OpenOffice support in Mellel

[Phil82]

OpenOffice (i.e. OpenDocument, not the v1.0 document format) support in Mellel? It can be facilities for import/export to full open and saving. Is it worth having in Mellel?

[zoul]

AFAIK OpenOffice uses two file formats, the OpenOffice XML (used by OO 1.0) and OpenDocument (used by OO 2.0). Which one are you talking about? OpenDocument support would be great – I’d even go as far as making it the default document format if that is possible, because then we would be (at least theoretically) able to freely exchange documents between various word processors.

[rpcameron]

This ought to be for OpenDocument, which was also recently was approved by the ISO.

[danzac]

OpenDocument. Possibly making this a (the) saving format would break down many exchanging problems with non-Mellel users.

[rpcameron]

When the Redlers were developing their XML format there were many discussions about using OpenDocument instead of creating a new format. The Redlers have stated several times that OpenDocument would not be Mellel's default format.

However, offering it as an export option would be a good idea.

[danzac]

rp,
It will not be the default format, but could it be a secondary format for saving?

I guess alot of what these threads and discussions are amounting up to is compatibility with other users and programs, right? Some Mellel users don't like the hassle of having to manually export a file when it needs sharing, much less making it a PDF through the print services.

There have been many ideas for solving this compatibility, but which is the best, which is feasible, and what do the Redlers think about it all? Do they have an upcoming feature that will speak to this issue?

[Phil82]

My bad. I should have made it clear that I was referring to the OpenDocument format, the format that was recently certified as a standard.

I would like Mellel to be able to operate with OpenDocument, not using it as a native file format like the current .mellel files but having the option to import/export said files. I think that would go a long way in helping Mellel find broader acceptance, even though OpenDocument is still in its infancy.

However, the return on investment (ROI) of implementing support for OpenDocuments needs to be weighed against any perceived benefits, and I think there is a justifiable case for supporting OpenDocuments.

[rpcameron]

rp,
It will not be the default format, but could it be a secondary format for saving?

I guess alot of what these threads and discussions are amounting up to is compatibility with other users and programs, right? Some Mellel users don't like the hassle of having to manually export a file when it needs sharing, much less making it a PDF through the print services.

Mellel supports Word through the OS level via export, and RTF via its own exporter; neither of those are available as a saving option. Therefore, why should ODF support be from a direct save option instead of through the export interface like all other formats. If the Redlers felt that ODF was not a fit for Mellel when the XML format was originally crafted, why would they determine it was sufficient for a save option now?

There are other polls I believe for better/enhanced PDF support through the PDFKit instead the standard PDF print support in OS X.

As far as an extra step in sharing being a hassle: the default format for the word processor is its typical interchange format. In Word, if you want to save as RTF for interchange, you have to open a Save As… dialogue, select RTF as the format, and then choose a location. The only difference in Mellel is that you choose Export from the menu instead of Save As…. In addition, in Word, if you choose Save As, the current working format is RTF and you lose support for features that are not implemented in RTF; in Mellel your working format is always the native, and therefore you never worry about your document losing features until the moment you export.

Non-Mellel formats should be supported in an export manner, and not as a standard for directly saving documents.

[macsailor]

Non-Mellel formats should be supported in an export manner, and not as a standard for directly saving documents.

Agree on this one.

[danzac]

RP,
Thanks for the clarifications. I am stuck in my world of trying to integrate Mellel files into my devonthink flow (though I am not alone) so a proprietary format isn't helping me. Devonthink 2.0 (early next year) will more than likely index and view OpenDocument files, so I would have really liked to have seen OpenDoc as the default Mellel format.

Still, there is hope for me and like minds. DT 2.0 may use Spotlight importers for DT 2.0, which brings indexing of mellel files a step closer.

[nicka]

I agree too. (Using OpenDoc as the native format would make all of Mellel's lovely auto-title objects vanish, for a start.)
But this doesn't rule out a preference to have Mellel _also_ export to OpenDoc (or rtf or pdf) every time you save, as well as saving.

[danzac]

kind of off topic, but the PDFKit possibility was mentioned. Would this improve Mellel's functionality with applescripts and automator at all? I have an applescript that converts file to PDF, you can do likewise in automator. Trouble is, it doesn't do it with Mellel files.

[rpcameron]

kind of off topic, but the PDFKit possibility was mentioned. Would this improve Mellel's functionality with applescripts and automator at all? I have an applescript that converts file to PDF, you can do likewise in automator. Trouble is, it doesn't do it with Mellel files.

No. PDFKit is the name of the programming framework introduced with 10.4 (Tiger) that allowed for greater PDF support. This includes opening, manipulating, saving and creating PDFs. Mellel may at some point in the future leverage PDFKit for its export options, but at the moment it only uses the system-wide print-to-PDF functionality from the Print dialog. (This is most likely to maintain ease of backwards compatibility with OS X versions prior to 10.4.)