Best file format to save diary entries in

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pschroeter
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Best file format to save diary entries in

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My default file format is RTF because I mostly use Word 2013 to write diary entries. I thought RTF would be a format that should be readable by most computers for years to come. Can the same be said about the native Word DOCX format? I think it is just a compressed XML file, whatever that is. I was thinking of switching to DOCX as my native format because it gets rid of “[Compatibility Mode]” warnings in the title bar and taskbar and the files are smaller. Maybe there are other advantages too.

I imagine TXT files would be the most universal file format for a diary, but I use basic formatting, the occasional picture, and tables in my entries. I worry that 20 years in the future I'll be importing my diary in whatever word processor exists then and I won't be able to read them.
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nikos
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Re: Best file format to save diary entries in

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I use plain TXT but RTF sounds good if you want formatting. At any rate I wouldn't worry about it, aristotle used to write in stone plates but we can still read about him 2000 years later :)
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pschroeter
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Re: Best file format to save diary entries in

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nikos wrote:I use plain TXT but RTF sounds good if you want formatting. At any rate I wouldn't worry about it, aristotle used to write in stone plates but we can still read about him 2000 years later :)

Do you think DOCX will stand the test of time and be around for a long, long time? That [Compatibility Mode] displayed after every document title is usually longer than the file name itself and I would like to get rid of it. I want to be able to open my diary entries in Word 2050 some day. Hopefully they will have let me use custom icons in the Ribbon by then.
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nikos
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Re: Best file format to save diary entries in

Post by nikos »

even if they are discontinued there will be a way to convert them to the format of the day
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