What Does 'Open Format' Mean?

An open format is a file format that is openly licensed and publicly available for anyone to use and implement. This means that the specification for the format is not proprietary and is not controlled by a single company or organization. Instead, it is freely available for anyone to use and build upon.

There are many benefits to using open formats. One of their main benefits is that they promote interoperability and compatibility.

Because the specification for the format is publicly available, anyone can create software that can read or write files in that format. This makes it easy for different software programs and systems to exchange data and information, even if they are developed by different companies or organizations.

Open formats also promote innovation and collaboration. Because the specification is openly available, developers can build upon existing open formats to create new and improved ones.

This encourages collaboration and the sharing of ideas and technology, which can lead to the development of better and more advanced software.

In contrast, proprietary formats are controlled by a single company or organization and are not openly licensed. This means that only the company or organization that owns the specification can create software that can read or write files in that format.

Proprietary formats can be more difficult to use and may not be compatible with other software programs or systems, which can limit interoperability and hinder the exchange of data and information.

Software companies have been shifting towards using open formats in recent years. Microsoft made this transition in 2007 when it moved from proprietary Office file formats like DOC, XLS, and PPT to open formats such as DOCX, XLSX, and PPTX.

These new “Open XML” Office formats are built with standard Zip compression and contain data stored in plain XML, making them easier to use and more compatible with other programs. This change allowed Microsoft to adopt open standards and improve the compatibility of its software with other systems.

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Some file formats are only partially open, meaning that only a portion of their specification is available to the public. These types of file formats are known as “semi-open” or “closed-source” formats.

For example, the specifications for CorelDRAW drawings (.CDR), Photoshop documents (.PSD), and AutoCAD drawings (.DWG) are only partially available to the public. This means that while some aspects of the format are openly licensed and publicly available, other aspects are proprietary and controlled by the company or organization that owns the specification.

As a result, only software programs developed by the owner of the specification can fully support these file formats.

There are several reasons why a company or organization might choose to release only a partial specification for a file format. One reason could be to protect their intellectual property or to maintain a competitive advantage. Another reason could be to ensure that the software that supports the format is of high quality and meets certain standards.

While partially open formats can provide some benefits, they can also have drawbacks. For example, they may be less interoperable and may not be fully compatible with other software programs or systems.

Furthermore, they may not encourage innovation and collaboration in the same way that fully open formats do.