Q: If I type in Kannada using Windows XP, can I open the file in Linux?

A: Yes. Provided you use Unicode and save the file in Unicode encoding. If you use Word for typing, better to save it as plain text or RTF file. If you save as plain text, you will lose all formatting. RTF will retain most of the formattings other than Word specific features like WordArt. If you have OpenOffice installed in the Linux system, it can open Word documents.