Towards AOO 3.4: consequences of "IP clearance"

[RGB]

With the move of OOo project to Apache incubator, there will be several change in the code, replacing parts with licences that are not compatible with Apache licence.

The consequences for users should not be big, and in some points there will be improvements. One example is SVG support: OOo 3.4 beta implemented it in a convoluted way through binary metafiles and external libraries, but all that is now dropped in favour of a native implementation.

Another difference is the database used to register extensions: OOo up to 3.3 (and 3.4 beta) used a "berkeleyDB" with a binary file format. This will be replaced by a simpler and (hopefully) more robust implementation. Small con: extensions installed on previous OOo will no be imported on AOO 3.4, the user will need to install all extensions again, it seems.

More details here: IP Clearance: Impact

[kingfisher]

Thank you for the link. Regrettably, some extensions may be lost and some users may choose not to update the software until they have been replaced. It appears, however, that situation cannot be avoided.

[RGB]

Regrettably, some extensions may be lost and some users may choose not to update the software until they have been replaced.

As I understand the situation, those extensions will not be bundled on the binary release but it will be possible to install them afterwards without problems. Someone else will need to build those extensions, though.

[hanya]

Another difference is the database used to register extensions: OOo up to 3.3 (and 3.4 beta) used a "berkeleyDB" with a binary file format. This will be replaced by a simpler and (hopefully) more robust implementation. Small con: extensions installed on previous OOo will no be imported on AOO 3.4, the user will need to install all extensions again, it seems.

I wrote a simple script to convert db file for the registered extension to new pmap format in Python.
http://hermione.s41.xrea.com/pukiwiki/i ... 78&lang=en