GROKLAW: Format comparison between ODF and MS XML very helpful, introduction to some of the issues relating to which document format works best.
Of course we are still not comparing like with like. the ODF is in use by stable released software with all the code available and it is becoming a full recognised standard with no restrictions on using it in your own software.
The Microsoft format is still not finished, is not available with code, has not been adopted as in international standard.
So 2 formats, one is clearly better from the point of getting a technical understanding, one is clearly better as an international standard, one has software available now and all those are the same one (ODF). The other is also subject to patents and the whim of a single company.
It should be a no-brainer and if Microsoft did not have a near monopoly it would be.
Fortunately, OpenOffice continues to advance fast and I for one will not be switching away from it any time soon.
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