LIBREOFFICE: make the switch from a Microsoft Office subscription to zero cost (or ads)
Gone are the days when the only alternatives to Microsoft Office cost money, with no easy way to move files between platforms. Free office suites are ten-a-penny now, but many are limited to just the core three apps – word processor, spreadsheet and presentations tool – and are ad-supported. None of these restrictions apply to LibreOffice (www.libreoffice. org), however.
Not only is LibreOffice ad-free, it offers replacements for Access (Base) and Visio (Draw) to provide database and drawing/flowchart functionality in addition to Writer, Calc and Impress, plus bonus tools in the form of Math (a formula editor) and Charts, a tool for producing pie charts and the like.
Getting started
LibreOffice’s components can be opened independently, or through a centralised launcher. This provides convenient access to each application as well as recently opened documents. Each application opens with the classic interface familiar to anyone who used Word 2003 or earlier – if you’d like to switch to the new ribbon, choose View > User Interface > Tabbed. The Tabbed Compact option provides a cut-down version on one line instead of two.
From here, LibreOffice works in a similar – not quite identical – way to Office. You can open and save in Office-compatible formats – to make these the default, go to Tools > Options > Load/Save > General, and make your choice from the Always save as menu.
If you can’t find the tool you’re looking for in LibreOffice itself (there’s an extensive help menu and online user guides if you do get lost), then see if an extension has been written to plug the functionality gap – the step-by-step guide reveals how to track down, download and install them. Take the time to read the documentation that comes with each one – extensions take up reside
