Re: Export Org mode files to (gag, barf) MS Office?

[George Mauer <gmauer@gmail.com>]

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For anyone who has never tried it, I'll add that the open office formats
are an absolute beast to export to. I can't say for sure about docx but
I've done my time building a PowerPoint exporter (on top of Microsoft
provided ooxml libraries even). It is complex enough that I'm not even sure
such an exporter's maintenance is possible without a full time dedicated
team

On Sat, Jun 26, 2021, 17:17 Tim Cross <theophilusx@gmail.com> wrote:

>
> Brandon Taylor <donnie126_2002@hotmail.com> writes:
>
> > I know we’re not supposed to really even TALK about proprietary software
> in FOSS communities like this one, but I can’t help but wonder if someone
> > might consider making (an) Emacs plugin(s) that allow(s) a user to
> export Org mode files to Microsoft Office file formats such as .docx, .xlsx
> and the
> > like? Or is/are there already (a) plugin(s) in the MELPA that can do
> this?
> >
>
> I don't think you will ever see full proprietary support for MS Office
> file formats. In addition to the philosophical issues, there are also
> practical constraints. As these formats are closed proprietary formats
> owned by MS, they can be changed at will and without notice by MS, which
> creeates maintenance problems, plus there is the risk you may run foul
> of MS copyright or patent restrictions and you have the added overhead
> of having to work with a format which is not openly documented.
>
> Probably the best you can hope for is support for open standards which
> are also supported by MS Office. For example, ODT, CSV and maybe XML.
> Unlike native MS formats, such open formats are likely to be even more
> accessible (such as by other office like products) and last longer
> because they are not based on some version of a proprietary format which
> may arbitrarily change in the future.
>
> --
> Tim Cross
>
>

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