Dumping Microsoft Office for an Alternative Suite

Office Alternatives: Windows

Sometimes, it's not one big issue that causes a relationship to go sour but, rather, an accumulation of small irritations. I left Microsoft Office 2003 two years ago because of a few interface inconsistencies and a gnawing sense that there had to be something better. Plus, there was the Microsoft issue: I felt like I was dating Meadow Soprano. Office was beautiful and powerful, but I was uncomfortable with the family.

Fortunately, there are a lot of fish in the sea, most of which are available in downloadable trial versions. At the time, I switched to OpenOffice, which I initially liked quite a bit. It did virtually everything Microsoft Office did, plus it came with a database program, something that would have jacked up the price of Office even more. The OpenOffice family is a delight--a dedicated group of open-source developers. And, of course, the price was right: free.

But soon, a few things began to rankle--like the way it always started in WYSIWYG mode, even when loading a file I had most recently edited in Web mode. And the word processor's lack of a grammar checker. And ... well, there were a few more small things like that. I was ready to move on again. So once again, I went out looking for a new office suite.

As I began my search, I inventoried my requirements. At a minimum, I need a word processor, a spreadsheet and presentation program, all of which must be reliably compatible with Microsoft Office formats. An Outlook-like program would be a big plus. The whole package has to be less expensive than Office 2007, but it also must have the feel of being developed by professionals rather than just being a side project by some eager young programmers.

I tried out six contenders: E-Press ONE Special Edition, Celframe Office Pro, ThinkFree Office, GoBeProductive, Corel WordPerfect Office and OpenOffice. Did any of them have the right chemistry? Read on and see.

Open to Anything

I started with suites that I either had not previously heard of or had not tried. Each had its attractions.

My favorite in this group was ONE Special Edition from E-Press for $70. Its dizzying array of applications includes an Outlook workalike, a drawing program and utilities such a PDF editor and a backup application. Interestingly, it includes scaled-down "junior" versions of each of its major applications for faster, easier use with basic documents.

I consider myself something of a power user, but I appreciated these light versions because I typically don't need all the features of the full app. These junior versions load faster and, because they have fewer options, are simpler to use. I also liked the package's Omni Mail program, which is almost a dead ringer for Outlook. In fact, this whole suite looks so much like Office 2003 that, well, I found myself still craving something different.

Celframe Office Pro

Also impressive is Celframe Office Pro from Celframe Information Technologies for $129. Some will find this package attractive because, uniquely, it includes an Adobe-compatible Photoshop-like image-editing program and an image organizer. While I don't need those programs, I was impressed at how similar the interface and feature set of the core programs are compared to Office 2003, right down to the grammar checker in the word processor and a Microsoft Access-like database program. Office Pro doesn't, however, come with an Outlook workalike, which I missed.

ThinkFree Office

ThinkFree Office ($49) includes only word processing, spreadsheet and presentation modules, but it is notable because it supports Windows, Mac and Linux. Another version of the program works with ThinkFree's online office suite, a capability I didn't feel I needed. In the end, ThinkFree Office as a stand-alone product offered too little--it didn't, for instance, have the grammar checker I desired or an Outlook-like program.

GoBeProductive 3.0.4 ($50) is pleasant but lightweight. It reminded me of "light" office suites like Microsoft Works--pared down, easy to use but not particularly full-featured. However, I need the full array of features. I don't use many obscure features often--which is why I can appreciate the ONE suite's junior versions--but since I spend so much time using my office suite applications, I do need even the most arcane features from time to time.

Moving On

Each of this first batch of suites I looked at had its attractions, whether it be low price, simplicity or lots of modules. But none had the right mix of features that fit my particular needs.

A confession: As part of this investigation, I did give Office 2007 a try. And you know what? It's good. Really good. Microsoft got some guff for dramatically changing the interface of the core programs in the suite, regrouping items that had been in menus into a ribbon at the top of the screen of each application. While some reviews complained about this change, I found it intuitive, and it speeded my access to features that once were buried in the menu system. But, then, there was the price. I needed Office Professional to get all the modules I wanted. The price: $499. That's too much. Way too much.

So I decided to keep looking. In particular, I wanted to revisit a couple of suites I already was familiar with.