Hopefully the OpenDocument format will catch on (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenDocument) which should make this transition easier. It is an XML based format so could be handled by XML tools, and works across several applications such as OpenOffice, Google Docs and KOffice. This is a great step forward from the old binary formats as it should be easier to repair a document if it gets corrupted. The nice thing about a ISO-recognised standard like this is that it is much easier for software developers to support, so making it easier for end users to switch between applications as it will vary from time to time as to which one provides the best user experience.