A lot of people are not aware that there are free and open source options to popular non-free software such as Microsoft Office, and pay for software they rarely use. The most popular open source office suite is LibreOffice which replaces Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint. For home users this software is almost always adequate. Open source means that the software is developed by a global community of users.

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steveblobby t1_ixzrrvf wrote on November 27, 2022 at 5:49 PM

Alternatively, I bought a key for Microsoft Office 2021 for £9.95 off Ebay. They give you the download link and a key. Simple. Works fine too, just hasn't got cloud storage like 365, but I own it, and don't pay a subscription.

Tribblehappy t1_ixzcq29 wrote on November 27, 2022 at 4:04 PM

Is libre office more popular than Open Office? I've never heard of it.

Regardless, yes, there are great free options. Even google is mostly compatible though I've had a few printing format issues with Google sheets.

a0st OP t1_ixzgeve wrote on November 27, 2022 at 4:31 PM

LibreOffice is based on OpenOffice (a fork), and it's the default office suite included in many Linux distributions. But LibreOffice is these days being more actively developed. You could say its the successor of OpenOffice. It's estimated that around 200 million people uses LibreOffice.

[deleted] t1_iy0dbjc wrote on November 27, 2022 at 8:12 PM

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c0mputerRFD t1_ixzho6i wrote on November 27, 2022 at 4:40 PM

https://www.wps.com

JayElecAintConv_Me t1_iy253o0 wrote on November 28, 2022 at 4:06 AM

I own a couple copies of MS Office. Still use the open source option.

keepthetips t1_ixzcj4l wrote on November 27, 2022 at 4:03 PM

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[deleted] t1_ixzicwz wrote on November 27, 2022 at 4:45 PM

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_Nightrider121200_ t1_ixzpnwb wrote on November 27, 2022 at 5:35 PM

There is an important note to be made. Microsoft is a supporter of these open source software products. The have a say about what is included in it.

Some of the most useful functionality is not included or severe limitations have been added. Finally, the placement of the tools is done in a really chaotic manner.

If you have been MS office user you will lose a significant amount of time due to productivity losses which means LibreOffice is good if you are not using it professionally.

slobs_burgers t1_iy188xd wrote on November 27, 2022 at 11:44 PM

I usually just use Google drive for basic stuff like word processor and basic tables. If you need a more complex spreadsheet you’ll probably need to bump up to something else