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Special Edition Using StarOffice 6.0 (Paperback)

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4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

StarOffice is a full-featured, fully integrated suite of office productivity tools with a strong international following. Developed by Sun Microsystems, it is pitched as a cost-effective alternative to Microsoft Office. It's a favorite among the "Stop-throwing-your-hard-earned-dollars-at-Bill-Gates" crowd on both the Windows, Linux, and Solaris platforms. Special Edition Using StarOffice 6.0 addresses the core StarOffice suite, which comes with a word processor (StarOffice Writer), spreadsheet application (Calc), drawing and presentation program (Draw/Impress). In addition it addresses the formula editor (StarOffice Math) and a third-party database module that is installed with the software. The book is suited for beginning/intermediate to advanced office productivity tool users in general and users familiar with the Microsoft Office suite in particular who may want to make the switch to StarOffice. The book takes a task-oriented approach to show the users how to make the most of the StarOffice suite - from basic tasks to advanced features and uses. Also included in this edition, a section on "living and working in a Microsoft World" with insight on using StarOffice in an office/work environment with Microsoft Office users.

From the Back Cover

StarOffice is a full-featured, fully integrated suite of office productivity tools with a strong international following. Developed by Sun Microsystems, it is pitched as a cost-effective alternative to Microsoft Office. It's a favorite among the "Stop-throwing-your-hard-earned-dollars-at-Bill-Gates" crowd on both the Windows, Linux, and Solaris platforms. Special Edition Using StarOffice 6.0 addresses the core StarOffice suite, which comes with a word processor (StarOffice Writer), spreadsheet application (Calc), drawing and presentation program (Draw/Impress). In addition it addresses the formula editor (StarOffice Math) and a third-party database module that is installed with the software. The book is suited for beginning/intermediate to advanced office productivity tool users in general and users familiar with the Microsoft Office suite in particular who may want to make the switch to StarOffice. The book takes a task-oriented approach to show the users how to make the most of the StarOffice suite - from basic tasks to advanced features and uses. Also included in this edition, a section on "living and working in a Microsoft World" with insight on using StarOffice in an office/work environment with Microsoft Office users.

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Product Details

Paperback: 1176 pages
Publisher: Que; Special Ed edition (December 30, 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0789728338
ISBN-13: 978-0789728333
Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 2.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,823,297 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

10 Reviews

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
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Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Probably not for everyone, January 30, 2003

By	"winstonneville" (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews

So I read the reviews and thought, hey, great, and went to the bookstore and bought it and lugged it home. And then I had to actually try to find out what I needed to do. I now know a fair amount about kernel parameters and buffers or whatever they are but it's not really what I wanted. Though looking back on the reviews now the reviewers seem to be going on about how much StarOffice does and how Koch is an expert and don't really say that the book actually makes using StarOffice easier.

I'm not a Dummy or beginner, I've used StarOffice for a while, and this book is a bit too much for me. It might be good for system administrators and geeks.

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a heavy but very useful book!, June 13, 2003

By	Robert Nagle "idiotprogrammer" (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A first-class user guide on OpenOffice.org/StarOffice has been written, and that book is Michael Koch's Special Edition Using StarOffice 6.0. This book, actually a second edition, covers the new version and gives fuller treatment to StarOffice writer and the HTML editor. Despite the use of "StarOffice" in the title, this book actually covers both StarOffice and OpenOffice.org in depth.

An an aside, let me compliment Que editions for the legibility and usability of layout. (Que also produced the excellent Ed Bott's Special Edition Using Microsoft Office XP). Nice readable texts, lots of boxes, tips and cautions. Every chapter finishes with a helpful troubleshooting section.

Two immediate reactions: 1) Gosh, I didn't know OpenOffice/StarOffice could do all that! I was pleasantly surprised, for example, to learn the number of graphic capabilities the program has. 2) This book covers functionality in considerable depth, with enough content to satisfy the newbie as well as the advanced user. In addition to documenting the office software, the book also includes reference sections on StarOffice Basic, using data sources, building forms and macros. It also includes a chapter on Adabas, the database that comes as part of the StarOffice package (but not with OpenOffice.org).

Koch benefits from the fact that users already start with a good conceptual framework of what MS Office products are supposed to do. The biggest conceptual challenge in moving from MS Office to Star/OpenOffice is getting used to the idea of applying styles to text instead of just clicking on an icon for formatting. MS Office actually has terrific styling capabilities (and a usable interface for managing styles),but Microsoft's friendly GUI discourages users from thinking about document structure. Contrast that to OpenOffice.org, which nudges the user more firmly towards styles. Managing the different layers of styles in OpenOffice.org can be tricky and confusing, so Koch spends a considerable amount of time and space on that. Another chapter on sharing and exchanging information with MS Office users goes into exquisite detail about compatibility and formatting losses when converting documents, as well as the StarOffice XML file format.

Generally, the book had the most reliable and in-depth information. That was especially helpful when trying to perform a complex action (like creating a table of contents). But the majority of my inquiries had to do with using the interface, not functionality. Often the sheer size of the book made daunting the simple task of finding a function on a dialog or a keyboard shortcut. This book was perfectly clear most of the time and provided generous explanations (unlike the online help, which generally was inadequate). Still, the kaaredyret and oodocs websites have been growing more helpful.

The book is a little behind on what's new in openoffice. Also, it's a bit heavy and sometimes it's hard to find things in the index. For the overwhelming number of users, this will probably be the only book about star/openoffice that you'll ever need.

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8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as helpful, January 29, 2003

By A Customer

I did not find the book as helpful as the Companion book. I was not able to easily find what I was looking to do, and the explanations were not always as clear as I would hope. It's certainly a decent book, but it is not my favorite. The index could have been more useful.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Just the best StarOffice book on the market !
We are using StarOffice since a lot of years. This new edition for StarOffice 6.0 is full of tips and tricks, of which even experienced users will learn a lot of things. Read more

Published on April 9, 2003 by Daniel Brunner

2.0 out of 5 stars Too hard
I am trying to do some simple projects for church and the book is so much and over my head. I am now trying to learn it with the Help but it is slow going.

Published on February 19, 2003 by Ross Mercer

5.0 out of 5 stars Good and Complete Reference Source
I picked up a couple of copies of Special Edition Using StarOffice shortly after it was published, and since I've had it, it has been very useful to me and my associates. Read more

Published on February 5, 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars Technically detailed and thorough
This is the book that you get if you want to know allllll about how stuff works. If you're the one who can't stand to just tell time and wants to know about the gears, this book... Read more

Published on February 2, 2003 by John Grummet

5.0 out of 5 stars Paradigm Solution
This book sound very special, because a lot of people is looking for this subject. Perhaps an aditional and very important subject must be included "... Read more

Published on January 27, 2003 by Luis E Vasquez

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete Reference Source
This is an excellent resource for learning the various functions and features of the StarOffice suite. Read more

Published on January 24, 2003 by T. Bryant

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazingly comprehensive book
This book impressed me when I first opened it. The Contents at a Glance right on the first page shows just how much StarOffice is covered, and it's pretty amazing. Read more

Published on January 23, 2003 by D. Quai

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