Why Echo Matters
Dare wrote a nice breakdown of why
Echo matters. A number of folks have been asking why it's not just an attempt to create another syndication format, why users will benefit.
A unified, highly-specific and well-documented standard in and of itself is a worthwhile objective. Tools get easier to write, they have predictable and reliable interactions across the wire with other tools--the net result is better and more reliable tools. Better tools in less time. Which frees up development resources to add functionality.
As it stands right now, the standards limit innovation and advancement. They don't prevent it, but better standards could allow the evolution to happen at a faster and more reliable rate.
Users benefit from the plumbing whether they understand or know why. When Windows replaced DOS, developers stopped writing their own printer drivers, and leveraged the API. Did users know why the print dialog looked the same in (most) applications once they upgraded? Probably not. Did it make it easier on users not having to learn different ways of setting up printing in WordPerfect, Lotus, etc? Of course. The plumbing matters even if you're just the person hitting the flusher.