OpenOffice.org 3.3

Description

Update: The below review pertains to an earlier version of OpenOffice.

Not happy with the idea of a Web-based office application--nor with paying gobs of money for Microsoft's office suite? Then you want the downloadable OpenOffice.org, the free competitor to Microsoft Office. It's a full suite, with a word processor, spreadsheet, presentation program, database, and drawing program--and, for ubergeeks, a "mathematical function calculator" (if you have to ask what it is, you don't need it).

It does just about everything Microsoft Office does, including opening and saving files in Office file formats, as well as many others.

You may think that because OpenOffice.org is free, it's an anemic or difficult to use. Nothing could be further from the truth. It does just about everything Microsoft Office does, including opening and saving files in Office file formats, as well as many others.

The interface isn't as slick as the latest version of Office--for example, it doesn't include the new Ribbon. (Of course, there are people who hate the Ribbon and will be happy to hear that.) And you won't be able to collaborate using Word markup.

Still, free is free, and if you're looking for a way to get away from spending hundreds of dollars for a suite, Openoffice.org is a great solution.