LibreOffice is a free, open source office suite. It has very good compatibility with other office suite’s including Microsoft Office. You can open, edit and save Office formats such as .doc, .docx, .xls, and .ppt. LibreOffice includes a Writer (word processor), Calc (spreadsheet), Impress (presentations), Draw (vector graphics), Base (database), and Math (formula editor). All of these components can be easily accessed from the Start Center. After installing LibreOffice, you will see links in the Start Center for extensions and templates if you want to see what is available and to download them. I find this office suite easy to use and navigate. If you have used other office suites than the toolbars and menu options in this may seem familiar.
The developers at The Document Foundation have done a great job with this project. In my opinion, students and home users would find this office suite to be an excellent alternative to Microsoft Office.
The link below is a pdf file that you can download that explains the components, tools, features, customizations, and how-to’s.
Download: Getting Started Guide (pdf file)
Screenshots of LibreOffice
- Publisher: The Document Foundation
- Price: Free
- Compatible with: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10.
- Version: Most recent free version through direct download.