Re: OT: Microsoft takes on history

["Frank J. Lhota" <NOSPAM.FrankLho@rcn.com>]

For the record, WordPerfect used a different file format than WordStar, and
Microsoft Word has a different format from either one of them. The file
format issue, bothersome as it might be, is surmountable, as the legions of
users who have made the transitions to new word processors can attest.
Actually, it is now easier than ever to switch word processors, thanks to
the RTF format.

Also, the notion that the only way to compete with Word is to look more like
Word is completed wrong. MS Word will always look more like MS Word than any
other word processor. To take on Word, one needs to do something
substantially better than Word. My biggest gripe with Word is performance:
when I edit a large document with Word, my PC starts to resemble a 286. The
latest version of StarOffice may very well do that by taking on Word on
several fronts: lower price (obviously), a cleaner interface, and (thank
God!) better performance. If StarOffice doesn't replace Word, I'm sure that
something else will.

And I am just as sure that once a new company overtakes Microsoft, everyone
will be pontificating that the new company will never lose its #1 spot. :)