 OpenOffice the free suite of office programs by Sun Microsystems has been available for several years now, a powerful alternative to the Microsoft group of programs. Google has been testing Google Docs for a while too. Google Docs are made up of easy-to-use word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation software - available free and online. You can choose to access Docs through your browser or download a standalone version for use offline.I've sampled Google's offerings and found it to be an easy to use alternative when compared to the new versions of MS Office. The best news: no costs, and no worries about violating precious software licenses. I've had several occasions where I've found it beneficial to use the new open licensed freeware. Having two computers side by side on my desktop, and just completed a full restore of my oldest, (now six year old desktop computer), I decided to keep the older machine free from the usual clutter which comes with many 'purchased' software programs, and elected not to install a second license version of MS Office. This left me with no means of a spreadsheet, which I use now and then. So I tried Google's Docs and the biggest (small really) hurdle was creating an account. Once the user name and passwords were set, I was presented with a simple and easy to follow selection of office programs. Choosing 'spreadsheet', a simple grid of cells promptly displayed. Create a file name and there it is. No fancy buttons, not thousands of methods to do one thing and it's quite intuitive to use. There is no save button, because it automatically saves as you go, which is a nice safeguard against loss of data. Another advantage is that you can then open the file anywhere. No need to network even. Just have online access. And the downloaded version is handy should you need offline access too. One test did present functional problem when I transferred the file to a Microsoft Office program, but for basic spreadsheeting, word processing and presentations, office freeware is a worthwhile alternative. Security? Passcode access is a great assurance, plus you can set up different means of sharing your files if you wish. Can freeware compete? Microsoft has just announced that in addition to the release of Office 2010, a free online version will be made available - similar to Google's. Yes, it is competitive! |
