Microsoft and XML Formats for Document

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Microsoft and XML Formats for Document
Dirk Tombeur Platform Strategy Manager Microsoft
Belgium Luxembourg
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Evolution of Document Authoring

• Old approach linear, static
• Temporary electronic document, permanent paper
  document
• Face-to-face collaboration using paper documents
  requires physical presence
• Binary formats optimized for the high cost of
  storage and bandwidth proprietary

• New approach dynamic, interactive
• Permanent electronic document, temporary paper
  document
• Digital collaboration using electronic documents
  participants in many locations
• XML-based formats optimized for flexibility,
  reusability, and maintainability open standards

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XML in Office a 10-year evolution
Office 2003 Breakthrough XML Support WordProcessin
gML, SpreadsheetML Custom-defined schema
2007 Office system New XML-based Formats XML File
format Default XML PowerPoint Format
Office 2000 Early Innovation XML Document
Properties
Office XP First XML Formats Spreadsheet XML
Office 97 Existing binary file formats designed
in 1994, launched in Office 97
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Customers and Partners ask for Office format
standardization

• 2000
• Microsoft became serious about using XML in its
  Office file formats
• Public requests about need for a full
  specification for Office file formats
• 2003/2004
• EU asks vendors to open their documents formats
  and standardize these
• IDA (2004) Microsoft should consider the merits
  of submitting XML formats to an international
  standards body of their choice
• IDA EC explicitly ask Microsoft
• to put the evolution of the formats in the
  control of a standards body
• to build translators to/from ODF
• Governments recommend eventual submission to ISO
• 2006-2008
• December 2006 PEGSCO (Pan-European eGovernment
  Services Committee) Report http//ec.europa.eu/id
  abc/servlets/Doc?id26971
• Microsoft has adopted a pure XML format
• The Open XML (ECMA-376) standard is freely
  available
• the OpenXML (ECMA) specifications are freely
  available on the web and the main contributors to
  both specifications (respectively Sun and
  Microsoft) have assured that the specifications
  can be implemented by any interested party,
  including open-source developers, without
  additional obligations and/or costs.

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Office Open XML Broad Support in Belgium
But there is already an XML document Standard??? O
DF
Delaware Consulting Userfull NV Edan Integrator
NV CTG Adifo NV anaXis NV Egemin NV CODit
BVBA Orda-S Sphinx IT Neomatics Traviata TechT
eam Waslet Capito NV Ezos Ikan
Consulting Partena
Avanade Coppens NV DataRex Bits
Bytes InterLight NV iXL-IT NV ComCom Silicon
Center Devocom NV Henno Computers NV C
N TopPower NV InfoSupport Erudict Invenso Sof
tware Spectrum Microcomputing
Dolmen Guidance Sogeti Soft-Naert InnVisttra
Simac INS Euricom Cronos Mobile
Access Guidance Belgium VDS-Computing Digipoint
Amplexor ICT7 ICMS Group Adam Software NV Cegeka
Arinso International Alcopa Concentra Gates
Power Transmission Europe Accel Vision IT
Group ECQ Applications BVBA Kempische
Kantoorsystemen Ferranti Computer Systems ESC
Hard Software Solutions Heens IT Consultancy
BVBA Christiaens Computer Services SDE Software
Developments iFacto Business Solutions
NV HP Getronics Telindus
Econocom MSP S_at_ws NV Itineris ComputaCenter DC
S NV ECX bvba ATEFO bvba NiSH ICT for
you Make IT Easy aCOM-ib NV Electro-Line
NV Trinsy Technics bvba SPICS bvba Nerea Belgium
sprl FOD/SPF Finance Real Software Group
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The Highlander myth

• How many document format standards should their
  be?
• Some say there can be only one (The Highlander
  Principle)
• As sensible as the movie! Where otherwise
  immortals slay each other!
• In fact, there are many standard formats now
• HTML, PDF/A, ODF, OOXML
• CGM, SVG JPEG, PNG TIFF/IT, PDF/X
• And many more widely used formats
• And there will continue to be many
• AIIM / Adobe PDF has started an ISO fast track
• China UOF format to be submitted
• No format is immortal
• Formats address different needs
• Innovation is not over

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Is it Microsoft against the world?

• Commercial
• Oracle, SAP, IRIS, Adobe, Microsoft,
• Open Source
• Novell, RedHat, MySQL, Alfresco,
• Free Software
• FFII, FSF,
• Commercial and Open Source are bridging and
  looking for consensus
• Novell-Microsoft agreement
• Interoperability Alliance
• Open Specification Promises
• Free Software is radicalizing in confrontational
  mode

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DIS29500 Ballot Resolution Meeting
February 25th 29th 2008. International
Conference Centre Geneva CICG, 7 rue de Varembé,
CP13, CH-1211 Geneva 20 tel. [phone]
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The result of the international vote
Voting Rules Final Result Details
Rule 1More than 66.66 of the P-members vote approval 75,00(Need gt66.66) 24 approval forecasts out of 32 P-members(abstentions are taken out of the equation)
Rule 2More than 75 of all members vote approval 86,00(Need gt75) 10 disapprove forecasts out of 71 countries (abstentions are taken out of the equation)
Open XML is an ISO standard!
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ISO member countries control Open XML from now on

• It passes control of the Microsoft file formats
  to an international organization and ensures
  long-term access for customers and competitors
• Open XML is now the default file format of the MS
  Office suite used by 400 million people in the
  world.
• Making Open XML an ISO standards places the
  control of the file format evolution in the hands
  of countries, not commercial organizations.
• MS will not be able anymore to decide alone on
  the evolution of the file format.
• Competitors can implement and users can exchange
  documents without needing any Microsoft software
• Applications developers have free access to a
  format used by 400 million users.

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Applications with Office Open XML support

• Windows
• Altsoft XML2PDF server 2007
• AltViewer documents preview
• Altova XML Spy
• Corel Office
• Create Word 2007 documents without Word installed
• doxc to RTF
• Madcap Flare
• Microsoft Office 2000, Office XP and Office 2003
• Microsoft Office 2007
• Mindjet's MindManager
• Monarch V.9.0 from Datawatch
• ODF-Converter
• OOX-UOF Converter
• Open ERP Software
• Open XML Translator
• Open XML translator for OpenOffice (for Linux and
  Windows Versions of OpenOffice.org)
• Open XML Writer
• PythonOffice (Python API to read and write Excel
  XML documents from within Python programming
  language)

• Mac OS X
• DOCX convertor for the Mac
• docx to html converter
• doxc to RTF converter
• MacLinkPlus Deluxe version 16 by DataViz
• Microsoft Office 2008
• Neo Office 2.1
• Sun Open XML import filter for spreadsheets
• Word Counter 2.2.1
• Iphone and Iworks
• Linux
• Gnumeric open source Spreadsheet
• Open Office Novell edition
• Open XML translator for OpenOffice (for Linux and
  Windows Versions of OpenOffice.org)
• LinSpire
• Other Operating systems or Operating System
  independent
• Docx2Doc Web Service
• DOCX convertor on Palm handheld devices
• EMS added OpenXML and ODF support to their tools
  for Oracle, IBM DB2, Interbase/Firebird, MySQL,
  PostgreSQL and SQL Server

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Choices made for Office Open XML
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Levels of Interoperability Technical
Interoperability

• XML Reference Schemas
• Display-oriented (for example, Bold, Italics,
  Tables, Paragraphs, Styles)
• Document Format
• Enable Archival and File Formats Interoperability

ltwpgt ltwrgt ltwrPrgtltwb /gtlt/wrPrgt
ltwtgtJohn Doelt/wtgt lt/wrgt ltwrgt
ltwrPrgtltwi /gtlt/wrPrgt ltwtgtHealth
Agencylt/wtgt lt/wrgt lt/wpgt
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Levels of Interoperability Semantic
interoperability
ltConferenceReportgt ltDategt3/24/2004lt/Dategt
ltAttendeesgt ltAttendee NameJohn
Doegt ltDepartmentgt Health Agency
lt/Departmentgt ltPotentialgt
ltSalesgt100lt/Salesgt
ltGrowthgt25lt/Growthgt
lt/Attendeegt

• Custom-defined Schemas
• Data-oriented (for example, Price, Invoice)
• business information
• Enable System Integration

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File Format CompatibilityEnsuring Free Document
Exchange With Prior Office Releases

• Office XP, 2003 will open, edit and save new
  Office formats
• Will recognize new Word, Excel and PowerPoint
  file format extensions
• Enables users to Open XML Formats across multiple
  versions
• Windows 2000 SP4 and later can convert between
  binary and Open XML Formats
• Office 2007 users can change the default file
  format if desired
• Current .doc, .xls, .ppt file formats will be
  supported in 2007 Office system
• Default file format can be set by users during
  deployment or after
• Advanced policy controls for enabling and
  disabling the use of specific formats

Office release User Experience with new file formats
2007 Office system Default save as Open XML Formats Office 97-2003 formats fully supported Compatibility Mode ensures features are also compatible
Office 2003 Office XP Native support for Open XML Formats (Compatibility Pack installed) Open, Edit and Save Open XML Formats
Office 2000, Windows 2000 SP4 and later (non-Office) Support for Open XML formats via standalone compatibility pack Format conversion within Windows Explorer
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Open Source ODF translator
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Sun ODF Plugin for Microsoft Office
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Server based ODF integration
http//www.wygwam.com/
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Server based ODF integration
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The future?

• Fraunhofer Institute May 2007
• OASIS Organization for the Advancement of
  Structured Information Standards

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Thank you!
dirktom_at_microsoft.com