OpenOffice Tips and Tricks, Part 1 Tips for Replicating MS Office Functionality & Features Eric Geier
Using the free and open-source productivity suite OpenOffice.org can be a godsend for those that don't want to hand over more money to Microsoft. OpenOffice.org's word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, and database applications almost mirror that of the MS Office suite.
However as you may have already noticed, there are some differences between the two. If you have been a regular MS Office user, the lack of some features and minor differences in OpenOffice.org and converting between the two formats can become quite bothersome. Just don't give up yet.
This tutorial series will take you through some tips and tricks on migrating from MS Office to OpenOffice.org. You'll see how to replicate some of the functionality and features that are lacking in the base OpenOffice.org download, and soon you'll be more comfortable using OpenOffice.org for just about all your desktop publishing needs.
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Adding More Templates
After browsing through OpenOffice.org's templates, you'll see there are basically none. Its few presentation templates for Impress and Writer's label and business card wizards don't come close to all the templates offered in MS Office for letters, calendars, resumes, a variety of presentations, spreadsheet solutions, and other projects.
However, you don't have to start your OpenOffice.org documents from scratch; you can download more templates.
Professional Template Pack I and II by Sun Microsystems are just two of the many add-ons or extensions you can download from the OpenOffice.org Extensions site. You may also want to use the Calendar Template extension to create calendars.
After you download the files, open OpenOffice.org and click Tools > Extension Manager. Then to install an extension, click the Add button, select the file, and click Open. Now your Templates and Documents window will be populated with an assortment of templates. To open this window, click File > New > Templates and Documents.
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Adding Clip Art
In addition to templates, OpenOffice.org straight out of the box lacks clip art and stock photos. However, you still have a few ways to get media so you can spruce up your documents and presentations.
For a clip art catalog that integrates right into OpenOffice.org, you can download the OxygenOffice Extras - Gallery extension. It includes a variety of clip art images — from Animals to Weather and many in between. You can install it using the Extension Manager, just like discussed earlier when adding more templates. Then to access the media, click the Gallery button on the OpenOffice.org toolbar as shown in Figure 1.
Quick Tip: If you download extensions as .zip files, you probably need to rename the file to change the file extension to .oxt.
You can use the clker.com plug-in to easily import royalty-free images from their online catalog. The extension adds a button on the OpenOffice.org toolbar.
When you press the button, a dialog box comes up where you logon to your clker.com account. Then you're able to browse through the contents of your saved clker basket, press the copy button, and paste the selected image into your document.
Don't forget about Microsoft's clip art and media. If you have a valid license to a Microsoft Office suite or program or a product that includes Microsoft Clip Gallery or Organizer, you can use Microsoft's media that's loaded on your PC or download content from the Office Online site.
When you have the Microsoft Clip Organizer open, select the media you want to use with OpenOffice.org, click the down arrow on the left of the thumbnail, and select Copy. Then paste the media in an OpenOffice.org application.
