From: M. Fioretti (m.fioretti@inwind.it)
Date: Sun Apr 13 2003 - 17:07:02 EDT
On Sun, Apr 13, 2003 15:59:36 at 03:59:36PM -0400, Tim LaDuca (tladuca@helios.acomp.usf.edu) wrote:
> > > Filters are good, but between Free/OS applications they shouldn't
> > > exist in the first place, should they?
> > >
>
> This is an interesting point. I think the question being asked here is,
> since Free Software apps are completely open code-wise, why must they
> have different file formats?
My point exactly. Personally, I can understand some of the technical
issues, and also the desire of a developer to show his way of what the
best possible format should be like, but saying to the end user "there
are all "brother", non competing apps" and "but they don't share the
way of saving information" looks, IMO, ugly...
> My hope is that file formats will become
> transparent, and that any arbitrary user interface could be used with an
> accepted standardized document file format (on par with HTML), so that
> "computer idiots" (if you'll excuse the term) and computer experts alike
> can easily create and exchange documents. Moreover people can use the
> interface they are comfortable with be it WordPerfect, AbiWord, or some
> specialized interface. I assume this is what the OASIS/XML format is all
> about.
I couldn't agree more. My usual way of saying the same thing is that I
hope that SW finally becomes just as advanced as handwriting: people
writing with pencils, quill pens, Bic pens, Mountain Blanc golden
pens... all understanding each other because the alphabet is the same.
Thanks,
Marco Fioretti
-- Marco Fioretti m.fioretti, at the server inwind.it Red Hat for low memory http://www.rule-project.org/en/If children must grow able to leverage computers to meet their own goals as free citizens, that's not possible with commercial software, period. -- Ruben Safir
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Sun Apr 13 2003 - 17:25:56 EDT