At 10/11/2007 07:25 PM, you wrote:
From another thread I see someone has suggested that docx support will
be available in OOo v. 3 expected in 12 months. Frankly I think that is
way too long to wait to be able to mix it with the big boy- not that I
can offer any programming expertise to hurry it up!
This is going to be a problem that spreads like the plague over the
next 12 months as people get sucked into the "upgrade or perish" cycle
and start spreading these things around like a virus!
I think that MS has shot themselves in the foot trying to upset OOo
users. They may have switched to an incompatible format to convince
users that OOo is a bad idea, but since most MS Office users can't,
or won't, upgrade in the near future, there will be a lot of MS's own
customers who get frustrated and annoyed too. This may be the
software equivalent of the PS2...
For those who aren't old enough to understand that reference, I'll
explain. The rest, or those who don't care, can just hit delete now...
Back in the early days of the IBM PC, IBM wanted to get rid of
clone-makers...those making computers that were compatible with
IBM-PCs, but cost less and worse, didn't put money directly into the
pocket of IBM (they did put money there indirectly, by creating a
larger market for PCs and thus "floating all boats"). IBM tried to
stifle the PClones through the BIOS, but lost that battle in
court...which determined that reverse engineering was legal, if done
properly. So IBM invented the Microchannel Buss, which they patented
and used as the basis of their new PS2 computer. This was a new buss
design that was better than the ISA buss in many ways, and if you
wanted to make cards for it you had to buy a license from IBM. This
added to the cost, and there were rumors that IBM wouldn't sell
licenses to those making cards that competed with IBM's, but the
extra cost and physical incompatibilities with existing systems (both
IBM's and the PClones) was enough to put the general public off the
idea. The public stuck with the ISA and IBM was stuck with a lot of
PS2s that didn't have a very large selection of expansion cards. The
Microchannel buss died by being too proprietary. It's too bad that
IBM didn't manage to keep the IBM-PC proprietary too...so that a
*good* design could have had the market instead.
It may be that MS's new 2007 file formats are fighting too large an
established user base...both OOo and MS Office prior to 2007...and
don't offer enough good reason for anyone to go through the expense
of switching. Certainly not in the short term...like the next year
or two. If the vast majority of users can't read them, those who do
"upgrade" to MS Office 2007 will just have to get used to saving in
2003 or whatever format if they want to communicate with the vast
majority of users.
This would be a good opportunity to try to educate "Joe Sixpack"
about the wisdom of standards...especially for file formats...and
that use of proprietary formats should be avoided. Of course, given
the number of posts I see on this list from people who are paying for
OOo or who can't understand that OOo is NOT MS Office, it may be that
many of them *can't* be educated...
-- Mike B.
--
Slightly burned out, but still smokin'!
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