PC World: Suite Freedom With StarOffice

"Why spend $400 for an office suite when you can get virtually the same applications, and more, for free? Sun's recently updated StarOffice, version 5.2, is a suite that you can get for nothing if you take advantage of the download Sun offers. (You can also buy it on CD-ROM with a printed user guide for $40.) However, the free availability doesn't mean that StarOffice lacks power or applications. In fact, StarOffice is an impressive suite of programs that rivals Microsoft's Office and works with Windows 95/98/NT/2000, Linux, and Solaris. (A Mac version is due later this year.) The suite includes a word processor, a spreadsheet application, presentation software, a database, a Web browser, an e-mail client, a scheduler, and tools to help you sync Palm-based personal digital assistants."

"We tried out the Linux and Windows versions, and in each case we were impressed."

"When you install the suite, you must choose from three installations: Standard, which installs 246MB of software; Custom, which lets you select the components you want; and Minimum, which requires 189MB of disk space. We chose Standard; with each installation, getting the suite up and running took less than 10 minutes."

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• CNET News.com: Sun finds new backers for StarOffice(Aug 10, 2000)
• LinuxPlanet: Editor's Note: Brilliant Disguise: Sun to Release StarOffice under GPL(Aug 07, 2000)
• Penguinista.org: Open source Star Office: Ruminations of its signifigance(Aug 01, 2000)
• Forbes: Sun Readies To Take On Microsoft [w/StarOffice](Jul 17, 2000)
• PC World: Sun Updates its Office Challenger [StarOffice 5.2](Jun 20, 2000)
• LinuxPlanet: Word to the Wise... StarOffice 5.2: The Next Generation from Sun(Apr 25, 2000)
• O'Reilly Network: Living Linux: Linux Word Processing Road Map(Apr 09, 2000)
• Sun.com: StarOffice 5.2 Software Preview(Apr 06, 2000)