[sgiitk]

I am thinking from switching from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice. Any experience (I guess the Linux aficionados are using it a lot), esp as compared to MS Office. I guess file compatibility will be near total.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I am thinking from switching from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice. Any experience (I guess the Linux aficionados are using it a lot), esp as compared to MS Office. I guess file compatibility will be near total.

File compatibility is almost perfect. The things where I have seen issues are

1. Latest powerpoint presentations, esp with animation and funky stuff
2. EXCEL spreadsheets with complex macros and graphs
3. In word documents, the formatting changes. So a 20 page document may become 21 page.

[sgiitk]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

File compatibility is almost perfect. The things where I have seen issues are

1. Latest powerpoint presentations, esp with animation and funky stuff
2. EXCEL spreadsheets with complex macros and graphs
3. In word documents, the formatting changes. So a 20 page document may become 21 page.

Thanks for the encouragement:
1. I rarely do ppt now, after retirement. Even earlier I used to keep them simple.
2. I do not use embedded graphs or write macros. In fact I do not know how to write macros! I hope it can handle Income Tax forms. In the worst case I can go to the Java format. In any case ITR4 (needed for my son) is only in Java. The rest of us are on ITR2A or ITR2.
3. Pretty normal issue. Such things happen if there are printer changes as well. One has to check in any case to ensure proper page breaks. Maybe minor font variations.
Incidentally, I have switched to Garamond from Times (New) Roman as my default font, as it being lighter, is supposed to save about 10-15% toner.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Thanks for the encouragement:

2. I do not use embedded graphs or write macros. In fact I do not know how to write macros! I hope it can handle Income Tax forms. In the worst case I can go to the Java format. In any case ITR4 (needed for my son) is only in Java. The rest of us are on ITR2A or ITR2.

IT cannot handle ITR forms. That I am sure. You have to do Java

[sephiroth]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I am thinking from switching from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice. Any experience (I guess the Linux aficionados are using it a lot), esp as compared to MS Office. I guess file compatibility will be near total.

Apart from the already mentioned points regarding macros and formatting, I also found some formulas non-compliant. As in some formulas created in a spreadsheet in MS Office may not necessarily work in Libre Office.

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I do not use embedded graphs or write macros. In fact I do not know how to write macros! I hope it can handle Income Tax forms. In the worst case I can go to the Java format. In any case ITR4 (needed for my son) is only in Java. The rest of us are on ITR2A or ITR2.

Specific to ITR-2, I believe (unfortunately) you may still need to rely on MS Office. The IT forms come with macros which you need to enable to fill them up.
Some if not most government websites still presume the whole nation uses windows and internet explorer, and fail to provide 100% compliant software and websites for other platforms.


On a separte note, have you considered any web office counterparts (google docs etc)?

Pros:
- Auto-save.
- Access anywhere (requires internet)
- Protection from loss in case of hard drive failures.
- New features get auto-updates rather than you having to install patches or newer versions.
- I found the slides (power-point counterpart) more feature rich and convinient.

Cons:
- Requires internet almost always (I say always since offline edits are in the pipeline for most such suites)
- Copy+Paste of content is not the same (hyperlinks are not copied etc)
- A bit of a learning curve to get used to these.

[alpha1]

I use Libreoffice at home on Windows as well as Ubuntu partitions.
I haven't faced any real issue except sometimes in case of macro laden files.
Need to check the IT returns file that you have spoken about now.

[RocketRaccoon]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I am thinking from switching from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice. Any experience (I guess the Linux aficionados are using it a lot), esp as compared to MS Office. I guess file compatibility will be near total.

File compatibly is not an issue. You might face some issues with fonts and formatting if you use Linux as base installs usually don't have the MS fonts package (you can get them through your package management). If you are using Windows you wont face the above issue. Again, if you are using Windows and don't mind using the cloud for your needs why not give Google Drive a go ? It has most features that you would need for everyday use (unless you plan heavy spreadsheet use with macros etc) with extensive documentation, you can use scripts too and everything is linked to your Gmail so it's easy to share documents.

[abhibh]

I have a paid version of Office 2007 and have been using it for years. Have shifted to OpenOffice and other alternatives while I was using Ubuntu.

IMHO if you already have a legit working copy of MS Office I don't really see the need to shift. The 2007 version works like charm on Windows 10, no issues whatsoever.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by abhibh

I have a paid version of Office 2007 and have been using it for years. Have shifted to OpenOffice and other alternatives while I was using Ubuntu.

IMHO if you already have a legit working copy of MS Office I don't really see the need to shift. The 2007 version works like charm on Windows 10, no issues whatsoever.

Agree with abhibh. I tried doing my relatives ITR on OO two years back and it just won't work.

The ITR2 excel have extensive ActiveX calculations which are optimized for 32 bit windows. It doesnt even work on Excel 2010 64 bit.

If things are working fine - DONT change it. IMNSHO Office is now super stable. New features post 2010 have added little value for the aam aadmi end user. If all you need to do is excel and little bit of documents, don't change! Don't fix what ain't broke.

[Kumar R]

I have no experience with LibreOffice but tried several times to use OpenOffice (on which LibreOffice is based) at home during 2009-10 - the 'new' MS Office 2007 with the ribbon was not to my liking.

While it was ok for plain letters and notes, larger and more complex files such as appraisal reports, information memorandums and pleadings containing attachments, images, textboxes, different fonts etc. would invariably show up mis-formated when switching to MS Word and vice-versa. In professional terms it was unusable.

Given how complex and sophisticated MS Office has become I would not recommend any product based on OpenOffice as a viable substitute unless you work in isolation.

[deepclutch]

Though my use of LibreOffice is minimum, my experience is slight mess up of font size/space and tables. There is Kingsoft Office/WPS-Office which is still in beta, but has good compatibility with MS Office. Besides, if you have a licensed MS Office copy, Wine with PlayOnLinux or Crossover can get Office installed fine.