S. Worthen | Weblog

Dear Conversion software,
I am grateful you exist.
Before, today, I found you,
I'd with makeshift means subsist.

BBEdit's been my pal
for years to scrape out text
from inconvenient formats,
from Word Perfect or .docx.

Zamzar was rather helpful
when I'd time to wait for it
to change these common formats
into ones more common yet.

Today, I knew my time had come,
today, I gave up hope.
.pptm was beyond
convertatory scope.

Initial web-wide searching
yielded means for other OS.
I didn't really want to
think this data all a loss.

But Microsoft created it,
and Microsoft relents.
It's issued out a package
for the problem, and so hence,

For files, Open XML
Converter, I am glad:
Your alchemic translations
strips the grunge with which they're clad.

These files are now open,
and their booty I shall prize.
Alas, 'tis not the death of all
cross-format compromise.