Internet Newsletter for Lawyers |
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OpenOffice.org, or OOo as it is called by its friends, can be downloaded from
www.OpenOffice.org. It is an open source program prepared and developed by a collaborative
team of programmers and developers. Why should they do it for free? Well, lawyers should not
be too cynical about open source software; we have a proud history of "pro bono" work
ourselves and open source is, in many ways, the pro bono of the computer industry.
The best known open source program is probably the Linux operating system which is rapidly
moving from its Geek status to becoming a viable alternative to Windows. However for most
people for whom computers are a tool and not a hobby, moving to Linux would be a daunting
prospect and this has caused problems for many excellent open source programs, such as
KOffice, www.koffice.org, which are only available on Linux. Fortunately, however, OOo is a
cross platform open source program and can run under Windows as well as Mac and Linux.
The Open Office project was started in 2000 when Sun Microsystems released the source code
of their Star Office program under an open source licence. Version 1 of Ooo was available in
2000 and went through several upgrades but even its most fervent fans had to admit that,
though it was fine for most home computer work, it was possibly not quite good enough for
business use and had a slightly "clunky" feel to it. In addition, there was no Open Office
database available to use with it. In October 2005 however version 2 was released and after
ironing out the inevitable bugs version 2.03 has emerged as a comprehensive and slick office
suite which is fully able to hold its own in any competition with Microsoft Office or any other
commercial office suite.
I have not used Draw or Math but I have used all the others and I have found them every bit as
good as their Microsoft Office equivalents. For all I know there may be some esoteric function
in Office which is missing but frankly does anyone ever use all the functions in any computer
program? Certainly I have never found any function that I use in Office which does not exist in
OOo.
Indeed, there is one feature in OOo which Office does not have, namely an "Export to PDF'
function. This allows you to save a Writer, Calc or Impress document in PDF format where it
can then be read by anyone with the (free) Acrobat reader. This is an extremely useful function
and avoids the expense of having to purchase Adobe Acrobat itself. I have used it create a PDF
version of my recent textbook "Religious Discrimination and Hatred Law" which I then put on
CD for some friends and colleagues and I have also used it for creating PDF Advices and
Pleadings for emailing to Courts, instructing Solicitors, opponents and so on.
Base is a particularly useful addition to the OOo suite and is a powerful database tool which has
a lot off scope for developing useful legal databases. I have used it to create a database for
Precedents of advices and case law. I am not a particularly skilled programmer so I know I have
only scratched the surface of Base but because it is open source it can be modified and
programmed in great detail and without infringing any Microsoft patents. In my view, if a group
of lawyers, or the Law Society or Bar Council, were to put their heads together and work on
Open Office they could create an integrated Database and Word Processor suite precisely
adapted for British lawyers and freely available for the profession. For hard pressed legal aid
lawyers in particular this could be a very practical service for the professional bodies to organise
and support.
Besides being available in English and other major languages, Welsh and Gaelic versions are
available at cy.openoffice.org, and ga.openoffice.org respectively.
If you have Microsoft Office on your computer and are happy with it I would not recommend
changing it just for fun, but if you are thinking of buying Office for a new computer, then do try
Open Office first. You will not be disappointed and the money you save can be better spent
elsewhere.
Neil Addison is a barrister at New Bailey Chambers, www.newbailey.com working in civil,
criminal and employment law. He maintains two important web sites: www.religionlaw.co.uk and
www.harassmentlaw.co.uk.
Email: email@neiladdison.com.
Back to Contents.
Open Office - An alternative to Microsoft Office
Microsoft is one of the richest companies in the world but this is not just because of the
dominance of the Windows operating system. Much of their wealth comes from sales of
Microsoft Office which accounts for 30% to 40% of their profits. Probably every lawyer and law
firm is has a copy of "Office" on their computer. However Office is not cheap and a full new
installation can cost over £300 though upgrades are much cheaper. In addition the charge is
per computer so it is a breach of licence to use the same program on more than one machine.
For many smaller firms and chambers the cost of installing Microsoft Office on each of their
computers is considerable but there is an alternative called Open Office which I feel lawyers
should consider not just because it is free but also on its own merits.
by Neil Addison
Components of the software
Open Office consists of the following components:
Other resources available
Besides the main site, there are a number of other useful sites providing templates, advice,
manuals in PDF etc.: