OOXML-ODF Use Cases (was RE: [office-collab] Re: Counting in Access Paths)

Hello Dennis,  I am aware of all those details, the user is not. The user is only interested in results. The fact is that all ODF change-tracking will be removed by any MS Office out there. Therefore we can be happy that John agreed on this concern. Unless you are representing the same company, I would suggest to let the implementor speak for himself.  Thank you, Svante
On 21.10.2012 18:46, Dennis E. Hamilton wrote:
> I don't believe that is the use case that either John or I were discussing.
>
> I know I was speaking of processing of ODF as ODF, including direct manipulation of XML parts.
>
> I think import-export involving a different document model not based on ODF is a different issue.  It is also a different issue for ODF Conforming Consumers that do not support change-tracking of any ODF flavor.  There is no requirement that unsupported features be preserved in output of ODF Conforming Producers. > >  - Dennis >
> DETAILS >
> I've not observed any Microsoft Office support for change tracking in ODF documents.  It is no surprise that you will lose the change-tracking completely by passing a change-tracked ODF document through Microsoft Office and back out as an ODF document.
>
> Microsoft Office does not operate on the ODF document at the XML level in the way that ODF-native and custom applications that generate or manipulate ODF documents would.  It is well-known that the document models are different.  It is no surprise that features of the ODF document that are not currently imported as comparable Microsoft Office features will disappear in any ODF round-trip scenario.  (Recall how that worked until OpenFormula and the ODF 1.2 support in Excel.) >
> Even if you create a change-tracked document in Microsoft Office and then save it in ODF format, none of the change-tracking will carry over.  If you save it as an Office binary or as OOXML, you might be able to see some of the Office change-tracking preserved on (non-ODF) import into an OpenOffice-family implementation. >
> I'm not clear how any of those cases, involving import-export capability of different software products, can be addressed by the ODF TC.
>
> I think the way to see ODF change-tracking supportable in Microsoft Office is to ensure a thoroughly-specified mechanism that can be practically mapped into equivalent OOXML, and vice versa.  That would assure feasibility of Office support for ODF change-tracking, whether by Microsoft or an extension provider.  And, as far as that goes, it would matter for import export of OOXML by ODF-centric software too.
>
> There are existence proofs with import-export cases of various degrees of fidelity for current Office and ODF change-tracking.  While highly implementation-dependent, I suppose those do provide some level of benchmark against which a MCT definition can be calibrated.
>
> It may also be useful that there are implemented cases under licenses that permit collaborative improvement among implementers of both open-source and closed-source products. > >  - Dennis > >