OpenOffice.Org 3.1 (and Extensions)

Post date: Oct 16, 2009 1:37:49 AM

OpenOffice has been around for quite some time. It's morphed and evolved into a mature and useful office suite. OpenOffice is available for Mac OS X (even packaged for MLTI III), Windows, and Linux.

From the web site OpenOffice.org:

OpenOffice.org 3 forms an ideal teaching platform for core computer literacy skills, without tying students to commercial products. The free software licence means students can be given copies of software to use at home - perfectly legally - a useful 'added value'. For IT students, OpenOffice.org's component based software is also an ideal platform for developing IT skills and understanding real-life software engineering.

OpenOffice.org 3 is also an ideal platform for creating teaching materials and managing administrative tasks. For example, the Writer word processor is easy to use for simple memos, but also powerful enough to cope with complex dissertations. For IT staff, the open-source software license means an end to license compliance worries and the threat of software audits. OpenOffice.org 3 is developed, translated, and supported by an international community linked by the internet, opening exciting possibilities for school projects.

OpenOffice.org 3 is a leading international force in the movement for digital inclusion - making software of the highest quality available to all, regardless of income. OpenOffice.org 3 is available in a wide variety of languages, and we actively encourage local teams to produce versions for local languages. We develop software on an open-source process - the computing equivalent of peer-reviewed publishing - creating software of the highest quality.

BUT! One of the most powerful features of OpenOffice is its extensibility! Often overlooked, OpenOffice has a built-in extensions manager that allows the user to download and add cool features to OpenOffice!