Microsoft Office Alternatives

I still use WordPerfect. Every once in a while, reveal codes are really, really useful. And I like the way WP does what I tell it to do, not what it thinks I should do.

This is a very informative article. I used OpenOffice.org and was satisfied with it. However, when I was attending graduate school online, I had to go out and buy Microsoft Office software in order to submit my assignments to my instructor.

When I tried to explain to my instructor what OpenOffice.org was about, I was informed that the school's policy was that every student had to use only Microsoft Office products.

Most businesses only use the most popular software, which is Microsoft Office. I wish more businesses knew about the alternatives to Microsoft Office products.

I tried open office and it can be painfully slow.
I switched to Softmaker office a few years ago, which zips right along. The 2008 version is also free...http://www.softmakeroffice.com/

I managed to snag a fully operational (legal) copy of Softmaker Office 2010 through one of the "free software of the day" sites, and I liked it so much, that I have since paid for the updates and upgrades that eventually came out.
I have used the Softmaker on Windows XP and Linux Ubuntu, and found it fairly smooth and compatible with most Microsoft generated files. One format that is sometimes problematic is Powerpoint presentations - not all of the effects or formatting carried smoothly between MS Powerpoint and the equivalent Softmaker editor.

I have also used Open Office and Libre Office since they are the default office suite in the Ubuntu platform, and I must say that Open Office seems much less flexible and compatible than the Libre Office. I also found that it took me a good bit longer to find certain functions and features in Open Office and Libre Office, than in Softmaker office, which seems to be more intuitive and friendly in its design.

No doubt Microsoft Office is the leader in the Office Suites segment. But for me, it's been also the gate for myriads of malware attacks. This feature costed me enough money in the past to make me opt for its alternatives. Now I use Libreoffice even on Windows powered computers with MS Office already installed.
A powerful feature for me is the capability of generating pdf files with no hassle and no third party software addition. Libreoffice lacks the ribbon style menu? So what? I'm still able to produce high quality documents.
Abiword offers nice ways for word processing. Gnumeric is better as a spreadsheet application than Libreoffice Calc, handling also MS Excel documents, but unfortunately is not a cross-platform application, as far as I know.
My conclusion is that having alternatives is always the best, even if cost is a negligible factor.

The one part of Microsoft Office for which no good alternative exists is the Access database. If it weren't for Access, I would gladly abandon M$ for an open-source alternative.

The OpenOffice and LibreOffice word processors and spreadsheets are more than "good enough"; most people will be perfectly happy with them.

I just installed the Kingsoft Office. It looked pretty good, but when I tried to uninstall that failed. I just emailed them about it.

I would like to try linux. I don't know much about computers and don't really enjoy trying to figure things out. Is there a linux program that is easy enough for a tech illiterate to use without too much frustration? Where can I get help on it when I get stuck?

(I love your columns.)

How could you leave out WordPerfect.?????

We mossbacks continue to use it happily!!!

Which of these programs can open a MS Home Publisher document?

This is a great article that really covers all the possible alternatives to Microsoft Office, not just the free ones. I downloaded Libre Office and ended up uninstalling it. I've heard especially good things about Kingsoft. I don't mind paying for a good alternative that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

The free version of Kingsoft can only read .DOCX files but if you edit and then save you have to save it as a plain .DOC file. It's an excellent product.

Nice review of some office suites.
Here are a few more to consider: Free only:
For users of XP there is eg.
SoftMaker Office 2008
http://www.softmakeroffice.com/
The Fifth Element from SSuiteSoft.com
http://ssuite5element.webs.com/thefifthelement.htm
Before the above are dismissed as irrelevant, remember that XP still holds at least a 40% market share on a global basis ,which is far more than Apple and Linux combined.

Others to consider:
From the same company SSuiteSoft.com there are suites that are compatible with Win7 as well.
http://www.ssuitesoft.com/ssuiteofficepremiumhd.htm
Or check out all their software:
http://www.ssuitesoft.com/software.htm

Another one is OxygenOffice Professional
http://sourceforge.net/apps/trac/ooop/wiki

Combined with the ones in the article, it makes for an interesting collection to choose from.

I have mainly used microsoft office at home, and for some reason one of the copies of office didn't take at work. I scoured the web for free alternatives to use, so I have tried Open Office (hate the interface and some of the columns turned out funky when converted by it. The same rang true with softmaker office and star office. I eventually found Kingsoft Office, and have to say I'm Impressed. The conversion from Microsoft to Kingsoft Office is pretty smooth. The office manager at the time was able to use the Spreadsheet prgram as well. I still go back to office, but for a free alternative I would recommend it as well. Haven't tried Libre Office,Abiword is like a part of Open Office.
Jarte is great if you want to quickly type something up with no columns needed.

I've been using MS Office up and trough 2003. However, I am very disappointed that it take so long for MS Word for example to load.) I now limit the use of MS Word to those occasions where it is necessary and that is becoming less and less frequent. I depend heavily now on Ashampoo Office. It takes Textmaker to loads in 4 seconds vs. MS Word which takes 34 seconds. Textmaker closes in 1 second. Word takes 29 seconds. Need I say more?

Though the "Word Perfect" was not mentioned in this article, I want to say a few words about it. It was first developed in Utah and then sold and re-sold several time. I was testing it from the very beginning alongside with several other word processors, including "Microsoft Word". The "Word Perfect" was leading. It seemed to me the "Microsoft Word" was copying every new thing the "Word Perfect" introduced, trying to catch up wit them. Then, to outdo the "Word Perfect" "Microsoft Word" became so unnecessarly complicated that I simply dropped it. I am still using the "Word Perfect" and I believe it is the best wordprocessor ever made; at least for me it is. And, it is compatible with "MS Word".
Paul K.

Bruce Byfield has written an article for the Datamation trade journal that compares the LibreOffice and Microsoft Office side by side. He focuses primarily on the word processors: LibreOffice Writer versus Microsoft Word. Byfield claims that LibreOffice Writer is the better of the two overall.
He writes: "Far from one having an obvious advantage, in recent years the feature lists of Writer and Word have become closer than ever. Byfield claims that Writer has at least twelve major advantages over Word.
You can read Bruce Byfield's article at http://goo.gl/dg4FV.

Libre Office is excellent (and I believe is now included with ubuntu by default for anyone who wants to try out linux.) It's big, feels maybe a little sluggish but is the only one of the suites with a serious database product included (Base.) There's a portable version too, at portableapps.com.

I haven't tried SoftMaker 2012 but 2010 is very acceptable. The email client (in the Pro version of 2012 only) has been bought in from a third party and I'd be inclined to wait a while before committing to it as I've seen some bug reports. 2010 can be made portable too; not sure about 2012.

Symphony will be worth having if they get around to including Approach; otherwise, it offers little (beyond the IBM badge) that you wouldn't expect of an OpenOffice fork.

AbiWord (a portable version is also available at portableapps.com) is neat, quick but can have compatibility issues.

Jarte is primarily an RTF editor, as you'd expect for something based on the MSWrite engine. For doc(x) support you MUST download the MS converter before Jarte will even open a doc file. However, it's fast, very capable, optionally portable and, unlike almost everything else, appears to have been designed with user-friendliness at its core. (For that reason, I'm extremely fond of it!) However, it's ONLY about word processing and if you want fine control over page layout and formatting, you're going to be better looking to one of the others.

If you want a solution that you can live inside with few if any compatibility concerns and the maximum capabilities, Libre's probably the best option. Ditto if you want the best bang for your buck and don't want to hand over cash. If you don't need database, don't mind spending some money and DO want speed, then SoftMaker Office (or the Ashampoo build of the same product is occasionally available at a better price) will probably work for you. Both have trial versions so you can suck it and see.

Abi and Jarte don't include spreadsheets so can't really be considered "Office" products. Either are good WP-only choices if you don't care about inward compatibility (both either save in or can export to formats that everything can read). Jarte takes a little getting used to but has a clickless mode that's a joy to use.

To Matt who wants to learn Linux- so do I. If you have problems, do a google search. Bob provides a Linux tutorial at http://lowfatlinux.com/.

No one mentioned "Atlantis". I never got used to the expensive Word processors,, so when I actually had a need for one I tried every one I could find - maybe 40 or 50. Atlantis is Shareware, 30 day trial, $35.00 to buy. It does everything I want it to. YMMV :-)