Should I Go With OPEN OFFICE vs Microsoft?

Question

I'm about to buy a new Dell computer. They were going to install MS Office for about $200 but then I heard of Open Office and since it's free I'm wondering if it is pretty much just as good as the MS version?

Please understand that I am almost illiterate when it comes to computers. I currently use a 1995 version of MS Excel and MS Word just for my own personal use. I only use the bare essentials of these programs, nothing fancy! They work just fine for my purposes although I've noticed that they won't open Word documents that people email to me.

So my question is....is there any downside to me saving around $200 and going with Open Office instead of MS Office?

Finally, I searched for other questions here about Open Office and it seems like most people think it's a good thing. Except the answers all had very low ratings, as though Microsoft employees spend their days voting against Open Office instead of working to make their own products better. Anyone else notice that?

Answer 1

OpenOffice runs just fine on Windows. It isn't as snazzy as MS Office, but if all you're using is the basics of Excel and Word, you should be fine with OO.

As a bonus, with OO you'll actually be able to read Word documents and Excel spreadsheets that people send to you. Your existing Word and Excel won't because they don't know anything about document and spreadsheet formats more recent than circa 1995.

There are three potential downsides, two of them just minor:

1) OpenOffice programs are a little slower to run than MS Office applications.

2) OpenOffice is a 90+ meg download. So to get it, you need either a high-speed connection OR lots of patience if you're going to try downloading it through a dial-up connection. It's also possible to order a CD with OO's installation files. It will cost you a few bucks, but WAY less than $200 or so for MS Office.

3) OpenOffice doesn't come with an e-mail program, which is the only real potential problem. If you've been using Outlook Express, you should still be OK because Outlook Express should be included with Windows (ask the Dell rep to make sure). Or if you've been using a third-party e-mail program, make sure your version works with the Windows version that comes with your computer (upgrade if you have to).

The only problem would be if you've been using MS Outlook (not the same as Outlook Express) for your e-mail. If you want to keep using Outlook, you'd need to either buy MS Office or try to get Outlook as a stand-alone program. Or you could get a third-party program for your mail, then download OO and use it for your documents and spreadsheets.

None of that in itself makes OpenOffice a bad idea. It's just a question of how much trouble you want to go to in order to avoid forking out $200 for MS Office, and are you willing to spend a FEW bucks if you have to.

To be honest, the easy way would be to just shell out the $200 to get MS Office with your computer. Using OO is also feasible, but will take more work. It's your call.

Good luck with everything and hope that helped!

Answer 2

No downside to it at all, unless you just like supporting Bill Gates. Open Office is GREAT. Fully compatible, and free. What's not to like? I use Open Office on my home system. My office has Microsoft. I have no problem porting documents between the two. Save the money. Go with Open Office.

(Of course, if you still want to spend the $200, you can go with Open Office and just send me a check... LOL)

Oh, and ignore the above answer from dewcoons. There is a Windows (and Mac, too) version. Here is the link:
http://download.openoffice.org/2.2.0/index.html

Answer 3

It depends on what do you want to use office for. Because Microsoft Office has much more features than OpenOffice but if you don't use all the features of MS Office (and I bet you don't :P ) you can install OpenOffice. It also depends on the version of MS Office you want to install.

Answer 4

I say they are the two notably a lot an identical. i'm nonetheless utilising the old 2002 version of place of work and that i've got tried out open place of work, do no longer see a lot of a distinction different then the lively character, so while and if I wont have the skill to apply the version of place of work I certainly have. i will probable pass with open place of work.

Answer 5

use open office
then save your documents as DOC or XLS files.

You can open ,read and send all the documents of Microsoft Office

Answer 6

Open Office is a Linux program. Good luck running it on Windows. That is why the suggestions to use it usually get a thumbs down.