Evermore Integrated Office takes aim at Microsoft at Linux conference in China

BEIJING, Dec. 11, 2002 -- China's leading developer of Office software called for open platforms and condemned Microsoft at the "National Linux Industry and Application Seminar" sponsored by the Ministry of Information Industry (MII) and Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST).

Convened in Beijing, the seminar was attended by leaders from the National Information Office, the Ministry of Information Industry, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the provincial Information Department and top-level executives from computer industry companies, including IBM and Sun Microsystems.

The conference featured a keynote delivered by Gus Tsao, chief executive officer of Evermore Software, www.evermoresw.com, China's leading developer of Office software.

Tsao predicted that software developers will move toward open-source platforms following Evermore's lead with Evermore Integrated Office (EIOffice). Tsao also strongly condemned Microsoft for copying some of EIOffice's innovations for use in Microsoft Office 12, a version of the Office suite expected to ship no sooner than 2005.

"This is a key sign that EIOffice will become a formidable marketplace competitor," said Tsao.

EIOFFICE is the "First Real Office," unlike conventional Office suites that are dictated by a marketing plan. Suites are built by throwing a range of applications together into one bigger box - a word processor, a spreadsheet, presentation graphics, and more - then forcing the applications to work together. Different teams of programmers develop each application separately. Each application comes with its own user interface and command structure - and users must master each. Even if they need to share information across applications, users must launch each application separately - which is less than convenient even as it strains system resources. Each application uses its own file format to store data - and complex, error prone technologies are needed to share data between different applications.

EIOffice is a new approach focused on enhanced user productivity. It is tightly integrated - one program, one user interface, programmed under one roof, by one team, with one design. Users launch EIOffice, not a word processor, then a spreadsheet, then a business graphics application. Text, worksheets, slides, presentations, charts, tables, graphs, video and audio share one set of icons, keystrokes, function keys, command menus, dialog boxes and one method for entering data. EIOffice stores all text, worksheets, graphics, audio, video and slides in one file format -- EIOffice. One "binder" stores all related cell ranges, text, graphics, audio and video objects, an approach that synchronizes an entire project and eliminates complex hyper linking and embedding.

EIOffice delivers true data integration. With one file format, text, graphics, worksheets and slides work together, the way they should. Make a change to the data source, and EIOffice applies that change automatically, immediately, correctly, to all other memos, reports, presentations, worksheets, text, and graphics that use that source data, ensuring proper data synchronization.

EIOffice achieves true integration by using the Data Object Oriented Repository System (DOORS), patent-pending technology developed by Evermore Software. DOORS creates a seamless Office by storing multiple cell ranges, text and data, graphics, audio and video objects in a grid similar to a spreadsheet. This approach gets rid of complicated procedures and keystrokes often needed to link data in other office products.

This approach to integration makes EIOffice the Web-friendly Office that global enterprises and small businesses have been wanting for years. Users can share and edit EIOffice binders online, while working with colleagues in the next office or around the world.

Written in Java, EIOffice works across platforms. Choose the operating system best suited to your business model, not the operating system best suited to your word processor. EIOffice runs on all operating systems that support Java, including Windows?and Linux? Support for Macintosh OS X and Solaris is in development. Chinese and English versions of EIOffice are available for worldwide markets.

The governments of the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium and Brazil, support open source code such as Linux software. Corporations such as IBM, HP, Sun, Intel, RedHat, CA, Oracle, SAP and Borland also support Linux.