Free Office Productivity Software

Is there anyone out there who isn't at least aware of OpenOffice? If so, prepare to be dazzled.

Microsoft's Office Suite has dominated the desktop office software program field for, uhm, ever. The problem for frugal business owners or home office users, of course, is that the suite can run you anywhere from $150 to $450 or more, depending on the programs you need to do your job. You could try and buy a secondhand license off of eBay or -- hush hush -- get someone to burn an illegal copy for you, but if you wanted a brand new, off-the-shelf copy with a legitimate license ('cause you know there's no way in hell that -- if it ever came to it -- you could ever go up against Microsoft's legal machine), you had no choice but to swallow your resentment against the big boys in Redmond and head over to Best Buy and add more charges to your credit card.

Well, folks, have no fear, OpenOffice is here, and trust me: Microsoft is afraid.

To put it simply, OpenOffice is based on the open-source code movement that's been building for decades and has recently made plenty of headway, what with the growing popularity of the Linux operating system, itself the ultimate open-source program. OpenOffice itself has come a long way from its origins as a small, relatively unknown suite of programs known as StarOffice by Sun Microsystems (Sun continues to support StarOffice separately while contributing to OpenOffice's development). Now, it's a powerful, complete suite of office productivity software, bundled into an easy-to-download package directly from the OpenOffice site...absolutely free.

OpenOffice consists of the following software programs:

Writer -- the equivalent of Microsoft Word, it offers full word processing features, including mail merges, templates, a built-in dictionary and thesaurus, diagrams and tables. It can be used for basic desktop publishing as well. The best part, however, is that you can transform any document you create into a PDF file with just a click of the mouse, so that you can send memos, invoices, etc., as PDF's to your sender, who can then open it using any PDF program (including Adobe).

Calc -- the equivalent of Microsoft Excel. Full spreadsheet features.

Impress -- the equivalent of Microsoft PowerPoint. Full presentation program.

Draw -- there isn't really a Microsoft equivalent to this, at least not if you're looking at just Microsoft Office. It does, however, provide an excellent graphics manipulation program.

Base -- a database program similar to Microsoft Access. Works seamlessly with the other programs in OpenOffice.

Math -- there isn't really a Microsoft Office equivalent to this, OpenOffice's program for mathematical equations. Works well with other OpenOffice programs, including Writer.

I've only really extensively used Writer and Calc, but so far, I've been super-happy with the program. It's very stable (unlike Word, for example, which has a tendency to freeze now and then and force you to reboot your entire computer) and has extensive support documentation. In addition, OpenOffice's worldwide network of volunteer developers continue to tweak the programs, so that you can expect even better versions in the future. At the moment, though, if you're looking for a very reliable, free alternative to Microsoft Office, you need to check out OpenOffice.

Other things to think about:

• Most of the programs allow you to save in a Microsoft-friendly equivalent for those times when you need to share documents with colleagues or friends who insist on remaining with that company's software for some reason. For example, you can save a Writer document as a .doc, which would allow you to open it up easily in MS Word. Ordinarily, it would save as an .odt, or Open Document Text, which has become the international standard for open document formats.
  
• Downloading is easy and so is using the program. In fact, if you're already comfortable with Microsoft Office, you might be surprised at just how similar the two are in terms of interface.
  
• One downside, however, is that opening one of the programs can take a few seconds. I'm not sure why, although I understand that OpenOffice's developers are working on this issue so that the next version will open much more quickly.
• If you're the kind of person who just has to have technical support at the end of a telephone line whenever you want it, you will not like OpenOffice. As with most open source software, there's no single company behind this program. There is a nonprofit that organizes and releases the software online, but because most of the efforts behind the development and release of OpenOffice is has been voluntary, there's no Bangalore-based technical support department waiting for your desperate call for help. Instead, the OpenOffice Web site offers an enormous database of support documents; lively community forums full of eager open-source enthusiasts who are more than happy to help newbies and advanced users alike navigate their way through any issues they may have with the software; tutorials; Web-based training; and a comprehensive FAQ wiki. In addition, there are lists of books and even consultants you can check out if you want more information or just really need that real, live body to talk to.

I've used OpenOffice for about two years and am very, very happy with it. As a writer as well as the Chief Financial Officer of my little family, I've used primarily Writer and Calc, but have dabbled a bit in Impress, and so far, I've never had a problem with any of them. When I have a writing assignment, I write everything up in Writer and save it both as a .odt and a .doc, then send the .doc to my editor. I can also open a .doc up using Writer without losing any of the original formatting.

With such a powerful office suite, there's no reason to fork over several hundred dollars for Microsoft Office or any other commercial office software product. OpenOffice has become so ubiquitous that entire government agencies around the world have adopted it as their official software program, including the Singapore Ministry of Defence, the Supreme Court of India, and several agencies within the French national government. As of late 2007, OpenOffice.org announced that its software program has been downloaded 98 million times.