On 11/28/2012 09:55 AM, VA wrote:
This is utterly maddening.
Based on Pedro's post, I ran a simple test. I created a document in
Word (.docx) and an identical document in LibO (.odt). I saved them
both and then extracted their contents using 7-zip Manager. I was
amazed at how similar the two document contents were, and yet how
different. Neither document had any of the binary smilie faces I've
come to expect by opening a .doc document in a text editor. All of the
individual files contained formatting codes in simple text. And, yet...
The maddening part is how two programs can create the same type of
documents (xml files saved in a zipped format) and yet remain so
completely different.
I found similar results when I tried saving .rtf files with different
word processors. They all claimed to be .rtf, and in fact, were .rtf,
yet they were all different.
But, MS knows how to market its products. Programs need something to
set them apart from other similar programs, and office suites are
getting to the point that any decent suite will be able to perform the
same tasks as the others. LibO is set apart by being free (both in $
and in license restrictions). MS can't compete head to head with that
model, so the only way it can set itself apart is by maintaining some
uniqueness in its file format. The only reason people buy MS is
because everybody else buys MS. If it fully adopted the .odt format,
there would no longer be a reason for people to buy MS. Unless it had
some killer feature, it would die and LibO would win.
Actually MS would need to adopt a different commercial model. The model
could possibly be similar to Canonical's model with Ubuntu - the
software is free or very cheap but you pay for professional
support/training/certifications. The issue is providing value to the
user. I have used Ubuntu and derivatives and other than donations to a
project never spent any money.
The real problem for MS in the hypothetical market is that they would
need to adopt a different attitude towards users and their user
community. Currently they do not have an MSO community similar to LO/AOO
or Ubuntu.
Another model that Oracle uses with MySQL is there is a community
edition (free) and an enterprise edition (pricey). The enterprise
edition includes more support options and features than the community
edition.
MS does have options if the ODF formats became the international
standard. Whether they would adapt quickly enough is another story.
I sense that a similar future lies for either Apache OO or LibO. Right
now, the two programs are very similar and use the same file format. I
use both programs interchangeably, sometimes forgetting which one I
have open. My guess is that, at some point, either Apache or LibO will
become different enough and so clearly superior that the other will
fade away. That may be the hazard of having a truly open and standard
file format. It eliminates a program's ability to survive.
Product extinction is inevitable for many reasons. I can name old
standards equivalent for Writer and Calc that have not been available
for years/decades. I suspect LO and AOO will diverge somewhat with each
having particular strengths and weaknesses.
Virgil
Virgil
-----Original Message----- From: Pedro
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 9:05 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [libreoffice-users] Re: [libreoffice-marketing] Good Article
for LibreOffice
Hi Tom, all
Let me be the "Devil's advocate" for a moment...
Tom wrote
MS keeps claiming that is what their new format is all about. They
claimed it with Rtf which they no longer develop which fits their
pattern
for gradually dropping completely and they are claiming it again with
their DocX and all.
RTF is plain text with format codes. So it is true that you can open
it even
in a text editor. Even if it is discontinued, it is not encrypted.
Docx is exactly the same as ODT. A Zip container which stores objects
such
as images, formats and the actual text in a XML file.
Tom wrote
Given that ODF 1.0 and 1.1 still open in LO, AOO and all the rest it
looks
like ODF might achieve the promise, especially given that "contents"
written in Xml can be opened and read.
The same applies to MS Office. You can always open previous MS files in a
newer Office version.
As explained above ODF follows the same logic as OOXML ;)
In both cases you need to have some program that opens the zip
container in
order to have access to the XML file which contains the text.
Cheers,
Pedro
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Jay Lozier
[email protected]
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