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Geek Culture / What is your favourite office solution?

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Daniel TGC
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:19
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For years, the only real office solution was Microsoft's, but in the last decade the office software landscape has changed dramatically epically with the introduction of cloud services. Google's docs has progressed to be an extremely worthy office suite with a lot of well developed features. This has become my personal favourites, and has almost completely replace my use of OpenOffice. It's become my favourite simply because my digital hardware has changed in nature, were as before I was exclusively using the PC. Devices like the iPod Touch, and my recently acquired iPad have introduced document reviewing and editing on those devices. Office software such as Quickoffice HD, and Quickoffice Connect, integrated directly with my existing Google Docs framework. I could use the same account and password, and have all my files in one place. On top of this, because I have two laptops a desktop and a netbook, synchronizing my files between these devices was a real pain.

So my question to the community, is what solutions have you come up with? Do you only own PC's and Mac's, so has dropbox and Microsoft office been enough for your syncing needs. Or do you just have Microsoft office and use nothing else? Do you favour OpenOffice as the free alternative or maybe the less popular but still useful Ability Office? Have you taken your documents on the road and used iOS's pages, or quickoffice? Are you still using a typewriter! (lol) what have you come up with in this brave new world of document authoring and spreadsheet processing?
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bitJericho
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:24
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I use libreoffice and fengoffice (community edition) for web-based docs.

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Quik
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:24
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I use OpenOffice as it works with windows and linux and is better than microsoft word /dunno about any other feutures rally , as in if they have anything like excel or the likes, but it can open all word files and a lot more too...
yah i go with openoffice, mostly since my teachers uses a vast variety of .doc files, some which newer or older versons of word cannot open >__<'

and for the record, I am a man.

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bitJericho
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:26
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Openoffice is out. Libreoffice is in, guys. Also, I've noticed in the last few years it's gotten a *lot* better at MS compatibility.

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Daniel TGC
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:30
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I've not tried Libreoffice, the screen shots look nicer! I'll install a copy
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BatVink
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:35
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Work - MS Office is standard
Home - MS Office cos I have an £8.99 deal for the full suite via work
Home 2nd place - OpenOffice, if it had a compatible Macro language it would be better
Home 3rd place - Google Docs for simple docs and spreadsheets. I don't use mobile devices for docs, anything can wait till I get to my laptop/desktop/work

Repositories
Google Docs for documents and spreadsheets
DropBox for everything else

Development
SVN for large projects, source only
DropBox for smaller projects and media

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tha_rami
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Posted: 29th May 2011 15:57
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Microsoft Office & Dropbox all the way for me.

Business guy and developer at [url]www.vlambeer.com[/url] - bringing back arcade since 1956.
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Daniel TGC
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:00
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I just installed and launched LibreOffice and thought for a second that I'd clicked OpenOffice writer by accident.

For my needs I don't see any difference worth mentioning here, from what I gather they have a shared code base and some of the key developers abandoned Oracal after they obtained it. But I don't think the Open Document Foundation has had enough time to really write any improvements worth mentioning.

Then again, I almost exclusively use Google Docs anyway
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crispex
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:03
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I'm a certified professional at Microsoft Office, so I have a copy of 2010, I use that. I haven't taken the time to learn LibreOffice yet.

I just now realized I've had a typo in my signature for the past 3 years.
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xplosys
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:09
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I use Office 2010 because we subscribe to the Microsoft Action Pack, but I'm always looking for free and low-cost alternatives for clients. LibreOffice looks pretty good. The installation and all does looks very OpenOffice like.

Thanks for the tip Mr. President.

Brian.

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Interplanetary Funk
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:18
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MS Office. It may be really expensive, but it blows the competition out of the water.


Visit my blog for any and all info on what I do coding wise.
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crispex
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:25
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Quote: "MS Office. It may be really expensive, but it blows the competition out of the water."


This. While OpenOffice and LibreOffice put up a really good fight, Microsoft still knows their stuff.

Hell, it's even more easy now than it was ages ago to make posters and informational documents, as 2010 sports a basic, yet good photo editor, built right in.

I just now realized I've had a typo in my signature for the past 3 years.
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bruce3371
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Posted: 29th May 2011 18:44
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OpenOffice/Libreoffice, just because I'm a cheap scate and like free stuff lol

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Jeku
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Posted: 29th May 2011 23:37
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We use Google Docs at work, and I'm very impressed with it. I love how easy it is to share a document with fellow coworkers and see them looking and editing it in real-time. The only thing I wish it had is a Visio clone.


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crispex
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Posted: 30th May 2011 00:23
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For some reason Google docs links don't work for me. They won't load.

I just now realized I've had a typo in my signature for the past 3 years.
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Thraxas
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Posted: 30th May 2011 00:42
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Quote: "MS Office. It may be really expensive, but it blows the competition out of the water."


Unless it's my imagination, I actually thought Office was becoming more affordable.

Your sig has been redacted by...
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Interplanetary Funk
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Posted: 30th May 2011 01:54
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Quote: "I actually thought Office was becoming more affordable"

It is becoming more affordable, but that doesn't mean it's not expensive.
For word/excel/powerpoint it's $150, if you want outlook, access and publisher it bounces up to $500


Visit my blog for any and all info on what I do coding wise.
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Grog Grueslayer
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Posted: 30th May 2011 14:12
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For documents I only like to use Microsoft Publisher (I can't stand Word) and Open Office for everything else. Publisher to me is better because it gives greater control of where you want everything (text boxes and graphics).

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xplosys
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Posted: 30th May 2011 15:27
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@Grog Grueslayer,

I find that in my business world, publisher is perhaps the least used of the Office programs. I'm curious, do you share those files with others (as pub files, not printed) and if so is it within your office or on a wider scale. Do you think many others use publisher as well? In business or in personal use?

Brian.

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Grog Grueslayer
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Posted: 30th May 2011 20:30 Edited at: 30th May 2011 20:35
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Yeah it's sad but true... publisher isn't embraced by the business world. I'm really the only "computer guy" where I work so I do all the forms. Most businesses don't really care how "pretty" a form looks but it's very important to me. My dad was in the printing business so I learned to be a perfectionist when it comes to printing anything... especially business paperwork.

When I started where I work (12 years ago now) I was shown a signup sheet that was a copy of a copy of a copy (probably 50 copies back). The lines on the form were slanted and broken... it horrified me. I immediately made one in Publisher to print a perfect copy every time we need it rather than continue the photocopy nightmare (attached is a screen shot of the Publisher form I made that we currently use... the dotted lines are the borders of each text box).

With Publisher I've done just about everything. Business forms, wedding invitations, funeral handouts, birthday cards, signs, and simple stuff like reports for homework... there's no limits.

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xplosys
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Posted: 30th May 2011 20:52
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So you use it mostly to print, and not to share/distribute as a pub file?

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Grog Grueslayer
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Posted: 30th May 2011 21:10
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Yeah. The only distribution I've done is to the other organizations that have wanted the same system I developed for our organization. They have all adapted to using Publisher (about 10 other non-profits). Once I finish my replacement program though they won't need Publisher to do the forms anymore.

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xplosys
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Posted: 30th May 2011 21:40
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If they're paper forms, it would be as simple as printing to PDF.

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Grog Grueslayer
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Posted: 31st May 2011 05:07
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True.

But a lot of the non-profits don't have computers so when they decide to get out of the stone age and get a computer and use my program I want to make it as idiot proof as possible.

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trav10
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Posted: 31st May 2011 17:48
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Personally, I use openoffice but sometimes, there are issues with opening documents saved through microsoft office. For work, the dominant software is still Microsoft word as i am working for a company who is (indirectly) under the brand. Cloud services have gotten my attention though I am not that up for the switch at the moment.
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Neuro Fuzzy
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Posted: 1st Jun 2011 04:28
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I barely ever need to edit documents with much formatting. I use libreOffice.

if I ever really need to make really nice looking documents, I'll probably pick up TeX. Every time I try to write up a math equation I regret not having learned TeX yet.

That said, MS office is definitely an incredible software suite. Excel looks like a really really powerful utility.

I'll have to check out google docs...


Tell me if there's a broken link to images in a thread I post, and I'll fix 'em.
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JoelJ
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Posted: 1st Jun 2011 05:30
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Pretty much 100% Google Docs for me. Every once in a while I get a two-column document from someone that I have to install LibreOffice for. Then I usually look at the document then uninstall for a while.

Your mother has been erased by a mod because it's larger than 600x120
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