| Linspire releases Open XML translator |
Jul. 12, 2007
 Linux vendor Linspire on July 11 said that the new Open XML translator is now available for use in its latest Freespire and Linspire distributions. The Open XML translator enables bi-directional compatibility, so that files saved in the Microsoft-created Open XML format can be opened by OpenOffice.org users, and files created by OpenOffice can be saved in Open XML format.
Using the translator, OpenOffice.org and Microsoft Office users will now be able to share files because documents will better maintain consistent formats, formulas and style templates across the two office productivity suites, a Linspire spokesperson said.
Last month, Linspire announced it had joined ongoing efforts to help create bi-directional open-source translators for word processing, spreadsheets and presentations between ODF and Open XML. TurboLinux and Sun Microsystems also have announced they are incorporating Open XML translators into their Linux systems, respectively.
"Interoperability within the PC ecosystem is extremely important for Linux to find acceptance on the desktop," said Linspire CEO Kevin Carmony. "The ability to easily share document files between Microsoft Office and OpenOffice users is vital to our users."
The Open XML format is a standard file format for office applications that was standardized by Ecma International on Dec. 7, 2006, and is being implemented by multiple applications on multiple platforms. It is the default format for the recently released Microsoft Office 2007.
With an estimated 100 million users, OpenOffice.org is a full-featured, open-source office productivity suite with word processing, spreadsheet, presentation and database applications. OpenOffice.org currently supports ODF (OpenDocument Format), which is an ISO-standardized, XML-based file format specification for office applications maintained by the open-source community.
The OpenDocument Format ensures that information saved in spreadsheets, documents and presentations is freely accessible to any OpenDocument-supporting application. OpenOffice.org is available free of charge here.
The open-source Open XML/ODF Translator project can be viewed here.
--Chris Preimesberger
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