What is Digg?45 Comments
- xptweakerntn, on 10/22/2008, -2/+45The other day at school I helped a buddy out that was having terrible troubles with MS Word. Apparently, some way or another, his working copy had been "locked" because it had been registered too many times (I believe on his home computer and laptop?). So the paper that he wrote the day before just wouldn't open because MS Word was locked. I installed OOffice for him, and at first he seemed to like it. It worked, and saved his grade. Yesterday I noticed that he was still using OOffice, which thrilled me. I asked him how it was working for him, and he said he hated it. Why? Because he kept typing Russian names and it was telling him that they were spelled wrong. I showed him that he could "add the word to a dictionary", and it dumbfounded him. Who would of that of that, right? I think he loves OOffice again. Moral of the story?
People are idiots. - AmyVernon, on 10/20/2008, -2/+24i'm new to openoffice; this'll be a big help.
- Pablitos, on 10/22/2008, -2/+23Until today i didn't realise you could download OpenOffice onto any machine; it's nice that you can legitimately own a proper Word processing package without having to pay for it; it'll go check these out; good one for the open source movement.
- inactive, on 10/20/2008, -3/+21I just downloaded open office, good article
- InsaneMachine, on 10/22/2008, -2/+19Loaded slowly for me, just in case.
To install the extension, you have to go to Tools -> Extension Manager in any of the OpenOffice applications. Click ‘Add’ to install the extension that you have downloaded.
1) Sun PDF Import Extension
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
open-office import-pdf Normally, OpenOffice only allows you to export your file to PDF format, but not to import and make changes to it. With this PDF Import extension, you can now import your PDF files and make changes to the date, numbers or even a small portion of text.
By default, this extension imports the PDF file into the Draw application rather than Writer, even though it may contain a full page of text. You may be wondering why, but if you remember that when the PDF format was first created, it was designed not to allow any editing at all. As such, importing as a text document into Writer may prove too difficult a thing to do.
With that, capturing the content as a Draw object now seems the easiest and most logical thing to do. When you import your PDF file into your Draw application, every single line of text will be treated as a draw object and you can edit the text and rearrange it as you like.
Sun PDF Import Extension is still in beta and only works in OpenOffice 3.0.
2) Professional Template Pack II – English
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
open-office-templatesWith more than 120 professionally designed document templates at your fingertips, it is hard not to create a high quality document or presentation.
This extension adds various kinds of templates, ranging from business correspondence, budgets and project plans, event posters, invoices, notes, minutes, press releases to personal letter templates.
You’ll never have to spend your time writing up the whole document again.
After installation, the templates can be found under File -> New –> Templates and Documents.
3) OpenOffice.org2GoogleDoc
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
OpenOffice to Google docs
This extension allows you to export and import documents from Google Docs, Zoho and any WebDav server. Files supported include OpenDocument Text (.odt), StarOffice (.sxw), Microsoft Word (.doc), Rich Text (.rtf), OpenDocument Spreadsheet (.ods), Microsoft Excel (.xls), Comma Separated Value (.csv) and Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pps).
Java 6 is required to use this extension.
4) Writer’s Tools
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
writer-tool If you are just like me, who spends a great deal of time sitting behind OpenOffice writing articles, then Writer’s Tools is the extension that you must have. Writer’s Tools is a set of utilities designed to help OpenOffice users perform a wide range of tasks. You can back up documents, look up and translate words and phrases, manage text snippets, and keep tabs on document statistics. Some of the useful functions of this extension include:
* Lookup word from several sources, including Cambridge Dictionaries, WordNet, and Google Define.
* Backup a copy of your current document by sending an email to a specified address.
* Wikify Word tool links a selected word or text fragment in the current document to a Writer document, which is created on the fly
* Quick Converter that lets you convert between the metric and imperial systems easily.
* Bookmarks tool allows you to bookmark often-used documents, so you can access them with a few mouse clicks.
* Word of the Day tool picks and displays a random word and its definition from the accompanying WriterDB database.
and many more…
5) LanguageTool
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
open office spell checker
What use is there if you can’t check your grammar and other language errors in an Office suite? The LanguageTool extension is an Open Source language checker for English, German, Polish, Dutch, and other languages. It is rule-based, which means it will find errors for which a rule is defined in its XML configuration files. Rules for more complicated errors can be written in Java. You can think of LanguageTool as a tool to detect errors that a simple spell checker cannot detect, e.g. mixing up there/their, no/now etc. It can also detect some grammar mistakes.
The Language Tool extension does not include spell checking.
6) Creative Commons Licensing
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
creative-commons
If you are always creating open source projects with the Creative Commons License, this extension will come in handy to you. The Creative Commons Licensing extension provides the ability to select and embed a Creative Commons License in Writer, Calc and Impress documents.
7) Data Form
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
In the Excel application in Microsoft Office, there is this feature - Data -> Form - that allows you to key in data easily. What this extension does is to replicate that feature in OpenOffice. The Data Form extension generates a data input form for tables in the Calc application that you can use to enter values.
In Calc, create a table with at least one row and the headline, for example:
data-form
Then, click on a range or any cell of the newly created table (not on empty cells), and go to Data - Form. That’s it. A form should appear letting you insert other records, or edit-delete the old ones.
8) Modern Impress Template
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
open office impress template
The Modern Impress template extension installs more than 30 beautiful templates that you can use for your presentation. All the graphics in the template are based on open-source art.
After installation, you can access the template at File -> New -> Templates and Documents -> Templates -> My Templates
9) Sun Presenter Console
( http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/ ... )
For those who need to give presentations regularly, wouldn’t it be great if during the presentation, you can view what the next slide is and read the note that you have written all from the screen? It will take the guesswork out of you and also keeps you away from the troublesome paper notes scribbled with tiny text. What this extension does is to project different views to different monitors and allows you to see your upcoming slide and note while the audience only sees the current slide and the slide effect.
There are three views that you can configure in the Presenter Console. The first view displays the current slide for your audience to read while the second view shows the speaker’s notes in large, clear and scalable type plus the current and upcoming slide. The third view is a slider sorter view with the slide thumbnails. In your Impress application, go to Slide Show -> Slide Show settings and you can decide which view is to be projected to each monitor.
Do you use extensions for your OpenOffice? If so, which one is your favorite? - jjb123, on 10/22/2008, -1/+15The funny part it it would still show the word misspelled in MS Word too.
- Rubuntu, on 10/22/2008, -1/+14The extensions are great! Here is the most popular list: http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/most_pop ...
- zerogeist, on 10/20/2008, -2/+10digg for creativecommons addon
- MrJagil, on 10/22/2008, -0/+7Just like the girl from my class who, after recieving the EXACT adress of where to download OOffice, still was to retarded to click the 'get OpenOffice' button, and after that, still too retarded to click the windows icon that follows... Also, she didn't know how to save it to her desktop. Also, i ***** hate her.
- cfuse, on 10/22/2008, -0/+6No, the moral of the story is never offer free tech support, as people are ungrateful pricks.
- cactus476, on 10/22/2008, -3/+9You're saying that like MS Words doesn't have that option...
- LocalDocal, on 10/22/2008, -1/+6When I saw the headline 'OpenOffice Extensions', I nearly wet myself. I didn't even know OO had extensions and I was excited because, well, extensions was the primary factor that allowed me to switch from Opera to Firefox years ago, and I thought OO extensions might be able to help switch my from what I'm currently using. If there's anything Firefox has taught me, it is that, with enough extensions, your software can be better than anything.
Of course, then I actually looked at the list of extensions. I don't know how I'll do it, but I think I'll try to find a way to live without the ability to embed the Creative Commons License in my documents. - InsaneMachine, on 10/22/2008, -1/+6check your link before you post it.
- ssamara, on 10/22/2008, -0/+4I like openoffice. Its a nice replacement for MS Office. This article is quite helpful
esp for newbies like me.... - cezx, on 10/22/2008, -0/+4thanks for that! Appreciated.
- StigNordas, on 10/20/2008, -14/+18Can't wait to destroy M$ Orfice once and for all from my HD.
- seenxu, on 10/22/2008, -0/+3dugg for great article, everyone shall have a look of it.
- whitehatlurker, on 10/22/2008, -1/+4"Do you use extensions for your OpenOffice? If so, which one is your favorite?"
Canadian English spelling dictionary ... - ubuwalker31, on 10/22/2008, -0/+3Feh, I was less than underwhelmed after I installed pdf importer and language tool extensions.
The pdf importer couldn't display an IRS 1040 form properly. I mean, come on, this is one of the most standard government documents that every American has to deal with. Not being able to import a 1040 will limit adoption of OpenOffice even further. Yeah, I know its labeled beta, but this crapware acts like alpha. I mean, come on, I can't even edit the fields so that I can fill out the form.
The "language tool" grammar checker was similarly under powered. It couldn't flag "there sandals" as an error...it should be "their sandals". Oh well. - antdude, on 10/22/2008, -0/+3Mirror: http://www.makeuseof.com.nyud.net/tag/9-must-have- ...
- lemur, on 10/22/2008, -0/+3Just out of curiosity, what did you think otherwise...?
By the way, have you looked at Abiword? http://www.abisource.com/ It's a standalone word processor (not an office suite), but it has won the hearts and minds of many a user, including myself. :-)
I had a buddy in high school whom I showed Abiword to one day, and henceforth he insisted on installing it on every system he used. He would save his documents in Abiword's native format and then it seemed to him that MS Office sucked because it couldn't open his beloved Abiword files. Aren't format wars fun? :D
Abiword did (and still does) have a comparatively tiny footprint on any system. It's so nimble you don't feel fussed carrying a copy of it around on your flash drive whenever you need a fully featured WP. - KiraDnote, on 10/22/2008, -0/+3Maybe you have to install the Java version of OpenOffice. There are 2 versions you know?
- inactive, on 10/22/2008, -1/+3Is there an extension that replaces the intuitive menu and tool bar with a ribbon?
- skribeForti, on 10/22/2008, -2/+4I really surprised there still appears to be no way to include ordinals in a date field in OOo after 3 major versions. The feature request dates from 2004. Does anyone know of an extension that does that?
- lemur, on 10/22/2008, -3/+5That is awesome... I didn't even know OpenOffice had plugins! I hardly even use any of the built-in features... ._.
- lemur, on 10/22/2008, -0/+2Hehe thanks
- KiraDnote, on 10/22/2008, -0/+2But Abiworld is such a small world.
- LastDitchHero, on 10/22/2008, -0/+2Sun Report Builder should be in there,it is as exciting as you can make database reporting.
- ubuwalker31, on 10/22/2008, -1/+3Sun actually offers an ODF plugin for Microsoft Office: http://www.sun.com/software/star/odf_plugin/index. ...
- scaper, on 10/22/2008, -1/+2I think it's bundled with the corporate compatibility extension.
- mithrasinvictus, on 10/22/2008, -0/+1https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/2570
- inactive, on 10/22/2008, -1/+2Damn those greedy bastards at Micro$haft!
STILL WAITING for BOB upgrade to XP!!!
/s - MrJagil, on 10/22/2008, -1/+2Micro $oft Orifice
Nah, i'm stretching it... - bud0011, on 10/22/2008, -1/+2I'm on my way. this computer doesn't have word, excel, ppt, etc...
unfortunately, it does have vista, visual studios - svivian, on 10/23/2008, -0/+1Can someone explain to me the point of #7 (data form)? How is having a pop up window with textboxes any better than typing straight into the spreadsheet? Otherwise, good list.
- LostSanctuary, on 08/04/2009, -0/+1that's what i was looking for
- svivian, on 10/23/2008, -0/+1You forgot to include the ***** jpegs. ascii-fied pictures would have sufficed; about equal quality, anyway
- tech42er, on 10/23/2008, -0/+1Two versions of Java? So much for idealism.
- RobotBuddha, on 10/22/2008, -4/+3I've always had trouble with extensions in openoffice. I decided to give the google doc one a try right now, complained that I I didn't configure java. So I find the java option, do a whereis then follow a couple symlinks to find where java's actually located on my system, and point that out to openoffice. Which promptly refuses to recognize it. Apparently a known bug, but I don't care enough at this point to want to keep fighting it.
- kangy3213, on 10/22/2008, -9/+6staroffice rules
- 11oops, on 10/22/2008, -8/+5Best OOffice plugin.... MS Office 2007.
- scaper, on 10/22/2008, -12/+7Which one of these plugins links to Microsoft Office, I personally enjoy getting stuff done.
*ducks* - chaos7, on 10/21/2008, -8/+3google cache:
http://74.125.95.104/search?strip=1&q=cache:http%3 ... - imbob, on 10/22/2008, -7/+1i thought it was ventrilo
- Phoenixheart, on 10/21/2008, -10/+2Buried for an empty "Index of /tag/9-must-have-openoffice-extensions".
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