How is openoffice compatible with microsoft office

The physical size of the document would be different, but the number of words would remain about the same. The argument about compatibility being a problem for OpenOffice really is only based on MS being the dominant product, without taking any account of the advantages of a truly open format ODF. So the way I see it OpenOffice and LibreOffice are a freely accessible file format, cross-platform including Windows, Linux and Mac users, also unlikely to be discontinued, safer, and quicker to email smaller.

I have no particular dislike for MS Office, I left it when my PC at work ceased to run it and I never went back, so I would urge anyone worried about compatibility to buy MS Office if they can comfortably afford it and download OpenOffice as well, then use whichever you prefer and be able to read everything that comes your way.

There may be advantages to. Compatibility overrides any advantages of Open Document format in most cases. I taught a course on MS Office. They were able to perform all of the tasks required in the course. My recommendation: unless you know you need it, save your money and use Libre Office. You can always get MS Office later if you find you need it. I thought that open office would be a good way to do the few spreadsheets that I need. I am so disappointed that I cannot send a spreadsheet to someone with Excel.

Very frustrating as there is not simple procedure that I can find to do this. In any Open Office program, click on the Tools menu and select Options. Click on General underneath. Where is says Document type, it will say Text document.

Underneath that Always save as. Next change the Document type to Spread sheet. Recent versions of Office should be able to open Open Office files, but this will fix it for older versions. I used to work in a company that used only Microsoft products. On retirement, I continued to use these for several years, befors trying out and switching to Open Office and later, Libre Office.

I found enogh similarity between these and MS Office to make a seamless changeover. Any problems arising the differences were normally easy to overcome with a little thought or a web search. I find the latest version of Libre Office to be very good indeed and I am on my 85th lap of the Sun. Note: Libre does not have an update faciility, you must download the required version, this will download and install itself, removing the earlier one in the process.

This can be major. For Excel, I have a workbook with multiple sheets for special purposes. It either crashes right away or produces really weird results. I also use MS Publisher for a page newsletter. Nothing in LO really replaces that.

I gave up on LO for the most part as at my age 81 it is harder to learn something so different. Scribus does much of what Publisher does. I tried it a few years ago and found it easy to use, fewer features than Libre Office but a bit easier to get used to.

I have tried FreeOfice. Similar problems on my macros. Other than that, not bad for free. I use office I agree. I would rank Free Office as the best free replacement for Microsoft Office. Much better than Libre Office — but with less features, admittedly. I have even bought the paid version for a ridiculously low promotional price , which is called Soft Maker Office. Despite its more pleasant interface, I find that I need the more advanced features of Microsoft Office with which I am stuck.

Here is a Libre Office review by a very knowledgeable power user to discourage you from using it :. Just as a matter of interest — Office was installed on my first non-second hand PC with all-singing all-dancing Windows 98 as the operating system I had a second-hand Amstrad before that and, even earlier, a green screen portable Apricot — anyone remember them?

I even got a free download from Microsoft which lets it read though not write. Is there really any valid reason why I should buy a later version? There is a free version that is online only. Did you say a free version of MS Office to install on your computer?

Not the free process of downloading only? Not free trial? Not free online? Not free for iPhone? Not just a free Microsoft account? Not free if your name is B. An application you can use offline?

Really, really free application to install on your PC — with no caveats? In contrast, open-source software is developed collaboratively, often by volunteers, and made available for free. Anyone who wishes to use, redistribute, adapt, or improve the code can do so without permission or payment of any kind.

For the rest of you, each model has tangible advantages and disadvantages that we'll look at in closer detail. The open-source philosophy is about more than software. It is born out of a deep distrust of large corporations, an enthusiasm for individual innovation, and a belief that community action is effective in solving problems.

Not surprisingly, it can attract loyal adherents who are committed to sharing information and building better software. On the other hand, some consumers are more comfortable with a for-profit model they feel rewards and incentivizes ingenuity. If you have deep a conviction in either direction, it's not likely that we'll change your mind.

First, the cost: Open-source applications often cost nothing. OpenOffice and LibreOffice are both free. Updates to the latest-and-greatest versions of the open-source applications are also free, but the same is not always true for Microsoft Office users.

Office users who want to upgrade to Office have to pay for the new edition, for example. However, smaller updates between major releases are free. Note: If you currently hold a valid license of Office with Software Assurance , a support-and-benefits service available to volume-licensing customers, you may be able to upgrade to newer versions released during your coverage period for free. Related to price, licensing is another advantage of open-source software.

You don't have to worry about how many copies of LibreOffice you've installed at home or the office. There's no cost no matter how many times you download or install it. However, when you buy or receive a version of Office , you may only install it on a specified number of computers within your organization — the number depends on which edition of the suite you purchase, so you'll need to keep track of exactly where it's been installed.

Another advantage of open-source code — if you're a programmer — is that you can do what you like with it. You can study OpenOffice or LibreOffice and customize it to your needs, improve it, or use the code to create something completely new and release your changes to the public.

Unless you're a programmer or have one on staff, this may not be a feature you need, but for some users it's a valuable selling point. Microsoft doesn't offer anything comparable. What Microsoft does offer is a company that has a strong incentive to create applications that it can sell.

This means its features, support, and interface need to be attractive enough for users to purchase year after year. Microsoft has built a vast pool of talented developers, a mature platform, and polished user interfaces.

Also, by virtue of being the largest software provider in this space, there are hundreds of Microsoft Office suite experts who can help troubleshoot issues and offer tips for power users. The mandates for open-source applications also tend to be fuzzy. Tech-savvy programmers are not always focused on the interface or user experience. Documentation can be spotty. However, because open-source code is available to all, OpenOffice and LibreOffice are not solely dependent on their current crop of developers and corporate sponsors.

Even if all those people supporting the project were to disappear, the code would still exist, and other people could pick up where they left off. Commercial products tend to keep their code secret, so if the company goes under, so does the software. That said, it is unlikely Microsoft will be unable to support its Office suite in the foreseeable future. Office is the online software subscription version of Microsoft Office.

It offers all of the tools available in the desktop version of Office and many more that are not available for download. Users simply have an account that gives them online access to their Office apps and the files created on those apps. Qualified nonprofits and libraries can get Office for free or at discount , depending on which plan they choose.

It's no secret that Microsoft wants to move more people to its software as a service SaaS model, where upgrades and new features are automatic and customers are locked into an annual payment to use their product. Critics of Microsoft don't like the feeling of being "locked" into regular payments and worry that they will lose control of their data. Of course, there are benefits to a Internet-based Office as well, namely the increased ability to share documents and access them on multiple devices.

However you feel about Office , this article focuses on the desktop version of Office because it's a more apples-to-apples comparison with the open-source options. As a result, many of the new features in the online version of Office will not be covered here. But it doesn't seem that it will work as expected, especially if there are macros. I am not very computer literate. When I email my resume, created in Open Office, it opens as jibberish on the other end.

I sent it to a friend with a Mac, and she could open it. What do I need to do so that potential employers can open my resume, if I don't know what system they are using? Thank you. You dumbed it down to my level! His snide comments are not helpful to those of us actually trying to learn how this works. Think of possible identity theft I doubt that any law abiding citizen should consider working for them, and should bombard the CEO with emails, and go over his head to the Board and the State Information Commission until their policy is reversed.

Apache OO 3. LibreOffice 4. I can't open large excel files. They are not terrible complex, just large, without any macros. In Excel it is possible to leave an optional parameter blank and specify a later parameter, but this is not possible in Calc.

Formulas with optional parameters are not correctly imported into Calc. In Excel some of the financial functions accept string parameters for dates; in Apache OpenOffice they require a serial number, and thus they are not correctly imported into Calc. Hyperlinks are supported but not as a function; use the Hyperlink button on the Function bar.

However there are a number of limitations. Pivot tables import from Excel into Calc although the cells do not have the PivotTable shading but as soon as they are worked on these limitations become apparent.

The limitations are:. AutoFilter imports and exports correctly with the required rows being hidden. However, there are a number of differences between Excel and Calc:. A workaround would be to have another column to the left that contains the currency symbol.

There is no predefined option for bracketing negative numbers. The author had not noticed the following changes, so this is a direct quote from StarOffice 7 Migration Guide by Sun. Unlike Microsoft PowerPoint, StarOffice Impress does not support three-color gradients, double and triple borders, or round-dotted borders.

To improve the results of the import, you have to make the necessary adjusts before import. Change three-color presets to similar two-color gradient fills and change double and triple border lines to a single border line with appropriate width.

Round-dotted border lines that are mapped to rectangle-border closely resemble the original line style in PowerPoint, so manual editing should not be necessary. There appear to be no settings for multimedia custom animations, such as the ability to play a sound for the next slides. On import the charts simply appear. A workaround is to have multiple copies of the chart with each one set up to display as desired. The Pack and Go feature in PowerPoint allowed a PowerPoint file to be split over several floppy disks and assured that all related files were included.

This facility is not included in Impress, nor can Impress open such files. PowerPoint provides action settings for mouseover, but Impress does not have this option, only on mouse click, so mouseovers get mapped to mouse clicks. PowerPoint has an option for highlighting the object on mouse click or mouse over; Impress does not have this, so it gets ignored on import. Table 3 shows how the custom animations and object effects are imported into Impress and exported to PowerPoint.

Jump to: navigation , search. Migration Guide. Migration is people issue, not a software issue. In most cases, no loss of formatting will occur, so you may find this warning annoying and choose to disable it. Content on this page is licensed under the Creative Common Attribution 3. Views Page Discussion View source History.