OpenOffice vs LibreOffice What are the differences? A comparison

Compare Apache OpenOffice vs LibreOffice - Software

It’s out of the question for you to spend money on MS Office? 

For companies, the willingness to do so is usually different: companies often attach importance to maximum compatibility with the file formats of the original, as well as possibly to the Office 365 subscription model (now called Microsoft 365) with frequent new functions and a cloud connection. Private users, on the other hand, usually find this less important: "Perfect compatibility with the formats of MS Office, ribbon operator guidance? "I don’t spend any money on this," is surely the motivation of many users for a free alternative such as Openoffice or Libreoffice. With both programs you get a neat, although not perfect MS Office compatibility: Thus, the office packages largely master the handling of files that other users have created with the Microsoft Office package. In addition, the operation is pleasant given the free factor.

Openoffice or Libreoffice?

To anticipate it, neither with Open- nor with Libreoffice do you do something wrong. Both have competing components to MS Office’s own applications: Writer replaces Word, Calc Excel, Impress Powerpoint - so far, so well known. In contrast to MS Office, however, there is a functional gap in the e-mail program; Thunderbird jumps into the Outlook breach. Like Open/Libreoffice, the Mozilla program comes from the open source environment. To handle mail traffic, you can use a web mailer in the browser as an alternative - however, to manage mail accounts from multiple providers, a client program such as Thunderbird is preferable.

Openoffice and Libreoffice are full versions

Openoffice and Libreoffice can be installed as a full version without any money investment - in contrast to MS Office. You can use the latter at least to a limited extent free of charge: In addition to test versions (which can be conveniently downloaded via Windows ISO Downloader), limited web app versions exist in the functions, which require a Microsoft e-mail address. There are apps for iPod touch, iPhone and iPad that can be used free of charge depending on the device size. Meanwhile a rarity: On some older Windows 7 notebooks is a MS Office 2010 Starter installed by the device manufacturer; it includes Word and Excel, which omit some functions and show advertisements. If you have installed Windows (7) on such mobile computers and no longer have the manufacturer image, you will no longer be able to access MS Office Starter for free. Here the Openoffice and Libreoffice competition almost imposes itself.

Libreoffice better than Openoffice?

Libreoffice originated from Openoffice, so there are many similarities: The source code base is identical. The code is open source, which means visible - open source. On request, experts therefore look into it and thus gain an overview of the working method and possible security vulnerabilities. There is neither a registration nor a fee for the download, installation and use of the packages. Both applications are available for download as installable and portable variants; the portable offices do not require installation and run directly from the hard disk/SSD or external storage media. Libreoffice is not in Windows by default, but in many Linux distributions like Ubuntu.
Despite some similarities in Openoffice and Libreoffice: Differences are already apparent during the installation. Overall, Libreoffice is more modern, thanks to more frequent updates and a 64-bit version. Further details and some differences more you can read in the photo gallery above. Note: It is almost impossible for a comparison to check and compare every angle of the applications, as they are enormously complex. In this respect, you will only find a selection of users may use Libreoffice for reasons of sympathy. If you want to use products for logical rather than philosophical reasons, you should use the above photo gallery to explore the points in which the applications are differently designed - but a parallel installation is no problem. A digression into the past: Libreoffice was created after Oracle took over the company Sun and thus Openoffice in January 2010 - and many free developers were dissatisfied. These continued in September 2010 the project split: as so-called Fork Libreoffice.

The best free alternatives to Microsoft Office

Libreoffice versus Openoffice: Comparison - Conclusion

There is no right or wrong: In sum, Openoffice as Libreoffice is recommendable. Who has no special demands, does not necessarily notice their peculiarities and gets along well with both. If you want to rely on a proven application with a long history, Openoffice comes into question - the sometimes lower RAM consumption is advantageous when used on older Pcs. The software makes little things better than Libreoffice - despite the technical backlash: Libreoffice is available as a 32-bit and 64-bit version, while Openoffice is only available as a 32-bit version. The more frequent updates at Libreoffice not only include security vulnerabilities, they also used more modern designs and only Libreoffice offers Microsoft X formats (DOCX, XLSX, PPTX) for saving. The rarer updates speak against Openoffice, actually, due to security aspects. However, if you find frequent updates annoying, you might be more inclined to Openoffice. With less update effort, Openoffice users are "up to date" in version terms - but bear in mind that the security situation at Libreoffice is probably better due to more frequent updates.

Tip: Test install both Openoffice and Libreoffice - and keep or use the program more often, which runs more stable in the long run and subjectively has the edge in terms of surface and handling from your point of view. The article author uses Libreoffice and Openoffice. On his own devices he uses Libreoffice, on a PC both suites are used, the mother’s PC he has equipped with Openoffice - because Openoffice also does a good job, so both offices come into play in the household.