From: william.lachance@sympatico.ca
Date: Sun Apr 13 2003 - 21:42:14 EDT
Forget to send this to the list..
> > On Sun, Apr 13, 2003 12:27:31 at 12:27:31PM -0700, Dom Lachowicz (domlachowicz@yahoo.com) wrote:
> > >
> > > We're remarkably unlikely to ever make the SXW format
> > > the default one. If we were to change, it would make
> > > much more sense for us to make DOC/RTF the default
> > > one, quite honestly.
> > Interesting. May I ask you why? Do they match better the internal data
> > representation?
> >
> > > However, it's possible for users
> > > to make any file format the default one via editing a
> > > single line in their preferences schema.
> > That's what matters, thanks.
> > [snip]
> > > equal. Only one of them will/can ever be perfect at
> > > serializing/deserializing the AbiWord Piece Table, and
> > > that is the ABW filter. And perfection is something
> > > that should be strived for. Dataloss is simply
> > > unacceptable.
> > >
> > This goes without saying, but also prompts me to ask what you mean by
> > data loss: formatting or structure? And would it happen because, in
> > some way, the OASIS format is less advanced than ABW's or why?
> >
> > Thanks again to you all for your time and patience.
>
> I think Dom's covered this topic quite well, but just to give another specific example of a format difference that (just about) everyone can relate to:
>
> In AbiWord, margins are a section property. In OpenOffice.org, margins are a paragraph property. It's an open question which one is better (I prefer the AbiWord implementation, personally): but the fact remains that you can't map one representation onto another seamlessly (from abw->sxw, you have to keep track of margin state, and set it for each paragraph, from sxw->abw, you have to keep track of margin state, and create a new section whenever it changes).
>
> Just to parrot what Dom and others have already said, I think the only solution is for all three free office apps (kword, abiword, and openoffice) to read each other's file format. Since the three apps represent their data in an identical manner (a structured series of 'document elements', where style is more or less seperate from content), this shouldn't be that difficult. It's only a lack of manpower that holds us back from this goal (hint to world: the abiword ooo filters aren't that complex, a few hours of hacking on them would yield an immediate payoff: contact myself, dom, or this list if you want an idea of what needs to be done)
>
> William Lachance
> william.lachance@sympatico.ca
>
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