Sun Microsystems has unveiled the latest version of its StarOffice productivity suite which includes a text editor and spreadsheet.

StarOffice 8 adds support for the Open Document Format which seeks to eliminate the boundaries between documents created in different productivity applications. This could prevent a vendor lock-in for enterprises. 

The State of Massachusetts said earlier this month that it is considering the format, which would mean that Massachusetts will only invest in applications which support the standard.

Such a decision would effectively lock out Microsoft from bidding on government contracts in the state.

StarOffice already offers compatibility with Microsoft Office, but a document stored in StarOffice's file format, for instance, cannot be opened in Office.

StarOffice is a commercial version of the open source OpenOffice project which Sun funded with a donation of the suite's code. 

The vendor has added several functionalities to its latest distribution, including a macro migration wizard for Office users, a commercial spellchecker and additional clip-art, fonts and document templates.

Sun has also signed distribution deals with Encore Software for retail and consumer sales in the US, and Avanquest Software for Europe. The company already had a similar arrangement with SourceNext for the Asian market.

StarOffice 8 is available immediately in seven languages for $69.95 as a supported software download. A hard copy on CD-Rom costs $99.95. Enterprises pay between $25 and $35 per user.