only just happened, how could it affect any audit.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116351557510100130https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.plus/users/contrarian/statuses/116351557510100130Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:11:13 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:05:26 GMT]]>@libreoffice 😂

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/karlggestd/statuses/116351534807966634https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/karlggestd/statuses/116351534807966634Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:05:26 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:59:07 GMT]]>@rockerest

It's also poorly worded

"When this fact was brought to the attention of the Board of Directors by the foundation’s legal counsels, the companies that had benefited from these errors sought to maintain the status quo rather than finding a solution. At the time – from the end of 2021 to the middle of 2022 – this could have been achieved swiftly and with minimal difficulty."

I assume "this" is fixing the legal issues, but there's a whole sentence between "this" and what it refers to.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.social/users/frog_reborn/statuses/116351509936739207https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.social/users/frog_reborn/statuses/116351509936739207Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:59:07 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:55:31 GMT]]>@retrolasered @libreoffice I think they are talking about Oracle, which bought Sun Microsystems in 2010. Sun was the main company maintaining OpenOffice. When Oracle bought Sun, the developers left and founded TDF, with the hope of getting an arrangement with Oracle to get the OpenOffice brand (that Oracle did not want to invest in), LibreOffice was to be a temporary name. But Oracle wanted more to kill LibreOffice and maintained a confusion by giving/selling (I don't know the details) of OpenOffice to the Apache Foundation and not to TDF. So even today there is still OpenOffice, which is more or less abandoned, and LibreOffice that continues to be developed.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.linux.pizza/users/catnux/statuses/116351495782132505https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.linux.pizza/users/catnux/statuses/116351495782132505Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:55:31 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:47:15 GMT]]>@frog_reborn @libreoffice same here. I know even less: basically my knowledge is "something is going on." This post is staying so legally "safe" that it is essentially saying nothing.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.rdl.ph/users/rockerest/statuses/116351463287465278https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.rdl.ph/users/rockerest/statuses/116351463287465278Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:47:15 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:39:34 GMT]]>@libreoffice

Might be on me, because I've only been following the broad strokes of all the current office software beef, but this article is barely comprehensible to me.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.social/users/frog_reborn/statuses/116351433088852501https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mstdn.social/users/frog_reborn/statuses/116351433088852501Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:39:34 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:17:27 GMT]]>@retrolasered @libreoffice

What it’s trying to say is:

“We at TDF think some old arrangements with companies around LibreOffice were legally improper for a nonprofit. We think Collabora benefited from that setup and resisted changing it. So we tightened governance and pushed them out. Now Collabora is angry and telling its side.”

That’s basically it.

Why it feels incoherent:

It never clearly separates commercial use of open source from nonprofit conflict-of-interest rules.
It keeps hinting at old internal grudges like TDC without stopping to explain them.
It is written like a legal-political rebuttal, not an explanation.

So your confusion is not a reading failure. The article is doing politics, not communication.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hear-me.social/ap/users/115696907373093865/statuses/116351346105035697https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hear-me.social/ap/users/115696907373093865/statuses/116351346105035697Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:17:27 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Ideally, we would have preferred to avoid this post. on Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:14:30 GMT]]>@libreoffice "nobody could imagine that the companies that had supported OpenOffice.org until then would create a project to kill LibreOffice". What project is this reference to? Is this referring to the TDC? It's not clear in the article

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hostux.social/users/retrolasered/statuses/116351334502075662https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hostux.social/users/retrolasered/statuses/116351334502075662Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:14:30 GMT