While all standardisation efforts are likely to encounter problems, software standardisation faces particular problems because of the abstract and flexible nature of software. This has a number of consequences, including pressures to include options, and difficulty in finding a stable foundation on which to begin standardisation. In the case of software, stability may have to come from the establishment of standards, rather than the standards coming from the technology achieving stability. A later paper will discuss the possible future of software standardisation, in the light of the problems described here. © 1990.