Document Interoperability Initiative

OpenXML, ODF and Legacy Document Formats

Brussels, December 2008

Martin Thielen & Wolfgang Keber, 1 December 2008

DIaLOGIKa Why Document Interoperability?

. Public administrations demand more and more open standards for exchanging documents . Two such standards exist in this domain . Office Open XML (OpenXML) . Open Document Format (ODF) . Documents need to be converted between the standards . Legacy documents need to be migrated . some formats are already endangered (e.g. WordPerfect)

. Interoperability is not a feature – it‘s a must!

DIaLOGIKa Sample Projects and Initiatives

. Sample projects – the building blocks . OpenXML/ODF Translator . Binary (, xls, ppt) to OpenXML Translator . Conversion Tools for PLANETS . Initiatives . Technical Report on OpenXML/ODF Interoperability (ISO SC34/WG5) . IDABC ODEF Promotion

DIaLOGIKa Conversion Tools for PLANETS (1)

. Preservation and Long- term Access through Networked Services, http://www.planets-project.eu . Four-year project co- funded by the EU Sixth Framework Programme . Addresses core digital preservation challenges:

Build practical services and tools to help ensure long- term access to our digital cultural and scientific assets

DIaLOGIKa PLANETS Partners

. The British Library . National Library, Netherlands . Austrian National Library . State and University Library, Denmark . Royal Library, Denmark . Austrian National Library . State and University Library, Denmark . Hatii at University of Glasgow . University of Freiburg . Technical University of Vienna . University at Cologne . Tessella Plc . IBM Netherlands . Microsoft Research, Cambridge . ARC Seibersdorf research DIaLOGIKa Microsoft’s Role in PLANETS

. Microsoft initial mandate within PLANETS . Conversion of binary Microsoft Office Documents to Office Open XML File Format

Proprietary Formats Open Standards

. In the meantime, we have extended this conversion tools set by supporting . more legacy source formats . more XML-based target formats

DIaLOGIKa Document Conversion Infrastructure (1)

ToooXML (GUI) . Modular and extendible architecture Web Service TB “Binary  OpenXML” Interfac Transformer Box Watch Folder e (Wrapper) Tool

DIaLOGIKa Document Conversion Infrastructure (2)

ToooXML “OpenXML  ODF” (GUI) Transformer Box (Wrapper) Web Service TB “Binary  OpenXML” Interfac Transformer Box Watch Folder e (Wrapper) Tool

“WP  OpenXML” Transformer Box (Wrapper)

DIaLOGIKa Supported Formats

OpenXML ODF Binary MS Office   OpenXML  ODF  DOS Word   WinWord 2   WinWord 6   Word 95   WordPerfect 5   WordPerfect 6  

DIaLOGIKa More Target Formats

. b2xTranslator . alternative migration path from doc to docx . OSS project hosted on SourceForge . DAISY (from doc/docx) . Digital Accessible Information System . talking book format, allows blind people to navigate through the book . UOF (from docx and other formats) . Uniform Office Format . Chinese standard for office applications . HTML (from docx and other formats) . OSS prototype converter, hosted on CodePlex

DIaLOGIKa IDABC – ODEF

. Promotion of Open Document Exchange Formats (ODEF) . Quotation from IDABC‘s web site: Open document exchange formats remove dependency on products and technologies by using standardised formats that promise interoperability of document processing. Through information exchange via documents being at the heart of any public sector activity, document interoperability becomes a central issue in any eGovernment strategy . Definition of the “administrative document” . Restricting to convertible (=compatible) features . Commission runs an internal conversion service . ODEF CoDe (Conversion on Demand)

DIaLOGIKa References

. Format Specifications . OpenXML: http://www.ecma-international.org/publications/standards/Ecma-376.htm . ODF: http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=office . Binary Office formats: http://www.microsoft.com/interop/docs/officebinaryformats.mspx . SourceForge . OpenXML/ODF Translator: http://sourceforge.net/projects/odf-converter . Binary to OpenXML Translator: http://sourceforge.net/projects/b2xtranslator . PLANETS . http://www.planets-project.eu/ . DIN Working Group ODF/OpenXML Translation . http://www.fokus.fraunhofer.de/fokus/fokus/presse/meldungen_fokus/2007/05/DIN-E. . http://www.nia.din.de/cmd?level=tpl- artikel&subcommitteeid=94340957&contextid=nia&cmstextid=74610&languageid=en . http://www.nia.din.de/sixcms_upload/media/2397/ISO-IEC_TR_Translation%28E%29_v081.pdf . IDABC ODEF Promotion . http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/en/document/3428/5890

DIaLOGIKa