Customer Reviews

StarOffice for LINUX for Dummies

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StarOffice is a very powerful program that has received little attention. The program is a free download from Sun, but the online help isn't very helpful. StarLinux for Dummies (it works just a well for Windows--the version I am using) is very clear. It answered every question I had with a minimum of searching and fuss. Once you get familiar with StarOffice you might want a book that digs deeper, but this book is a great place to start and most users won't need to know any more than it covers to work comfortably and productively with StarOffice. I recommend that you take a look at StarOffice (particularly if you've had enough of Microsoft). Anyone who uses Microsoft Office will find StarOffice a worthy competitor. Michael Meadhra's book will make the transition painless.

The Dummies routine is becomimg a bit tiresome. This book offers very little to the user, besides simple processes that most people could figure out on their own.

I once advocated the benefits of the "Dummy" line of books - but more and more - it appears to me that the authors and editors are just Cntrl-X/Cntrl-V(cut and pasting) parts of other books into the newer ones.

If you want to get your feet wet and not expose yourself to a wonderful program - buy this book.

But if you want to see the power of Star Office - look elsewhere and be brave and pick up a non-dummy/idiot book.

I'm Sys Admin in a Medium-sized firm where people have average IT skills, and this is perfect for people who just want to learn how to perform the basic day-to-day tasks on Star Office. It explains things quite clearly and simply and it's easy to find the answers to quick questions. However, it's not particularly detailed, so you will need something more substantial as an overall reference.