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Google now includes StarOffice as a free download!
Dirhael:
It also includes a google toolbar inside all of the office applications which I think doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I managed to get rid of it, but then I discovered that they even included an option to search google for the selected word when doing a spellcheck as well (as the first choice no less). While none of these things are a problem as such (we're getting it for free after all), I find it intrusive and completely unnecessary in a office suite.
Darwin:
I used to have StarOffice 8 installed (academic licensing meant I got to use it for free) and it is a lot more polished that OpenOffice.org (I had an early version of OO.org 2 installed previously). The extra fonts make a difference - one of the things that you are "paying" for is the technology for font smoothing, which makes everything look better. Compatibility with MS Office docs seemed better to me too. In the end, having Office 2003 Pro, I coudn't see the point of keeping StarOffice installed, but I was impressed. Even if I had to pay for it (what is it now - $70 or so) I would as I think it is well worth it.
PS Dirhael posted while I was typing the above - if you qualify for StarOffice academic licensing and are able to download direct from Sun, the Google Toolbar is not an issue.
SO: if you qualify for academic licensing (and their conditions are liberal and they don't make you go through any hoops to prove that you qualify) the regular download from Sun is an EXCELLENT alternative to MS Office and WordPerfect Office.
EDIT: corrected several embarrassing spelling mistakes :-[
Dirhael:
I used to have StarOffice 8 installed (academic licensing meant I got to use it for free) and it is a lot more polished that OpenOffice.org (I had an early version of OO.org 2 installed previously). The extra fonts make a difference - one of the things that you are "paying" for is the technology for font smoothing, which makes everything look better. Compatibility with MS Office docs seemed better to me too. In the end, having Office 2003 Pro, I coudn't see the point of keeping StarOffice installed, but I was impressed. Even if I had to pay for it (what is it now - $70 or so) I would as I think it is well worth it.
PS Dirhael posted while I was typing the above - if you qualify for StarOffice academic licensing and are able to download direct from Sun, the Google Toolbar is not an issue.
SO: if you qualify for academic licensing (and their conditions are liberal and they don't make you go through any hoops to prove that you qualify) the regular download from Sun is an EXCELLENT alternative to MS Office and WordPerfect Office.
EDIT: corrected several embarrassing spelling mistakes :-[
-Darwin (August 14, 2007, 08:02 AM)
--- End quote ---
Thanks for the info, I didn't know they offered academic licenses just like that. Don't think it'll make me switch from MS Office just yet as I still find both StarOffice & OOo a bit to slow, and the spreadsheet application isn't worth much if you're working with larger documents. Still, it's a great product overall and at a fraction of the cost of a Office license (which is priced out of this world, just like Adobe's programs).
Darwin:
Yes - I hope my point was clear: StarOffice/OpenOffice are excellent alternatives to MS Office, but if you've got Office you don't need this and there's not much incentive to switch (yet!).
Armando:
I mostly use Word 2003, but I like OOo very much -- except for a few things, like cross-referencing, commenting and outlining, which I use a lot. And I don't think that StarOffice makes these things better, of course...
I actually sometimes use OOo to "correct" problems (usually : table problems) in MS Word documents by opening/saving them in OOo and then reopening them in Word. Strangely, it fixes the tables etc. :huh:
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