Microsoft, Adobe in document showdown?
C|Net | at | by Mike
Adobe Systems' Acrobat Reader software has become one of those rare birds in personal computing: a de facto standard that has nothing to do with industry giant Microsoft. Now, Adobe plans to expand the Portable Document Format behind Acrobat Reader into a multipurpose business tool over the coming months. At the same time, however, Microsoft is moving ahead with plans for software that could nibble at the edge of Adobe's market.
Earlier this year, Microsoft announced plans for XDocs, an extension of its Office software intended to allow workers to easily create basic online forms. Initially hailed as a potential PDF killer, it has lost much of its luster among analysts. They now mostly see XDocs as potential competition for only part of Adobe's business.