Problem opening certain rtf files

[annice]

Our travewl agent sends us invoices in rtf format as e-mail attachments. When I try to open them in OpenOffice 2.3.1 all I get are some lines. They open just fine in Word 2002. These files consist of tables, and on the bottom of the page is written Issued using 'Gilboa for Windows." Is there some kind of software incompatibility?

Annice

[foxcole]

Our travewl agent sends us invoices in rtf format as e-mail attachments. When I try to open them in OpenOffice 2.3.1 all I get are some lines. They open just fine in Word 2002. These files consist of tables, and on the bottom of the page is written Issued using 'Gilboa for Windows." Is there some kind of software incompatibility?

Well, the RTF filters in Writer are known to be imperfect, but they should give you more than just some lines. Is there any chance you could post a sample file? It might help to see if others get the same results.

Also, do you have any better results if you open Writer first, then using File> Open to open the RTFs?

[annice]

It doesn't matter if I open from the file itself or from Writer. Attached is one of the file's I received.

[Villeroy]

I tried to open the file without success using:

• Microsoft Word '97
• AbiWord 2.4.4
• OpenOffice.org 2.3.1

The command line tool "file" reports that it seems to be a rtf file indeed.

Code: Select all

> file /tmp/test.rtf
/tmp/test.rtf: Rich Text Format data, version 1, ANSI

[Bill]

The document content is mainly drawing objects. Drawing objects are not supported by OOo's RTF filters. The issue Blank and unreadable RTF document (test case) refers to another document created by Gilboa for Windows. This issue has been closed as a duplicate of RTF: Import Word 97-2000 RTF for Drawing Objects (Shapes) which has OOo 3.0 as a target milestone.

[annice]

I guess I'll have to wait for OO3.0 and keep Word on my computer in the meantime.

Thanks for your reply.

[foxcole]

I guess I'll have to wait for OO3.0 and keep Word on my computer in the meantime.

You can open the file in Word???

Well... what I mean is, I can open it in Word 2003 on WinXP but it looks awful, full of "garbage" characters and extraneous boxes (see attachment). It seems to use a standard font, but for whatever reason, it's not displaying well at all in my version of Word... nor, of course, Writer (either flavor that I have), nor Jarte which usually works pretty well with RTF files. I've never heard of Gilboa till now, but it does seem to create files that are incompatible with a lot of things. I'd say it's more the culprit than OOo or any other application mentioned so far in this thread. It seems so incompatible, in fact, that I'm surprised they haven't been pressured to produce a more stable, reliable RTF format.

[floris v]

When you open it in Notepad it turns out there's a lot of rtl codes in it, and there's a reference to Tell Aviv, so maybe the rendering of the Hebrew(?) or another rtl language in it got totally screwed (sorry for the bad language). Seems a good moment to tell your travel agent that he needs to check what he's been doing.

[annice]

Yes, some of the text is in Hebrew, and that's why you see garbage characters. I doubt if my travel agent will change her software -- it's a big country-wide (Israel) agency -- but I will mention the problems I am having and perhaps she can send these things in a different format.

[floris v]

If you have a business relationship with her and she has a professional attitude it's only natural that she sends you invoices that you can actually use.

[annice]

Well, I can with Word, but not with OpenOffice. In any case, I'll ask if there is another format she can use.

[floris v]

If you get the same garbage characters as we get, it's simply not a professional looking invoice. It doesn't matter a jot if you can't even read Hebrew, but if there's Hebrew text in that invoice it must look like Hebrew. Period.

You can ask for a pdf file instead. That shouldn't give any problems.