OpenOffice.org For Dummies

Uses the straightforward For Dummies style to show Linux and Windows users how to use the OpenOffice.org desktop productivity suite
OpenOffice.org has a user interface and feature set similar to that of other office suites and works transparently with a variety of file formats, including those of Microsoft Office
Explains how to download, install, and set up both the Linux and Windows versions of OpenOffice.org
Organized by the four key desktop applications provided in the OpenOffice.org suite: Writer (word processing), Calc (spreadsheets), Impress (presentations), and Draw (graphics)
Other topics covered include creating and formatting documents with Writer, using templates and styles, creating spreadsheets with Calc, manipulating spreadsheet data, creating a presentation with Impress, and creating and editing images with Draw

Customer Reviews:

I tried it and liked it.

By Christian Einfeldt "Digital Tipping Point guy" - January 20, 2004

I'm an attorney who uses OpenOffice.org (OOo) every day in his law practice. I don't usually read a user manual like one would read a novel, but I actually read OOo for Dummies cover to cover because 1) the book is readable, 2) I learned how to use features that I didn't even know existed in OOo. For example, I'm going to travel to Oregon for business, and learned that I could put a map in a background for a spreadsheet to coordinate my travels there, after reading in OOo for Dummies that such was possible. I never would have thought of that. :-) This Dummies book also gives simple, easy step by step instructions for doing stuff. There are several books on OpenOffice.org, and I have bought them all. Each of them has a different use, so you really are not wasting your money if you buy all of them. However, if you don't want to buy them all, OOo for Dummies is good for any user who wants ideas as to how they could use OOo, and it's good for users who really need a clear... read more

Very good, but not as in depth as I would like.

By B. Laue - September 2, 2005

The book covers the major aspects of the software suite, but it really doesn't get into the details of the programs. For that, I recommend a Dummies book on the Microsoft version, since they don't have an in-depth book on the OpenOffice.org version of the software applications. For what it is, an overview of the suite, it is very good. I highly recommend it as a fantastic starting point. I paid a paltry $7 for the book, delivered. How can you go wrong with a price like that? Truth be told, I believe it would have been worth the cover price of $24.99. It is an excellent book to start with, but you'll want to dig deeper after you make it through this book. I hope the authors will consider making full-blown Dummies books for Impress/Presentation, and Calc/Spreadsheet, and the Writer/Text Document applications, too.

I highly recommend OpenOffice.org to all non-profit organizations, as well as for-profit companies: save yourselves $200-$500, per computer, along with the... read more

Be carefull

By D. Phegley - July 16, 2007

All supplied material for review of this book said it was new and up to date but did not give the version number of Open Office that was covered. When I received the book I was frustrated and well into it when I found it was for version 1.1. The Open Office I have is 2.2. The data base portion is not even mentioned in this book. I found that I wasted a lot of time. If any of these books do not show the version number of the program they are working with I would not buy them!