The search for alternatives to Microsoft Office has generated discussions due to the limitations that some similar applications may present. Specifically, the latest version of LibreOffice has demonstrated a greater ability to handle graphics created in the Microsoft environment. The organization responsible for the project provided more details about this implementation.
In summary, LibreOffice can now retain graphic elements, but it still lacks the functionality to display them on the screen. This improvement applies to six distinct types of graphics.
Although LibreOffice cannot yet render or edit these graphics, it has begun to identify and retain their information when the document is opened and subsequently saved. This prevents users who use LibreOffice from accidentally deleting a graphic that was incompatible with the suite.
A notable exception is found in graphics containing regional maps. According to The Document Foundation (TDF), these graphics require a vast amount of geographical data that LibreOffice cannot yet preserve.
The Document Foundation's statement could be interpreted as a sign of inability, but the entity clarifies that the situation is more complex: the six types of graphics are saved in a proprietary Microsoft format, which complicates integration into other programs.
This format, an extension of OOXML called chartex, is not part of the text approved by the international standard ISO/IEC 29500, despite being separately documented by the large technology company. The entity acknowledges that this does not constitute illegality but emphasizes that other software needs to develop its own methods to understand and implement these extensions, a process that may take time.
This stance represents an old criticism from the TDF. In January, the entity reiterated that OOXML is excessively complex and accused Microsoft of creating barriers to third-party implementation. At that time, Italo Vignoli, from the Document Foundation, stated: 'OOXML has never been, is not, and never will be a standard format.'
The foundation points out that there are three ways a software can manage an element it does not understand. The main advantage of this evolution lies in documents that move between different programs. A user can open a presentation in LibreOffice, modify content compatible with the suite, and save the file without corrupting a graphic that only Microsoft Office would be able to display.
This progress may be one of the factors that contributed to LibreOffice reaching a download record in the week of the 26.8 release. Furthermore, the suite received other optimizations, such as improvements to the Writer text editor, which now supports more fonts and accessibility features, and to the Calc spreadsheet editor, which includes the ability to create and edit Python scripts without needing extensions.