You’d like to try a free and functional alternative to Microsoft Office and, doing some research on the Net, you came across the existence of OpenOffice. OpenOffice is a famous productivity suite, totally free and open source in nature, available for Windows, macOS and Linux, completely in Italian and including applications similar to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher and Access.
What do you say? Are you dying to try it out but you’re not very clear on how to proceed, as you’re not very PC savvy yet, and would like a little help on what to do? Sure, count me in! Spend a few minutes of your precious time reading this tutorial and you’ll find out exactly what steps you need to take to install OpenOffice on your PC (or even on your smartphone or tablet). I already anticipate that, contrary to what you might think, it’s not complicated at all.
Well? What are you still doing standing there? Sit down comfortably, take a few moments for yourself and follow the instructions I have provided. I am sure that, in the end, you will be happy and satisfied with what you have learned and, of course, with having tried this famous program. Want to bet?
Minimum Requirements
To be able to install OpenOffice on your computer, you must first make sure that the computer you are using meets the minimum requirements for the correct execution of the office suite (OpenOffice 3.0 or later): here they are in detail.
Windows
Operating system: Windows 2000 (Service Pack 2 or higher), Windows XP, Windows 2003, Windows Vista, Windows 7
RAM: 256 MB (512 MB RAM recommended)
Free disk space: at least 650 MB for a normal installation (including JRE) via download. After installation and deletion of temporary installation files, OpenOffice will take up about 440 MB.
Resolution: 1024 x 768 dots or higher with at least 256 colors
macOS
Operating system: macOS 10.4 (Tiger) or higher
Processor: Intel
RAM: 12 MB
Free disk space: 400 MB
Resolution: 1024 x 768 dots or higher with at least 16M colors
Linux
Operating system: Linux kernel 2.4 or higher, glibc2 version 2.3.2 or higher
RAM: 256 MB (512 MB recommended)
Free disk space: 400 MB free disk space
Resolution: X-Server with 1024 x 768 dots or higher resolution with at least 256 colors
As far as old OpenOffice versions are concerned (OpenOffice 2.0 or previous versions), the minimum requirements for the correct functioning of the program are those that you can find on the informative web page of the project site.
How to install OpenOffice on Windows
Now let’s get to the heart of the matter and find out, in detail, how to install OpenOffice on your computer. If you’re using Windows, the first thing you have to do is connect to the program’s website, click on the download link in the middle and, on the new page that opens, click on the Download full version button (recommended).
Once the download process is complete, open the Apache_OpenOffice_xx_Win_x86_install_en.exe file and, in the window that appears on your desktop, click on the Yes, Next and Install buttons, then wait until all the files necessary for the installation of OpenOffice are extracted and complete the setup by clicking on the Next button (three times in a row), again on the Install button and then on the Finish button.
Once the installation is complete, there’s nothing left for you to do but open OpenOffice by calling the suite using the shortcut that has been added to the desktop or from the Start menu. Skip the welcome screen by clicking on the Next button, fill out the form with your personal data (only if you want your name to be included in the properties of the documents you create) and click on the Finish button.
Once you see the main OpenOffice window on your screen, go ahead and choose the type of file you want to create to open the application: Writer (is the application dedicated to word processing and allows you to open, edit and create DOC/DOCX, RTF and ODF documents), Calc (is the application for spreadsheets and supports all Microsoft Office file formats as well as open document ones), Impress (is the application thanks to which you can make presentations and supports all Office file formats), Base (is the application for database management), Draw (is the application to create printable content) or Math (is the application for mathematical equations).
If, on the other hand, you need to open an existing document, click the Open button, select the reference file on your computer and wait for the appropriate application to open.
How to install OpenOffice on macOS
Let’s now see how to install OpenOffice on macOS. To do this, the first essential step you have to take is to go to the program’s website, click on the download link and click on the Download full version button (recommended) on the new page that opens.
Once downloaded, open the Apache_OpenOffice_x.x.x_MacOS_x86-64_install_en package and move the OpenOffice icon to the Applications folder of macOS. Then, right-click on it and select Open from the contextual menu, in order to launch the program while circumventing the restrictions that Apple applies to applications from non-certified developers (which should be done only at first startup).
In the window that you now see appearing on the desktop, click on the Next button, fill in the form displayed with your personal data (if you want your name to be included in the properties of the created documents) and click on the Finish button.
Once this is done, you will finally find yourself in front of the main OpenOffice screen. From here you can choose the type of file to create to open the application of reference, practically the same that I have indicated in the step dedicated to the version of the software for Windows). If, however, you want to open an existing file, click on the Open button and select the document to view and/or edit on your Mac, then wait for the opening of the application.
How to install OpenOffice on Ubuntu
What about Ubuntu (one of the most popular Linux distros)? How do you install OpenOffice? I’ll explain it right now. Let’s start from a fundamental assumption: the operating system already includes LibreOffice, another free and open source office suite born from a “rib” of OpenOffice.
With this in mind, there is nothing to stop you from installing OpenOffice and keeping LibreOffice. However, if you prefer, you can remove the “standard” program and leave the field free for the Apache software. In both cases, the procedure must be carried out from the Terminal (i.e., from the command line), imparting specific programs.
To be precise, if you want to install OpenOffice in addition to LibreOffice, enter in the Terminal the command sudo rm /usr/bin/soffice and press the Enter key on your keyboard, so as to remove the symbolic link “/usr/bin/soffice” that could cause conflicts between the two suites.
If, however, you prefer to install OpenOffice instead of LibreOffice, enter in the Terminal the command sudo apt-get purge libreoffice* always followed by pressing the Enter key on the PC keyboard.
Now, to download OpenOffice go to the OpenOffice website, click on the download link and, on the new page that opens, check that in the dropdown menu for the choice of language in the center is selected the option Italian (if not, you do it yourself). Then click on the Download full installation button.
When the download is complete, extract the Apache_OpenOffice_x.x.x_Linux_x86-64_install-deb_en.tar.gz package from the Home folder, go to the DEBS folder and install the packages inside by double-clicking on it and pressing the Install button.
If you want, you can also install all packages simultaneously, by typing the command sudo dpkg -i *.deb in the Terminal and hitting the Enter key on the keyboard.
If you see error messages on the screen while doing this, take note of the name of the .deb package causing the problem and force install it by typing the command sudo dpkg -i -force-all package.deb in the Terminal and hitting the Enter key on the keyboard.
Once the installation is complete, you can finally start using OpenOffice by going to the Ubuntu search menu and selecting the program’s icon. From the window that will open, you can choose what types of documents to create and open, as I explained in the step dedicated to the version of the software for Windows. For more details, you can refer to the official Wiki of Ubuntu Italy.
How to install OpenOffice on Android
Unfortunately, OpenOffice is not available for smartphones and tablets. However, if you own an Android device, you can install AndrOpenOffice, a free application specifically for devices based on the mobile operating system of the “green robot” that takes all the features of the open source office suite object of this tutorial and brings them to mobile. Unfortunately, however, its user interface is not really optimized for touch.
Anyway, if you want to try the app, do this: first visit, directly from your mobile device, the relevant section of the Play Store and tap on the Install button. If necessary, confirm the download by clicking on the Accept button. Once the download and installation process is complete, launch the app by tapping on the Open button that appears on the display, or press the relevant icon that has been added to the home screen and the drawer (the screen where the icons of all the apps are grouped).
At this point, tap on Allow to allow the application to access the multimedia content on your device and choose the type of document you want to create by clicking on the appropriate items on the screen: Text Document, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Drawing or Formula. The screen that will be shown later will contain the application’s editor. If you are asked to proceed with the download of the Italian language pack, please accept it.
If, on the other hand, you need to open an existing document, select the Open item at the bottom and choose the location on your device or in the cloud from which to retrieve it.
Note that the app can eventually be upgraded with the Professional Pack which, however, is for a fee (it costs €4.49) and adds extra features, such as ad removal.
Alternatives to OpenOffice for computers
Have you finally managed to install OpenOffice on your computer but you’re not satisfied with the way it works, so you’d like to know if there are any alternatives (at no cost)? Then try out the other office suites that I have listed below. I sincerely hope you like them.
LibreOffice (Windows/macOS/Linux) – I started telling you about it in the step dedicated to how to install OpenOffice on Ubuntu: it’s another free and open source office suite for Windows, macOS and Linux that shares part of the source code of OpenOffice (but whose development is much more active) and that allows you to perform all the operations that can be done with the program in question without the slightest problem. For more details, you can refer to my guide on how to download LibreOffice.
FreeOffice (Windows/MacOS/Linux) – free solution, both for private and commercial use, in Italian language and with a well-maintained user interface thanks to which it is possible to perform practically the same operations as with OpenOffice.
WPS Office (Windows/Linux) – another very popular office suite that stands as a viable alternative to OpenOffice and, of course, Microsoft Office. It has all the credentials to earn the title of must-have software minus one: it lacks the Italian language, both for the interface and for spell checking.
Alternatives to OpenOffice for smartphones and tablets
As anticipated in the step where I told you about AndrOpen Office, OpenOffice, unfortunately, is not available for mobile devices. Apart from the solution already mentioned, there are several alternative applications, both for Android and iOS, that can be successfully used on the go for the same purpose, including Microsoft Office which, in this case, is free (with some limitations). If you’re interested, here are the ones that I think are the best in the category.
Microsoft Office (Android/iOS/Windows 10 Mobile) – the Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps are available at no cost to all devices 10.1″ or smaller. For more information, refer to my tutorial on how to download Office for free.
Polaris Office (Android/iOS) – renowned mobile productivity suite that allows you to view, edit and create text documents, presentations and spreadsheets. Basically it’s free, but through in-app purchases (starting at 50 cents on Android and €3.99 on iOS) you can unlock additional features, such as the ability to sync documents to the cloud.
WPS Office (Android/iOS) – free productivity suite that lets you view Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets and PDFs almost always respecting their original formatting. It is also available in a paid variant (has a base cost of 74 cents on Android and 3.99 euros/month on iOS) that removes advertisements and allows you to sign PDFs.