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KOffice To Use Open Office File Format

Posted by simoniker on from the k-for-double-good dept.

InodoroPereyra writes "This article at The Dot indicates that the KOffice developers decided to switch to the Open Office file format (OASIS) for their next major release. Excellent news both for KOffice, which will benefit from OpenOffice's excellent filters, and for the GNU/Linux Desktop users in general, who will benefit from a unified file format standard between these office suites."

9 of 48 comments (clear)

  1. That other office suite by __past__ · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Let's wait how long it takes that other office suite vendor to see the light. After all, they are an OASIS member themselves...

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  2. Let's hope this will be the new trend by tsa · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is very good news. Finally we have a choice between different word processors that use the same format. I think this can certainly help organizations in their decision to migrate or not to migrate to Linux. Let's hope this will be the new trend for the future.

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  3. One format... by shfted! · · Score: 5, Funny

    One format to rule them all,
    One format to find them,
    One format to bring them all,
    And in the saving lose all formatting.

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    He who laughs last is stuck in a time dilation bubble.
  4. Abiword by aderuwe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I guess we should be poking the Abiword developers now to do the same.

    1. Re:Abiword by dominator · · Score: 4, Informative

      Actually, we do have fairly decent support for the OpenOffice file format. It's just not the default file format, nor is it likely to be. If you're interested, please read:

      http://abisource.com/mailinglists/abiword-dev/20 03 /Apr/0167.html
      http://abisource.com/mailinglists/ abiword-dev/2003 /Apr/0183.html

      Basically, while it makes sense for us to support the OOo file formats as best as possible, it is not desirable for us to make them the default file formats. If anything, RTF is a much better choice for this particular job, as I don't believe MS will be supporting the OOo file format anytime this century. However, both support RTF, and RTF is capable of preserving ~100% of the content and data that DOC is, albeit oftentimes more verbosely.

      That said, it might make sense for upstream packagers (RedHat, Ximian, ...) or individual users to change Abi's default file format to RTF or OOo to meet their needs. It's a matter of changing 1 line of code, or altering 1 line in a configuration file. It's intentionally easy.

      This all boils down to different worldviews - Abi and OO won't ever have a 1:1 mapping of features, nor will we agree on how to represent those features in any single file format. The best you can hope for is "really close" conversions. Loss of content or presentation markup is unacceptable in a "native" file format.

      IMO, the best solution is to all have a "common tongue", which may well be the OOo format, or say RTF. We should all use the common language when we want to speak to each other, and hope nothing gets lost or misinterpreted on either side during the translation (remember a translation from Abi -> KOffice using the OOo format as an "intermediary" has at least 2 points of failure instead of just 1). Unfortunately, that's all unavoidable. But when we're speaking "at home," we really want to speak our mother tongue. There's less ambiguity and a higher level of precision.

      For those reasons, I don't think that the KOffice folks are necessarily making the best decision here, though I continue to wish them the best of luck and success.

      Best regards,
      Dom Lachowicz, AbiWord maintainer

  5. Additional XML benefits by neglige · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Using an XML based (and documented!) file format has additional advantages. First and foremost, the documents can be easily used by other applications, e.g. full text indexer. Generating meta data has never been easier ;)

    Or use a stylesheet on the document and adopt it for, say, mobile devices (my favourite topic, I must admit). XML->HTML, XML->WML, XML->cHTML ... no problem. It's even possible to extract an abstract, collect hyperlinks from the document and present them seperately, leave out the graphics (or convert them)...

    Is this possible with .doc? I'd guess so. As easy as with XML? Don't think so.

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  6. Old files by SgtChaireBourne · · Score: 4, Insightful
    I interpret the actions of that individual OASIS member that is not participating has too much of an interest in not participating. Its word processor part of the two things not yet making a loss and has historically relied on lack of forward compatibility to drive a rack of new purchases - HW, OS, misc. apps.

    Basically, that "other vendor" is facing irrelevancy. Especially looking at the proposed changes with DRM, server lock-in, a proprietary XML schema and the software as subscription model.

    The OASIS format supported by Koffice, StarOffice, and OpenOffice.org is not only cheaper and more flexible, but safer in the long run because it's open. That means you're not locked into one platform, one vendor, or even on package. Though the differences are not so dramatic in a word processor, package independence means that individuals can choose the tool that works best for their needs or work methods and still collaborate.

    Being an open format means you don't have to depend on the goodwill of a monopoly to keep your format alive. Nor is there a risk of breaking the DMCA, EEA, commit a computer related crime and violate several patents when you try to read that 5 year old file.

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  7. Electronic Publishing by SgtChaireBourne · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Yes, let's hope this will be a new trend. The last round of open standards (e.g. TCP/IP, HTTP + HTML) brought a lot of good, especially HTML. I'm curious to see where this step will lead.

    I suspect that it is also a big step closer to electronic documents with a long shelf life. This may lead towards electronic publishing where well-formed and, possibly, valid documents become the norm. Even if the structures are rudimentary, this still will help portability and retrieval.

    Right now, [X]HTML and PDF are only part way there. PDF is useful for rapid dissemination, but can more or less be thought of as a compact form of paper. Most HTML document are neither well-formed nor valid and often too dependent on transient constellations of technologies. So, a format like this will let organizations choose tools suited for their specific needs and tasks.

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  8. Clarification... by Danious · · Score: 4, Informative

    They will be using the OASIS file format, this doesn't mean they will be using the OOo MS import/export codebase. There MAY be a common library in the future, but that is not clear yet. Also, this is not for the coming release, but for the one after that (v2.0?) that is slated for say middle of next year.