General
Books on OpenOffice.org
The OOoAuthors team has produced Getting Started with OpenOffice.org 3, published in October 2008. ISBN 978-1921320057.
You can get the full book, or individual chapters, in free PDFs (designed for onscreen reading, not for printing) from the OOo Documentation Project or from OOoAuthors. You can also buy a printed copy.
For other books on OOo, see the sidebar or this page.
Migrating to OpenOffice.org
Here is a good article by Solveig Haugland:
Transitioning an Organization to OpenOffice.org: My Own Tips and Yours (04 Apr 07)
Tips and tricks for setting up and using OpenOffice.org
Here is an article by Bruce Byfield:
Customizing general OpenOffice.org settings (21 Jan 07)
Here are some of my tips for setting up and using OpenOffice.org.
- Setting up OOo to suit the way I work
- My list of features I turn off or on when I install OOo on a new machine,
and other setup tricks. - How to create an AutoCorrect replacement table
- Does your preferred version of English (or any other language) not have an AutoCorrect replacement table? Here’s how to create one.
Extensions to OOo
Extensions are add-ons that add new features and extend OOo’s functionality (similar to Firefox extensions). The official extension repository is here.
Some articles about extensions:
- Must-have OpenOffice.org extensions by Dmitri Popov (11 May 07): Annotation Tool, SVG Import Filter, Tabbed Windows, and others.
- Creating self-running presentations with IndeView, Dmitri Popov (08 May 07)
Macros
Bruce Byfield’s 2004 article Macros and Add-ons has been revised since its original posting.
Dmaths
Dmaths is an add-on to OpenOffice.org. It extends the formula (equation) editor component of OOo and provides a new toolbar. It is free (under the GPL licence) and available for Linux, Windows and MacOSX. English, French or German versions are available.
From the Dmaths website: “You can trace curves (including parametrics and polars), do statistics, insert diagrams. Dmaths contains many useful autotexts for the quick insertion of mathematical expressions, and a large gallery of geometric objects.”
I have not tried this, but it looks quite interesting. It’s been around for awhile. Since December 2008, it has been available through the extensions repository at OOo.
Labels in OpenDocument format for OOo Writer
WorldLabel.com, a maker of labels for envelopes, jewel cases, and other purposes, has released a package of more than 50 label templates in OpenDocument format for OpenOffice.org Writer. The labels represent most of WorldLabel.com’s standard prepress stock. Click here for labels on A4 size paper as used in Europe and Asia. Templates for OOo Draw are also available. The complete collection of all labels can be downloaded from http://sourceforge.net/projects/ooolabels. License: General Public License
Book on OpenDocument
OpenDocument is the native format for OpenOffice.org 2.0 files. OASIS OpenDocument Essentials by J. David Eisenberg introduces you to the XML that serves as an internal format for office applications. This book is also available in HTML and PDF from the author’s website.
Page last updated 25 January 2009.
