439:: Application-specific "namespaces" are defined for functions. This allows spreadsheet applications to add new functions, without interfering with current standard functions, future standard functions, or functions defined by other applications. As a result, different applications can add new functions without interfering with others; once a consensus arises about the new function, it can be standardized. The namespace is based on the Internet's naming service (reversed domain names), so ORG.OPENOFFICE.STYLE would be an OpenOffice.org-unique function.
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handle different bases than the old BIN2DEC (etc.) functions. It also includes bit operations like BITAND. These sources include Excel, OpenOffice.org Calc, Sun StarOffice Calc, KDE Calligra Sheets, GNOME Gnumeric, IBM/Lotus 1-2-3, Corel Word
Perfect Suite Quattro Pro, wikiCalc, and DocumentToGo's SheetToGo. The subcommittee argues that by including innovations from around the world of many different independent applications, they produce a better result that is far more inclusive.
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Microsoft continued to protest that OpenDocument could not be used because it did not define a format for spreadsheet formulae, while its own specification continued to omit any specification about formulae until April 2006. In May 2006, Microsoft also began defining formulae in its XML format, 15
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In
October 2005, Wheeler publicly began an informal project, backed by the OpenDocument Fellowship, to create a draft formula specification based on the initial draft and on discussions since that time with various implementors. By January 2006, the group had developed a lengthy specification, and
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make the same mistake, and requires that applications cannot be more capable than Excel by supporting dates before 1900. By comparing many different independent implementations, the OpenFormula group can often detect when an application makes a mistake, and ensure that applications are not overly
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SP2 uses the formula language defined in ISO/IEC IS 29500:2008 for OpenDocument spreadsheets. Microsoft stated that they are considering adding support for an official ODF formula language (OpenFormula) once a future version of the OpenDocument (ISO/IEC 26300) standard specification includes one.
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Some critics argued that a more detailed, precise specification for spreadsheet functions, including syntax and semantics, was needed. The OpenDocument committee argued that this was outside their scope at that time. Others have argued that, while the specification is less specific than one might
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In June 2007, it was announced that four tasks remained before submission to the quality assurance review. Further delays were incurred, but many implementors implemented the specification while it was being written, modifying their applications where necessary to comply with the draft standard.
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formally created the formula subcommittee, naming
Wheeler as the subcommittee chair. After discussion, the subcommittee agreed to use the OpenFormula project's document as their base document. Thus, by February 2006, OASIS had a draft formula specification with a detailed framework and over 100
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The small group includes a little over 100 functions, including functions for trigonometry, database, finance, and statistics. The vast majority of spreadsheet documents are ably handled by applications that implement the "small" group. At least one PDA application (SheetToGo) has this level of
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OpenFormula covers the functions of Excel and OpenOffice.org, plus important functions not found in either one but instead found in other spreadsheet applications, such as
Gnumeric and KSpread. For example, the specification includes the functions DECIMAL and BASE, which are much better ways to
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The test cases (noted previously) help it be far more rigorous. In addition, OpenFormula defines the types for each function (as prototypes of each function). Function definitions are examined deeply, e.g., YEARFRAC() has subtle behavior in the leap years, which were carefully examined and
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OpenFormula includes a large number of test cases, ones that test and demonstrate the specification, including edge cases that people often forget. More importantly, they are specially formatted so they can be automatically extracted and placed in a test spreadsheet to test
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like, the intent is fairly clear (especially since formulae tend to follow decades-long traditions), and also because the vast majority of spreadsheets only use a small set of functions (such as SUM) which are universally supported by all spreadsheet implementations.
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data, formats, pivot tables, and other information typically included in a spreadsheet. OpenDocument can exchange spreadsheet formulae (formulae that are recalculated in the spreadsheet); formulae are exchanged as values of the attribute table: formula.
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One of the external commentators on OpenDocument, David A. Wheeler, released a first draft of a specification for formulae in
February 2005. This began a process of discussion with various spreadsheet implementors and developers.
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require certain bugs, just because someone has a bug. For example, Excel incorrectly believes that 1900 was a leap year, and at least draft version 1.3 of the Excel specification claims that compatible applications
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of table formulas were not defined in sufficient detail. Version 1.0 of the specification defined spreadsheet formulae using a set of simple examples which show, for example, how to specify ranges and the
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The specification does not assume that everyone uses "." as the decimal point, and indeed does not constrain user interfaces at all. Named expressions can have names in local character sets.
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The syntax has been carefully designed to work indefinitely into the future. For example, it allows an arbitrary number of columns while also allowing arbitrary names of values.
326:. For example, (1) both open-source software and proprietary software can implement it, and (2) the work is based on consensus, not domination by any single supplier.
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Applications can implement a subset or superset. To prevent user confusion, various "groups" are defined so that users can request specific sets of capabilities.
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One important aspect of OpenFormula is that it provides a predefined set of "groups"; the most important of these groups are small, medium, and large:
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The large group includes all the capabilities of the medium group, adding around 130 more functions, as well as capabilities such as complex numbers.
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OpenFormula is based on specification work that was first released on 2005-02-26, as well as a large body of research into different applications.
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months after the first version of OpenFormula and three months after OASIS posted its first official draft of its specification.
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Finally, the OpenFormula specification was issued on 29 September 2011 as Part 2 of
Version 1.2 of the Open Document Format (
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capability, and wikiCalc added the functions in the small group specifically to meet the set defined by OpenFormula.
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It is expected that users will often request implementations that meet a particular group, based on their needs.
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OpenFormula was developed by representatives from many different implementors, working together, including
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The specification meets all widely accepted definitions of being an "open standard," including those by
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The medium group includes all the capabilities of the small group, and adds about 100 more functions.
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A subcommittee is a large group focused specifically on spreadsheet formulae and nothing else.
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for the exchange of office documents, and is capable of describing mathematical
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format also did not include this kind of detailed specification for formulae.
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standard. OpenFormula was initially proposed and drafted by David A. Wheeler.
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Key attributes of the OpenFormula specification and development process are:
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http://docs.oasis-open.org/office/v1.2/OpenDocument-v1.2-part2.html
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Open
Formula resulted from the belief by some users that the
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that are displayed on the screen (through its reuse of the
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512:"OpenDocument For Spreadsheets (reply to Morten Welinder)"
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553:"FYI: Formulas not specified by Microsoft XML, either"
493:"Proposal: More detailed specification for formulas"
50:, and by adding encyclopedic content written from a
352:(Dr. Andreas J. Guelzow and Jody Goldberg), IBM/
276:spreadsheet formula language is now part of the
169:. OpenFormula is included in version 1.2 of the
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198:standard). It's also capable of exchanging
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330:Developed by many different implementors:
70:Learn how and when to remove this message
538:"Comments from Tim Bray on OpenDocument"
165:for exchanging recalculated formulae in
634:OASIS OpenDocument Formula subcommittee
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31:contains content that is written like
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368:Developed with experienced users:
364:, co-creator of the spreadsheet).
348:) (David Faure and Tomas Mecir),
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551:Wheeler, David A (2005-11-07).
491:Wheeler, David A (2004-11-01).
430:Innovations from many sources:
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437:Room for innovation by anyone
584:Rathke, Eike (2007-06-07).
536:Jones, Brian (2005-10-04).
510:Rathke, Eike (2005-06-23).
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628:OpenFormula specification
414:Doesn't mandate mistakes:
291:Completion of the effort
280:ISO/IEC IS 29500:2008.
100:Technical specification
394:Future-proofed format:
307:OpenFormula attributes
278:international standard
186:OpenDocument 1.0 is a
650:Computer file formats
443:Internationalization:
407:Rigorous definitions:
284:Microsoft Office 2007
52:neutral point of view
400:Embedded test cases:
382:Focused development:
316:Fully open standard:
557:openformula-discuss
340:(Eike Rathke), KDE
249:defined functions.
227:OpenFormula Project
120:Software comparison
86:OpenDocument Format
44:promotional content
586:"Who is on board?"
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253:Microsoft response
244:In February 2006,
182:Discussion of need
46:and inappropriate
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388:Not rushed:
354:Lotus 1-2-3
219:function.
200:spreadsheet
159:OpenFormula
105:OpenFormula
644:Categories
614:Excel Help
522:2021-12-03
479:References
344:(formerly
338:StarOffice
40:improve it
259:Microsoft
257:In 2005,
212:semantics
60:July 2014
410:defined.
358:wikiCalc
350:Gnumeric
336:and Sun
322:and the
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115:Software
110:Adoption
374:of the
346:KOffice
177:History
208:syntax
196:MathML
161:is an
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217:SUM()
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