Posted on 31-1-2002

 Getting The Word

The assumption that everybody uses Microsoft products is becoming
increasingly untenable in the Internet world, and uncomfortable. As Richard
Stallman* (see photo) explains, with particular reference to MS Word.

Don't you just hate receiving Word documents in email messages? Word
attachments are annoying, but worse than that, they impede people from
switching to free software. Maybe we can stop this practice with a simple
collective effort. All we have to do is ask each person who sends us a Word
file to reconsider that way of doing things.

Most computer users use Microsoft Word. That is unfortunate for them,
because Word is proprietary software, denying its users the freedom to
study, change, copy, and redistribute it. And because Microsoft changes the
Word file format with each release, its users are locked into a system that
compels them to buy each upgrade whether they want a change or not. They
may even find, several years from now, that the Word documents they are
writing this year can no longer be read with the version of Word they use
then.

But it hurts us, too, when they assume we use Word and send us (or demand
that we send them) documents in Word format. Some people publish or post
documents in Word format. Some organizations will only accept files in Word
format: Someone I know was unable to apply for a job because resumes had to
be Word files. Even governments sometimes impose Word format on the public,
which is truly outrageous.

For us users of free operating systems, receiving Word documents is an
inconvenience. But the worst impact of sending Word format is on people who
might switch to free systems: They hesitate because they feel they must
have Word available to read the Word files they receive. The practice of
using the secret Word format for interchange impedes the growth of our
community and the spread of freedom. While we notice the occasional
annoyance of receiving a Word document, this steady and persistent harm to
our community usually doesn't come to our attention. But it is happening
all the time.

Many GNU users who receive Word documents try to find ways to handle with
them. You can manage to find the somewhat obfuscated ASCII text in the file
by skimming through it. There is free software now that can read some
subset of Word documents. The format is secret and has not been entirely
decoded; as long as Microsoft keeps changing the format, we can't expect
these programs to be perfect. If you think of the document you received as
an isolated event, it is natural to try to cope with it on your own. But
when you recognize it as an instance of a pernicious systematic practice,
it calls for a different approach. Managing to read the file is treating a
symptom of a chronic illness. To cure the illness, we must convince people
not to send or post Word documents.

For about a year, I've made a practice of responding to Word attachments
with a polite message explaining why the practice of sending Word files is
a bad thing, and asking the person to resend the material in a non-secret
format. This is a lot less work than trying to read the somewhat obfuscated
ASCII text in the Word file. And I find that people usually understand the
issue, and many say they will not send Word files to others any more. If we
all do this, we will have a much larger effect. People who disregard one
polite request may change their practice when they receive multiple polite
requests from various people. We may be able to give "don't send Word
format" the status of netiquette, if we start systematically raising the
issue with everyone who sends us Word files.

To make this effort efficient, you will probably want to develop a canned
reply that you can quickly send each time it is necessary. I've included
two examples: the version I have been using recently, followed by a new
version that teaches a Word user how to convert to other useful formats.
You can use these replies verbatim if you like, or you can personalize them
or write your own. By all means, construct a reply that fits your ideas and
your personality-if the replies are personal and not all alike, that will
make the campaign more effective.

These replies are meant for individuals who send Word files. When you
encounter an organization that imposes use of Word format, that calls for a
different sort of reply; there you can raise issues of fairness that would
not apply to an individual's actions. With our numbers, simply by asking,
we can make a difference.


* linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2002-01-11-002-20-OP