Office Open XML and Opendocument?
Q
While installing Office 2016 on my new Windows 11 PC recently, I was offered a choice of default file types – Office Open XML or Opendocument (see screenshot). Having read a short description of each, I went for the first one. Was this the right decision? Why does Microsoft want to confuse users like me with choices like this? Colleen Stafford
A
There’s no quick answer to this, suffice to say, it’s due to a complex mix of factors including industry disagreements, a desire by Microsoft to be seen to be doing the right thing and an underlying fear of legal sanction.
The first of these is the easiest to explain, because it’s a good oldfashioned format war – not unlike the VHS and Betamax battle of the 1970s and 1980s. In this case, one group believes the Opendocument file format is the best standard for saving assorted document types, while an opposing group considers Office Open XML, or OOXML, to be superior. Needless to say, the latter group is led by Microsoft.
Both options have their merits, but if you use Microsoft Office, you’re better off with OOXML. This is because only OOXML files support all the features of Microsoft Office documents. You can load or save Opendocument files in Microsoft Office programs, but if you create a document in Microsoft Office and save it in Opendocument format, some elements may not make the transition. The full list of features Opendocument does and doesn’t support is extensive. See Microsoft’s rundown for Word at www.snipca.com/40164.
Microsoft once protected the ownership of its Office file formats, but it introduced OOXML as an ‘open’ format, in Office 2007. This means any developer can use it, heading off accusations of anti-competitive behaviour and the associated risk of prosecution.
Want to know the difference between technical terms? Email noproblem@ computeractive.co.uk