How I started using free Office programs - Open Office and Google Docs.

The Story,
I started using Open Office since 2008. I started a business then and had limited capital. I tried free Open Office instead of Microsoft Office which will cost me.

I had downloaded Open Office and tried it. I fell in love with it and use it since then. Even I have MS Office 2010 on my laptop, I still use Open Office as my main Office Editor.

Why I like Open Office :-

1. Simple interface and easy to use
2. Functions are easy to access
3. Good menu layout
4. Able to open almost all MS Office files
5. Spreadsheet meet all my basic need without complicated menus.
6. Fast 

Now I also use Google Doc. It is mainly for shared document among my team members. With Google doc, my team members can update reports, notes and listing in real time and I can read it where ever I am.

No need to call, email and ask for the documents. I can access them on my Samsung Galaxy Note, My Dell Laptop and also from anyone's PC.

It's so flexible and convenient. I have the following reports in my hand :-

•     ‎IT Daily Report
•     ‎GPS Report 
•     ‎Monthly Stock Movement
•     ‎CCTV Site Record 
•     ‎Computer Settings 
•     ‎Software License Key

I have to tell you that Microsoft Office is still the best Office software out there. But if you are a general user and looking for an alternative, please look into Open Office and Google Docs first.

You can download Open Office here.

You can start using Google Docs here.

Here's an interesting article by CNET, How I learned to say, 'Hi, Google Docs; bye, MS Word

Additional notes:

• Open Office isn't a cloud service. The software are installed into you PC.
• Open Office sometime open Microsoft Office Documents a little different. Especially Office 2007 and 2010 templates. You may need to convert those files to 2003 version first.
• Power Point 2007/2010 animation aren't all supported. 
• Google Docs are Cloud based service. You do not have the software in your PC, you need internet access to use it and access your files.
• You need at least broadband speed to use Google Docs properly.
•  With cloud based Google Docs, you will not lost any files even hour Pc hard disk is damaged or even stolen. All files are stored in the Internet inside Google's Server.