Amazon.com Review
StarOffice ranks among the top productivity suites for Linux as the open-source operating system attracts greater numbers of desktop users.
StarOffice for Linux Bible gives the IDG Books' Bible treatment to this all-purpose collection of office software. This book assumes that the reader knows little about its subject initially; it proceeds to provide the background knowledge and practical skills needed to navigate and efficiently utilize StarOffice.
Numerous procedural examples drive most of the learning. It's easy to locate the sections by subject or task, and odds are good that a few page-flips later you'll be looking at an explicit statement of the steps you need to follow. Screen shots accompany the written procedures, so it's usually clear what you should see as you progress toward your goal.
The authors also carefully explain potentially confusing concepts, such as absolute versus relative addresses in StarCalc spreadsheets. Sometimes they assume too much previous knowledge (in a section on Web publishing, they casually refer to uploading files with an FTP program without explaining what that means), but generally they explain everything. If Linux is your OS and StarOffice keeps you productive, this book will teach you a lot. --David Wall
Topics covered: StarOffice 5.1 for Linux from an everyday user's point of view. All the applications--StarWriter, StarCalc, StarBase, StarImpress, StarDraw, and the others--are documented individually and as members of the StarOffice suite. Readers learn how to enter and manipulate text, perform mail merges, do business calculations, and interact with others over the Internet.
From the Publisher
Inside you'll find complete coverage of StarOffice for Linux
* Get a complete overview of StarOffice -- installation, conventions, quirks, and powerful features
* Customize StarDesktop with user-defined menu bars, dialog boxes, and key bindings
* Compose documents, use columns and tables, merge, index, and create HTML forms with StarWriter
* Maximize StarCalc's spreadsheet features to develop worksheets, build charts and tables, and integrate your worksheets with StarBase databases
* Set up StarMail to work with your Internet Service Provider
* Publish on the Web with the built-in WYSIWYG HTML Editor
* Manage your time and priorities with StarSchedule
* See how StarOffice performs on Windows, Mac, and Solaris platforms
Valuable CD-ROM included!
Examples from the book, dozens of Linux utilities including the GIMP image editor, Netscape Communicator 4.5 for Linux, a searchable PDF version of the entire book, and more!