Hell is feeling chilly today. Microsoft, long known to have the mark of the beast written in its forehead, has gone and done something that makes it feel like a Leave It to Beaver rerun: it has opened up Office file formats. (Aw, shucks!)
Well, not directly, but at midnight PDT last night, Microsoft released on Sourceforgea tool - the Open XML Translator - that translates Microsoft Office files into the Open Document Format, and vice versa. Few have been clamoring for this, but Microsoft was bumping into governments that had to offer ODF compatibility, even if just one citizen wanted it. (You can try it out here.)
Big news? I think so (though Microsoft does not - nary a word about the move on its news/press release page). It means that file-level lock-in can be made obsolete (though it does require people to actually use the tool - more on that below). It also demonstrates a real commitment on Microsoft's part to participate in the open source community: the Open XML Translator is being housed on Sourceforge (answering critics who thought its CodePlex a threat to Sourceforge), and is licensed with a BSD (not Microsoft) license. BSD is the most permissive of all licenses (and, hence, the least capitalistic).
Microsoft, in making this move, must have recognized that it would cannibalize little to none of its Office sales, because almost no one is going to bother to make the file conversions - having the ability to do so will be enough. The company also recognized that it now has a far bigger lock-in threat than Office formats ever aspired to be: Sharepoint. With Sharepoint, Microsoft can lock in a company regardless of the file formats that company uses - .ODF, .XLS, .DOC, .PDF, .ETC. Because Sharepoint creates a closed network of documents - it is lock-in at the network/corporate level, and is far more pernicious than Office could hope to be.
I assume this will change the world very little. It will, however, make it much easier for my company, Alfresco, to ensure 100% file compatibility when we do document conversions within our Enterprise Content Management system. I'm sure we won't be alone in taking advantage of the BSD license on Open XML Translator - it should open up a wide range of opportunities for companies in the content business.
Posted by Matt Asay on July 6, 2006 07:00 AM
