First spotted by The Register, it’s an unexpected step for The Document Foundation (TDF) - the organization behind LibreOffice - which since its inception has made all versions of LibreOffice available at no charge. On the whole, although LibreOffice might not be a better alternative to Microsoft Office or Apple's iWork suite for some users, it might be the ideal solution for those who need a free office suite or have to work with odd formats or legacy documents.LibreOffice, the popular open source document processing suite, has begun charging users who download the software through the Mac App Store a one-time fee of $8.99.

Comprehensive collection of office toolsįurthermore, LibreOffice handles pretty well all documents with simple formatting, although you will encounter some compatibility issues with documents with more complex formatting and graphics. Writer is the equivalent to Microsoft Word and Apple's Pages, Calc is synonymous with Excel and Numbers while Impress is similar to Keynote and PowerPoint.

If you are familiar with Microsoft Office or Apple's iWork, you will be able to recognize most functions and features. The graphics module also helps you open vector graphics in Visio or CorelDraw formats.įrom LibreOffice's main window you will be able to choose between six different office management tools such as Text document, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Drawing Database and Formula. In addition, LibreOffice is capable of opening legacy documents create by old Windows and MS-DOS applications. Compatibility with a wide variety of document formats The support for the latest Microsoft Office formats in addition to its native ODT format along with the cost of the app makes LibreOffice the ideal solution for students and organizations that require the use of open formats and open-source apps. Installing LibreOffice is a very simple task, and the entire process requires a simple drag and drop action of the app from the mounted disk image to your Mac's Applications folder. Moreover, LibreOffice is a free and open-source application suite that offers a word processor (Writer), presentations and graphics applications (Impress and Draw), a spreadsheet app (Calc) along with database, mathematical (Math) and other useful tools. Intuitive word processor, spreadsheet and drawing app LibreOffice is the first app that should come to your mind if you want a free word processor, slideshow maker, spreadsheet, database manager and basic vector drawing creator.

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