Locking yourself into OfficeOpenXML and Office 2007 made easy

[eddie]

Source: Locking yourself into OfficeOpenXML and Office 2007 made easy

I just stumbled over this really funny and interesting blog entry:
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9584_22-6183476.html

It's about Office 2007 trial versions, which allow you to store your files only in OOXML, even clipboard exchange with other applications seems to be disabled.

So when the 30 days trial period ends, you have two "choices": Buy Office 2007 for being able to access your own documents, or find some tool for converting your documents from OOXML to some really open document format, like ODF.

Finding some tool sounds reasonable, but AFAIK there is no final version of any such tool available right now, so you might loose some formatting or even some data!
I especially enjoyed the sentence “Choice is an optional extra, only available after purchase”.

ODF is supported by different open source and closed source products, for example Sun StarOffice, OpenOffice.org, IBM Notes 8, KOffice, Google Docs & Spreadsheets and many more.

No risk to get locked into software by one particular vendor!

[kalpik]

Typical of MS.. Nothing new!

[eddie]

The part I loved was where you were not allowed to even copy-paste from your Office 2007 document!!! I mean what are they shielding from? The fact that someone might not like their product and then he/she would go for better choices?

[gxsaurav]

To be very frank .doc or .xls are standerds out there. They are used by 98% of the Office suite users out there whether on Windows or Mac. It is the standerd.

However, the option to save only as OOXML is a bit wrong, They should have given saving to both OOXML & old office format which does takes out some new features of Office documents.

Oh well, there is only 2 ways of getting Office out there

1) OEM PCs in which case it is Office 2007 OEM edition cosisting of Word PowerPoint & Excel. So it is full version.

2) You buy it, in which case you again get full versions

3) Trial version with this limitation which should not be there. Well, most of the user know which is the easiest & most compatible office suite out there so they will obviously buy or pirate MS office

[eddie]

Originally Posted by gx_saurav

3) Trial version with this limitation which should not be there. Well, most of the user know which is the easiest & most compatible office suite out there so they will obviously buy or pirate MS office

Yeah and if someone "wants" to have a choice...don't let them have any. It is like saying..."You tried our demo software? Now, pay us or forget about your documents!!!".

[gxsaurav]

Originally Posted by eddie

Yeah and if someone "wants" to have a choice...don't let them have any. It is like saying..."You tried our demo software? Now, pay us or forget about your documents!!!".

lolz...very true. Like I said, they should have let users select between 2 formats. Old & new