Are you in need of office automation software that will allow you to do word
processing, create spreadsheets, develop presentations, manipulate graphics,
and manage databases?
So, what do you get when you ask Google to find you "office
software"?
Well it should not be a surprise that at the top of the list is the link to
office.microsoft.com. In addition to that listing I found myself assailed by advertisements
for the sale of the Microsoft product.
What may just be a surprise is that the second listing is to openoffice.org.
So, what is Open Office?
"Apache Open Office is an open-source office software suite for word
processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more. It is
available in many languages and works in all common computer operating systems
(MS Windows and Apple Mac OS). It stores all your data in an international open
standard format and can also read and write files from other common office
software packages."
Most significantly - "it can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose."
Before I continue I feel that I must disclose to you that I am and have been
a user of Microsoft Office user since version 1.0 in 1990. I remember my first
PC build in 1985 and the first time I installed Windows version 1.0 on the
MS-DOS operating system. What a novelty that was, finally there was an
interface that was more than just text lines. I can’t say that I was ever a
Microsoft zealot, but until recently I simply felt that there was really no
other choice other than the Microsoft line of products.
The naïve view of mine has been dramatically in the past eight months. I went back to school where I was forced into
a computer lab filled with Mac desktop computers. It was an opportunity, or should I say an
excuse to jump ship and leave the MS PC world.
The truth be told, I was ready to desert and had been for years. I won’t go into the reasons why, if you are a
MS products user you already know why I was ready to find another way.
Out I went and immediately bought myself a Mac Book. What I did with it was simply horrible. While purchasing the Mac Book I decided that
I had to have what I knew MS Office. So
I purchased MS Office 365 when I bought the Mac Book.
That decision was so clearly flawed that when I look back on it I just can’t
understand what possessed me to make that purchase. Perhaps my excuse should be that I did not
know that I had an alternative.
Well I did have an alternative and so do you! That alternative is Apache Open Office. I found it to be uber easy to find, download,
and install. I have also found that it
is more than adequate in its default installation. It is also intuitive to use with a very gentle
learning curve.
Open Source
"In production and development, open source as a development model promotes a) universal access via free license to a product's design or blueprint, and b) universal redistribution of that design or blueprint, including subsequent improvements to it by anyone." (Wiki)
Alternative Office Suites
