But this is not always true. One tiny loophole might be big enough to drive a truck through. According to recent Web reports, some ActiveX code, especially the Install Engine Control, can get through Internet Explorer without asking permission first, as long as it carries a Microsoft signature. Another Microsoft software feature a lot of people aren't aware of was discovered quite a while ago. If it was in Microsoft Office 97's Excel, Word or PowerPoint, and if your computer had an Ethernet card installed, Office 97 tagged it uniquely.
Office documents contain more than just text equivalents.
Part of their extra size comes from special formatting, links to other files and, of course, macros. I always save Office files in Rich Text Format because any macros I created are stored in a local file and therefore will still work, but anything I distribute in RTF loses the macros, effectively sanitizing the file. Got your number Office 97's buried identifier code is called metadata because most of it does not pertain to the content, just to how it is presented. The unique code is generated from the identifying number of the installed network interface card. Microsoft officals have said that the company makes no improper use of this information, which is for the benefit of developers, but I've never heard of any third-party application that uses it.