Anyone using Open Office?

[visagephoto]

I currently have 'Microsoft Works' installed on my laptop, and would like to have a look at 'Open Office' as a compatible alternative for my desktop, However it seems I can't download a copy without first submitting my credit/debit card details.

Does anyone here use 'Open office'? is it a good alternative to 'MS Works' or 'MS Office'? and is it possible to download a (trial) copy anywhere without having to submit my personal & card details?.

 

[Scottish Business Owner]

Hi Allan,

OpenOffice.org - The Free and Open Productivity Suite

That's the main open office site. I clicked on the download option and it didn't seem to ask for any payment details. It is an open source product so I dont see why you would have to pay for it.

I do like Open Office as you can also save documents as Word Docs etc. It has many similar features to Microsoft Word and I think the acide test for me is that I wouldn't pay for Microsoft Word given Open Office is free. Another option is the word editor that comes with Google which is just as good for basic stuff.

 

[visagephoto]

Thanks

I downloaded and had a quick look at it, and it even seems worth paying for.

This is the link I had previously been trying to download from, obviously a different program?

OpenOffice Suite - Optimize your office efficiency & productivity!

 

[Gordon N]

NEVER PAY FOR OPENOFFICE!!! It is released under LGPL licence for free, it is against the licencing policy for anybody to sell it or distribute it for financial gain.

I had a look at the link you provided Alan, take a look at the small print in the footer... says it all.

OpenOffice is a very stable and reliable FREE alternative to MS Office that I would recommend to anybody. It has a very active development community and gets updated and improved on a regular basis. It even saves to PDF which is always handy.

 

[footsack]

Hope you like open office ?

In my view its great, no need MS Word or Excel anymore. The pdf button is my favourite, click the button to create an instant pdf to send to anyone to read - its better than MS Office !!

 

[visagephoto]

Yes it seems to be a great office suite (and even more so considering it's free).
However as a seasoned 'Lotus Smartsuite' user it will take me some time to get used to the 'MS Office' type layout etc.

One thing I would like to see added though, is an appointment diary (calender) plugin.

 

[WillieDuff]

Hi,

Open Office is Open Source software so should never require any payment - you need to check that you haven't come across a phishing site by accident! The whole point of Open Office is that it belongs to everyone (for development purposes) and no one (the basic suite is fre to all).

It is a very good office suite that doesn't seem to have all the bells and whistles of MS Office.

Willie Duff

 

[sitebrigade]

I use NeoOffice (http://www.neooffice.org) on my Macbook. It's probably not as polished as Microsoft Office, but it serves me well and is ... 100% free!

 

[opc]

Hi Alan,

Good luck with Open Office. I use it as well and works a treat. Especially as its free!

Colin

 

[Gouldie0]

I think Open office is ace, it's free and generally compatible with anything. Much better than Microsoft works anyway and an able deputy if you don't want to buy into the Microsoft corporate monster.

Kind regards

Neil

 

[Rob Sale]

if you dont like open office or just cant get used to it and like the layout of ms office then you should try Abillity office as it looks and feels like ms office. you can get it here ASI Ability - ASI
for £34 bargain.