Open Office 2.0
Yesterday I purchased a computer magazine which had OpenOffice 2.0 on its cover disc.
Downloaded it and looks good - it includes a database for the first time.
What is more interesting is that it uses OpenDocument as the file format for saving. This is designed to be an open format to help long term archival storage and not tied into any proprietory system.
Microsoft are fighting it tooth and nail because if it succeeds, the Microsoft's monopoly is over! Trouble is Microsoft Office will not read OpenDocument files.
So until that happens I'm stuck with using MS Office formats for saving.
http://comment.zdnet.co.uk/other/0,39020682,39216101,00.htm
Downloaded it and looks good - it includes a database for the first time.
What is more interesting is that it uses OpenDocument as the file format for saving. This is designed to be an open format to help long term archival storage and not tied into any proprietory system.
Microsoft are fighting it tooth and nail because if it succeeds, the Microsoft's monopoly is over! Trouble is Microsoft Office will not read OpenDocument files.
So until that happens I'm stuck with using MS Office formats for saving.
http://comment.zdnet.co.uk/other/0,39020682,39216101,00.htm
Comments
The MediaWiki software used to run the Wikipedia is my current best bet to replace it. It is wholly text-indexed, like IfW, cross-platform and because eit is licenced under the GPL can't be taken away or improvement prevented.
It is also free, which would be significant if you wanted more than a few machines running something like Idealist.
The residual use of Idealist here now depends on a copy running under WINE emulation on Linux, which is mostly effective and without any actual problems so far - occasional sudden stops but no damage.
We also use OpenOffice which has taken over from the single copy of Word and Excel we had.
MS Office doesn't read OpenDocument files, but you can create MS Office files using OpenOffice.org.
File > Save As, select Word 97/2000/XP. Or Excel, Powerpoint, etc. You can also open crashed Word files, WordPerfect, etc.
Try the File > Send feature -- under that, one option is to Send As Word, so that option starts your mail program, creates a Word version of your OpenOffice.org document, and attaches it to the new email, all in one step.