Microsoft opening Word/Excel file formats

chris cuillachris cuilla
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
According to this: http://news.com.com/2100-1012-511164...?tag=nefd_lede



Microsoft is opening their Word and Excel XML schemas.



If this is as open as it seems, it could be great news for Apple. How does it affect the rumored "Apple Office suite"?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 3
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    It's not as open as it seems. The XML schemas are hideous in the first place (have you ever opened an Excel file in a text editor? Eeeeeeeesh!), and the file format allows MS to stick large blobs of binary crap within the XML tags. So there's still the problem of decoding the large blobs of binary crap, which will scarcely be any easier than it is now.



    This is just an MS PR stunt to combat criticism from open source advocates. It doesn't fundamentally change anything. To pick an extreme example, a bunch of binary data in a CDATA block enclosed in a single element might be XML in the most technical sense, but it's still a closed format for all practical purposes unless and until MS publishes the specification for the binary data (which they haven't, and won't, unless ordered to).
  • Reply 2 of 3
    chris cuillachris cuilla Posts: 4,825member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Amorph

    It's not as open as it seems. The XML schemas are hideous in the first place (have you ever opened an Excel file in a text editor? Eeeeeeeesh!), and the file format allows MS to stick large blobs of binary crap within the XML tags. So there's still the problem of decoding the large blobs of binary crap, which will scarcely be any easier than it is now.



    I understand that this is possible, but is that actually what they are doing? I've downloaded the schema (for Word anyway) and it seems awfully large is that was all they are planning to do.



    I am always suspicious of MS's motives. This case is no different.



    Still, what you are suggesting would essentially defeat the purpose for which they are opening the schemas...for developers to actually use the files.
  • Reply 3 of 3
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Bingo.



    Any developer on Windows will use Microsoft's handy dandy Office XML reader classes in .NET, and anyone outside of .NET will still have to roll their own, which will require decoding the binary blobs, and you're still screwed.



    But MS gets to claim an open file format in XML. *snort*



    PR, smoke and mirrors, move along, there's nothing to see here...
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