Like a RTF document can have word and excel document binary format embedded as a OLE. So that so call generic RTF now needs word and excel to be viewed.

No Microsoft created format for Office usage passes a details check.

People avoid the details so are not aware how many compatibility problems they really have.

Don’t be so happy, I have some problems with RTF in LibreOffice on Linux, the problem is that this file wasn’t something very complex, but LibreOffice couldn’t open it correctly.

Word used in MS Office enterprise can also include OLE links that someone using MS Office Standard cannot open. Heck MS Office Starter contained less OLE parts than MS Office Standard.

Clarence Moon its the embed OLE data that is the problem. It does not matter what link I use to document its presence.

I could point to MS documentation on RTF the section covering embedding of OLE object but that has to be downloaded to be viewed.

Just because a file ends in .doc or .docx does not mean the version of Word you have on your computer is able to open it. You have MS Office Standard and someone made it with MS Office Enterprise using one of the Enterprise extras you may not be able to open the file even that the file is from the same version of Word.

OLE problems only get worse when you start crossing versions of MS Office. Clarence Moon.

All this is written up at national achieves documentation on selection of long term storage formats.

“That’s what you get for using non-Microsoft software”

The reality how would you know. You just inserted a Image and the wrong OLE was used. It will still display perfect on your machine Clarence Moon. This is why .doc and .docx is such a bastard for sending documents around.

This is the reality of the problem. Microsoft file format design is a land mine. Just because you have walked across the mine field safely for now does not mean you always will Clarence Moon.

Yes the OLE objects ruin your day with all of the MS Office documents.

Most users of MS Office don’t want to become aware that its broken.

That’s what you get for using non-Microsoft software, Mr. O. You found some obscure program where some wannabe developer hacked into the MS Word formats using some unsupported interface and then you couldn’t recover some data with a subsequent version. I hope you understand how stupid that makes you look. I doubt if you do, though.

Clarence Moon
third party extension to OLE MS Office allows OLE objects to be embedded without a reference image or any exact size details.

The way MS Office interacts with “non-Microsoft products” causes problems. .doc files from MS Works version of Word also fail in MS Office 2010 due to MS Works version of word having unique OLE addons.

So broad cross section of documents from every version of MS Word things start coming apart quite quickly just sticking to MS product. Gets worse once you have third party extensions in OLE.

Basically a .doc file allows storage of a mix of data some made by Microsoft only for particular versions of Office or Works due to differences in OLE objects included. Ie someone insert a visio object into a .doc file it don’t display right unless you have visio installed. Some data only for third part OLE objects. Nice if you are the poor sod on the other end of the email who get that. This is why a lot of businesses these days only send pdf. So you don’t send a document and not have it not open on the other end.

Sorry Tar RTF is not magic cure all.
http://www.aspose.com/community/forums/permalink/302986/302986/showthread.aspx

Welcome to land mine. MS has land mined all there word processing formats the same exact way. Lets allow OLE objects to be embed without having a picture if computer does not have that OLE object. Tar.

Never allow generic storage of what ever in a file-format and expect to be able to render it in future.

So a RTF file from 2002-2003 might not even open at all Tar due to the fact your computer does not contain the OLE object that lot of the data was contained in.

Tar Staroffice document from 2002-2003 you will get open might have to change a few formatting options to make it look right.

Basically I have old RTF documents with OLE objects in them one case I was forced to reinstall windows 3.11 so I could view some of them. The OLE object would not install and work in 9x or anything NT based.

RTF with embed OLE are also not assured to work on Linux. OLE embed in ODF there s a image of what should be at that page location if the OLE cannot be found. Not true for old MS Office formats or new OOXML format or RTF.

ODF is design to work if items like OLE objects are missing by using a reference image instead. It has something to swap it with.

Tar basically what level of broken do you want. ODF style where formating could be bust but fixable yet your data readable. Or MS style where formatting might be OK but your data is nowhere to be seen because you don’t have anything to display it.

Tar you could have got lucky and picked a old StarOffice 5 document from 2002-2003 that renders perfectly not all of those documents render incorrectly. In fact most render correctly.

Tar really if you want perfect formatting in future you should produce a pdf/A that works but basically not editable. ODF means the information will be there to edit no matter what. Yes the PDF/A the /A is archive and it a stable long term format.

Clarence Moon when I learnt about the OLE issue is with a drawing program called warbirds. That program was never provided on the Internet the company that made it is no more. Sorry the OLE bug is what drives anyone running document archives nuts.

Its like 10000 documents open no problem but that 1 document you really want is missing some odd ball OLE object and is missing the key bit of information you want and you hope someone made a pdf or images of it so you can find out what it had.

Also please visit your countries national archive sites and read the documentation on long term electronic documentation storage particular what are the allowed formats. Clarence Moon yes there is formal certificate in most countries to say you know how to archive documents. Claiming I know this by google shows you don’t know the topic Clarence Moon.

I am a trained to maintain archives. The approved formats are highly limited for documents. png, pdf/a, odf, jpg(special cases) that is all. rtf, doc, docx are not approved for long term storage due to known bugs in design.

Clarence Moon as normal claims my knowledge is a google search if it so simple why in hell did you not know that rtf .doc and .docx is not approved to be used by national achieves. Basically you are trying to hide your incompetence by saying my information comes from google searches.

Google only helps you if you know exactly what you are searching for. OLE error in MS Office produced files I know about.

Now I use RTF files only. They work everywhere, even Linux!

I am sure that your Googling found some case where that is true, Mr. O, but your waffling on why and the oblique reference to “third part” (is that your clumsy way of saying “3rd party”?) seems to mean that some non-Microsoft product actually has the problem that you claim to exist. What are the details? I am sure that the incidence of whatever it is is so slight as to make no difference to anyone.

Explain it if you can.

“So many Foss tools break compatibility all the time.”

So Tar points to someone else and says “They do it” and by his twisted logic that makes it okay for Microsoft to break compatibility throughout the life of their Office suite.

You are no better than any other Microsoft attack dog. For your information Tar, it’s not okay if someone else does it. What some one else does is their business. Microsoft breaks compatibility throughout the life of their office suite to encourage their customers to keep up on the treadmill. It’s a fools game and you are here to defend it. That makes you a fool.

Besides the obvious question of why one would want to run an ancient release there’s the obvious solution of running an ancient release of GNU/Linux. Why would there be a need to run it on a modern release? That’s a straw man, a very weak argument. LibreOffice can still open StarWriter 3-5 files and all versions of OpenOffice.org