[CLUE-Tech] How to view MS Word docs in Linux

[Jed S. Baer]

Joe 'Zonker' Brockmeier wrote:
> 
> On Mon, 20 Aug 2001, Jed S. Baer wrote:
> 
> > Thanks for the suggestion, but HTML isn't a page layout language. I
> > can't use it to control pagination, for example. Regrettably, you're
> 
> Have you tried Abiword or Koffice? I don't know how well they generate
> Word-compatible docs, but I know it's one of their features or planned
> features.

I'm hoping to keep things as simple as possible.

> Unfortunately, there's no perfect solution to this problem. StarOffice
> is the best bet when it comes to creating and reading Word-compatible docs.
> DocBook is great for creating PDF and RTF docs, but it's not designed to give
> control over layout. I've thought about taking the time to create a
> DTD and stylesheets for a resume document format...but I've never taken
> the time to do so. Given the current economy, it'd probably be very
> popular...

That thought has crossed my mind as well. Having resume data stored in
XML, then transforms to [whatever]. I suppose the difficulty there is
agreement on what goes into a resume. Initially, it seems pretty simple,
but then I think about the huge variety of content/layout I've seen over
time.

The objection which comes to mind is if a resume DTD really caught on,
it would play right into automatic screening by keyword. As others have
pointed out, such is already too prevalent in the HR world already.

> Instead of spending time searching for the Holy Grail, I'd suggest
> sucking it up and using StarOffice. It's not the best program in the
> world, but it's sufficient.

A GR'R'R'R'RaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiLLLLLLLLLLLLL! <CRACK!> <BOOM!>

You're almost certainly right. The last thing I need is to finally reach
the castle Aaaar'r'r'rggghh only to be insulted by a Frenchman. :-)

The quest is nearing the end, and I am almost ready to give up, and, as
you say, suck it up and get one of the office suites.

jed
-- 
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a
 difference. Free Software developers don't have that problem."