How do I view documents saved on Microsoft Offive Live online using Ubuntu?

You could try to mask your user agent with this Firefox extension:
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/59

Hi Kevin

I do not think this will be any good.

As I understand it, this addon fakes the type of browser you are using. For instance, you can tell the web site that you are using IE6 when you are actually using Firefox 3.5. But you don't need that as it is quite happy with Firefox 3.5.

What Microsoft Office Live is saying is that is doesn't like the operating system you are using - all browsers report the OS to the web server. So you need something to fake the OS.

MS may have taken a concious decision not to play ball with Linux, or it may just be ignorance. After all, its says it is OK with Mac OSX, which is a Linux like system. The only difference being that Mac has a version of MS Office and I suspect that you only get full Microsoft Office Live functionality with MS Office installed.

If you are just using Microsoft Office Live to store documents, then there is Ubuntu One as an alternative in Karmic. And there is also Google docs. Or you could try complaining to Microsoft.

Tony

Well, the browser sents only one ID, the HTTP_USER_AGENT field.
This includes both OS and browser.
The extension linked above will change both.
But it will not help if MS relies on some special IE functionality.

Thomas

The message you get says that it will work with both IE and Firefox, so it is only an OS issue. In fact I have tested this (in Windows, of course). You can even upload an OOo .odt file. It will not let you view it on-line, like you can with a .doc file, but that is to be expected.

So if the add-on does let you fake the OS as well as the browser type, then it should work. I may try it out.

Tony