When it comes Microsoft office there is not a whole lot of competition that can beat the programs unique features, but those nice features come with a hefty price tag. Now while the office 360 program is meant to be cheaper some people prefer a free desktop version however such an item does not exist. So today I will give you 2 recommendations that I feel are the best office replacement software. Please remember that they are in order of best to worst and while these are free they might not have all of the features of Microsoft office.
1. Libre Office
Libre office is probably the most recognized free office replacement software that there is, but that is not what makes it the best. The program is better than its competitors because they allow third party extensions to be created. Now this program may be awkward to start with however once you get the program you will realize that it is very similar to Microsoft Office. Now you will need to remember that since this program is not Microsoft Office the default saving for mat is Open Document File or what ever application that you are using. These applications are in greater variety then you would think because the traditional office suite. Word, PowerPoint, Excel this is what we use. Microsoft said that is not enough so we get more items such as Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Publisher, One Note, Outlook, Access. Now Libre Office offers some different programs that you will appreciate. Libre Office includes: Text (Word), Spreadsheet (Excel), Presentation (PowerPoint), Drawing (Think of it as paint), Database (Access), Formula (Math, calculator equations). Then you can go to their main website and download add-ons for these programs which can make them easier and more effective. For instance right now I have Multi-Save, Alternative Searching, Additional Grammar and Spell Check.
2. Kingsoft Free Office Suite
This program comes from Kingsoft and offers strictly the basics. This program gives you Writer (Word) Presentation (PowerPoint), and Spreadsheet (Excel) while it does not come with a ton of added features this program is very solid and well funded. However compared to Libre Office, and Microsoft Office this program falls a little short. This program does not offer enough features paid or free version compared to their competitors, and they don't allow third part development like Libre office. Now while it does lack those features the program is actually a very powerful text editor and looks like a copy and pasted version of Microsoft Office. While that was an exaggeration this program does look a lot like Microsoft Office. So you should really only consider the program if you are very familiar with Microsoft Word.
Summary
When it comes to finding a desktop suite that offers the same features off Microsoft Office and is free there are few alternatives. However the option really is simple when it comes down to it and that is to use Libre Office. But everyone has their own opinion so tell me your thoughts about these programs below.
Libre Office: http://www.libreoffice.org/
Kingsoft: http://www.kingsoftstore.com/
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