Welcome [ stage 1 ]
Some of the online documents that are produced by Colorado 4-H are "locked" in such a way that you can only type within designated areas and text cannot be changed within the locked regions (such as with E-Records). If your computer has Microsoft Word already installed, then you can easily access these locked documents. (Works and WordPerfect will NOT work). However, for those who do not own Microsoft Word, there is a wonderful FREE alternative called OpenOffice.org (OOo).
What’s so great about OpenOffice.org? As the name suggests, OpenOffice.org is the most open office suite available:
- no commercial licenses or software compliance issues to worry about
- no language barriers - if it’s not yet available in your language, the chances are it will be soon
- available on all major computing platforms
- the first office suite to comply with the OASIS OpenDocument format
- the source code for the software is freely available under a full OSI certified license
- the software reads all major competitors’ files
- OpenOffice.org is supported by a global community of friendly volunteers, only too happy to provide assistance to newcomers and advanced users alike
What’s in OpenOffice.org?
WRITER is OpenOffice.org’s word processor: use it for anything from writing a quick letter to producing an entire book with embedded illustrations, cross-references, tables of contents, indexes, bibliographies... Auto-complete, auto-format, and real-time spelling check make light work of the hardest task. Writer is powerful enough to tackle desktop publishing tasks such as creating multi-column newsletters, brochures – the only limit is your imagination.
CALC is a powerful spreadsheet application that has all the tools you need to calculate, analyze, summarize, and present your data in numerical reports or sizzling graphics. A fully-integrated help system makes entering complex formulas a breeze. Sophisticated decision-making tools are just a few mouse clicks away. Pull in external data using the Data Pilot, and sort it, filter it, and produce subtotals and statistical analyses. Use previews to select from thirteen categories of 2-D and 3-D charts including line, area, column, pie, XY, stock and net with dozens of variants.
IMPRESS is the fastest, most powerful way to create effective multimedia presentations. Your presentations will truly stand out with special effects, animation and high-impact drawing tools.
DRAW will produce everything from simple diagrams to dynamic 3D illustrations and special effects.
BASE ( New to Version 2 ) enables you to manipulate database data seamlessly within OpenOffice.org. Create and modify tables, forms, queries, and reports, either using your own database or Base’s own built-in HSQL database engine.
Below is a comparison table that matches up comparable tools from both the Microsoft Office Suite and OOo suite. On the left are Microsoft Office tools, and on the right are the comparable tools offered by OpenOffice.org. For example, on the left, you will see Word, and the comparable tool offered by OOo is Writer, which is listed on the right.
============ Comparison of Office Suite Tools ============ |
|
| Microsoft Office Suite . . . . . . . . . . | OpenOffice.org Office Suite . . . . . . . . |
| * Word (word processor) - - - - - - - - > | * Writer (word processor) |
| * Excel (spreadsheet tool) - - - - - - - > | * Calc (spreadsheet tool) |
| * PowerPoint (presentation creator) - - > | * Impress (presentation creator) |
| * Access (database management) - - - - > | * Base (database management) |
| (n/a) | * Draw (vector drawing tool) |
| (n/a) | * Math (mathematical function creator) |
Note: Most any Microsoft file type (.doc, .xls, .ppt, .mdb, etc...) can be used with the comparable OOo tool.
Who should use OOo? Anyone who does not wish to use Microsoft Word to access the Colorado 4-H forms ("locked" .doc files such as E-Records) should use the Writer tool, which is part of the OOo Office Suite.
Why is OOo so cool? It's Free! It's not proprietary. It's really powerful. It offers you freedom of choice. It works with all of the Microsoft file types. It can be freely distributed. It's a fantastic open source project.
How do I install OOo? First, please be aware that OOo is an entire office suite, as is the Microsoft Office Suite, so the full installation is somewhat large (350'ish MB). IMPORTANT: You do not have to install the entire OOo office suite if you do not feel that you will utilize all of the tools; during the installation process, you can easily specify which applications that you DO or DO NOT wish to install. This means that if you only wish to install the Writer application, you will have that freedom of choice.
Documentation: On the pages that follow, we will look at downloading and installing the OpenOffice.org Writer application. However, after you have completed the installation process, you may wish to view documentation on how to use the Writer application by clicking here, or you may wish to view documentation about some of the other applications contained in the office suite by accessing the OOo website here. You may also view an online FAQ for each of the office tools, including Writer by clicking here.
Click here to access the installation files and installation tutorial [ stage 2 ] >>>
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