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Open Document Format Accepted by ISO

Open Document Format (known as ODF) was giving the go ahead by the International Standards Organization. The vote, which was a unanimous 23 against none opposing, makes the digital format a world standard. With ISO`s blessing, it is expected that ODF will gain further support around the world. ODF, an alternative to proprietary formats, is an open standard that allows text, spreadsheet and presentation files to work with one another even if they were created with different vendors` applications.

ODF addresses the concern that, as documents and services are migrated from paper to electronic form, governments and other public agencies may not be able to read important documents if they are not all using a common file format. The spec has been white-hot in recent months, with various companies and organizations uniting to rally support for ODF in the face of Microsoft.

While not opposed to ODF, Microsoft does not support it outright. According to Jason Matusow, Microsoft director of standards affairs, the ODF format is limited to the features and performance of Open Office and Star Office and would not satisfy most of our Microsoft Office customers today. Microsoft employs different formats in current versions of Office and will not offer native support of ODF in its pending Office 12 release this year.