Re: [tdf-discuss] On the Future of TDF

On Mon, Nov 15, 2010 at 8:38 PM, AG <computing.account@googlemail.com> wrote:
> On 14/11/10 11:25, Mirek M. wrote:
> > Hi everyone,
> > I've been meaning to write this e-mail for a while now, but haven't gotten
> > around to it until now -- I hope it's still relevant.
> >
> > The Next Decade Manifesto and the recent press release (available at
> > http://www.documentfoundation.org/lists/announce/msg00016.html for those
> > who
> > haven't read it yet) open up a lot of question and comments:
> >
> > "TDF founders foresee a completely different future for the office suite
> > paradigm, which - in the actual format - is over 20 years old, to be based
> > on the document (where the software is a layer for the creation or the
> > presentation of the contents)."
> >
> > What exactly does that mean for the internal structure of LibreOffice?
> > Does
> > this mean that LibO will be more object-oriented?
> >
> > "In addition, each single module of LibreOffice will be undergoing an
> > extensive rewrite, with Calc being the first one to be redeveloped around
> > a
> > brand new engine - code named Ixion - that will increase performance,
> > allow
> > true versatility and add long awaited database and VBA macro handling
> > features."
> >
> > Great.
>
> Yep - that +does+ sound interesting.  Any time-lines given for this or the
> other improvements?
>
> > "Writer is going to be improved in the area of layout fidelity and Impress
> > in the area of slideshow fidelity. Most of the new features are either
> > meant
> > to maintain compatibility with the market leading office suite or will
> > introduce radical innovations."
> >
> > Can't wait to see it. I'm very curious as to what the "radical
> > innovations"
> > will bring.
>
> Ditto.
>
> > "The Document Foundation is going to be at the heart of the Free Software
> > universe, where users want to build a different future for office suites,
> > working together with developers."
> >
> > It'd be great if TDF focused on integration and interoperability with
> > other
> > open-source projects.
>
> +1

I agree too, this is extremely important. Let's focus on similar goals
of all these projects instead the differences and collaborate strongly
on that. The real enemy is the propietary software and non-standards,
no other free software.

I propose another idea: What about convert the file support of LibO
into a portable, resource efficient, well designed and multiplatform
library for all FOSS projects? I would imagine it like the WebKit of
document file formats, but governed in a less corporate way. This
library would have it´s own site into backed or being a TDF subdomain
(or both), and improved between all friend projects.

Of course this idea would need lot's of PR, negotiate with different
projects and probably even deep changes in the original source code.
This could make not only more interoperability, but FOSS projects
having a lot stronger file type support. It could be used easily for
non-interactive document converters too.

A strong official alliance about this and other interoperability stuff
could be very good for the FOSS productivity suite.

> > I'd really like to see Linux become the primary platform to focus on (yes,
> > Linux has a much smaller user base than Windows, but that will never
> > change
> > if software companies keep favoring Windows). For Linux, OpenOffice.org
> > (going forward LibreOffice) is vital.
>
> +1
>
> > It would also be great if LibO, KOffice, AbiWord, Gnumeric, Ease, and all
> > the other open-source editors worked together to set standards. It'd be
> > great, for example, if you could choose a standard open-source font triad
> > that
> > was bundled with all (relevant) open-source software (and closed-source
> > software too) to counter MS's Times-Arial-Courier triad (and the rising
> > Calibri-Cambria-Candara triad). Or if you could agree on the same keyboard
> > shortcuts.
>
> Personally, I couldn't care one way or another - I just want crisp and clear
> fonts and a suitable range.
>
> > <snip>
>
> > "Users read, write, modify and share documents, and are focused on
> > contents
> > rather than software features. After 20 years of feature oriented
> > software,
> > it is now the right time to bring back content at the centre of user
> > focus".
> >
> > Does this mean that the ribbonesque UI that came out of OOo Renaissance
> > will
> > be abandoned in favor of a more efficient and less distracting UI?
>
> +1
>
> This is a great aspiration: the art of software design would be similar to
> the contribution the drummer makes to a song: reliable, robust, and not too
> much in the way of the rest of the music.[1]  In the same way, in order to
> help the user focus on the content, the workspace needs to be paramount with
> the tools and options accessible and intuitive so that the user can get on
> with the work and not worry about how things work and how to accomplish
> common tasks.
>
> And what I would really appreciate is a help guide that suggests *why*
> someone might want to use a particular tool (especially for the more
> esoteric options).  This would certainly help expand my usage of the suite
> and tap into its power more effectively.
>
> Cheers
>
> AG
>
> [1] Gratuitous information dept: metaphor inspired by listening to the great
> grooves of Grand Funk Railroad's 1971 tour with drumming by Don Brewer.
>
>
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