Samuel Murray wrote:
From: Robin Laing ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Date: 2005/8/17 5:24:38p
Samuel Murray wrote:
I'm not sarcastic with my first comment... OOo files have an embedded
ActiveX control which allows you to open them in Internet Explorer.
An off comment, here we are trying to work on a product to work against
Microsofts dominance and then we tell someone to use IE. Ouch. :)
The OpenOffice effort is not about getting people to ditch Windows. A Windows
user can choose not to buy MS Office, but he can't choose whether to have
Internet Explorer present.
I didn't say Windows, I said against Microsoft dominance.
Actually, I read an article a few weeks ago about removing most of the
functionality of IE from Windows XP. I don't know if it works or not.
Why wasn't is suggestted to send the person the link to OOo to install.
At 80 megabytes a pop? You gotta be kidding. Even on a fast connection it'll
take the recipient several hours to download it, and he needs a fast computer
to install it on as well. What's easier... telling him to use an existing
program on his existing computer, or getting a new program and possibly a new
computer too?
I don't know about you but 80meg is better than $400+ for an office suite.
How many times do we get sent a MS document and then get told to get
Word? Return the favor. At least with OpenOffice, the cost is not an
issue. :)
Cost is very much an issue, and so is ease of implementation. If someone sends you a
Word document and you don't have Word, it's up to you to decide if you're going to
"get Word" or tell the sender that he needs to send the document in some other
format. The choice is yours, always.
You make my whole argument here. If I send someone a document and they
want to open it, then why should I have to make the format compatible to
a program "they" have when they can get the program necessary to open my
document.
I know that this is not on line with the original posters question but
it is worth discussing. In an environment where someone is told that
they have to use a specific format, sometimes a little effort on
alternatives can open up a better way of doing things.
I showed my wife OOo. She showed her boss how it worked on Windows/Mac
without all the headaches of Word for Mac and its own set of problems.
Also the benefit of exporting to PDF, which the company had to do was
the finally selling point. Now they use OOo.
Samuel
Don't get me wrong, I have the same problem on a daily basis but I take
the time and effort to show people the light. I have already converted
one person as OOo works better for them than Office XP. It is a start.
My whole point is if someone wants you to send them a document, why
should the "sender" be forced to support only the formats that the
receiver has and as you stated the receiver has the option of getting
other software. At least OOo is priced right.
--
Robin Laing
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