I hope it works out.
Probably most users need wysiwyg office software, not everyone can pay for it, and everyone's needs are different. So it makes sense to have all-singing-and-dancing packages like LO.
Presently there are too many niggling things that don't quite work. For example if you mess up with illustration numbering or anchoring (easy to do), it's hard to get back to square one.
LO/OOo don't yet have a good enough collection of ready-to-go document templates. Perhaps a simplified template creation package like some website creation software could be a Good Thing.
Talking of ready-made bug-free templates, I'm trying to move to latex for scientific writing, and may also choose a command-line graphics package. I'm convinced that users should be able to see the markups and make corrections manually, as with the old WOrdPerfect for MSDOS.
Apache may have the most momentum with OpenOffice but the other big backer (not IBM) is taking another step forward commercially.
The Document Foundation officially incorporated in Berlin, Germany on Feb 17. It develops LibreOffice, a fork of OpenOffice that came into being following Oracle’s purchase of Sun.
“With this legal act, the entity officially came to life and is legally recognized,” according to a statement released by the Berlin-based entity on Feb 20.
What does it mean? Thorsten Behrens, Deputy Chairman of the Board of the new Foundation, said it strengthens the community aspect of the project.
“The Document Foundation is the legal affirmation of the community spirit – an entity by the community, for the community, and an entity independent from any single vendor,”” Behrens wrote.
It also hands over more rights to individual contributers, noted Michael Schinagl, a Berlin-based attorney who was involved in the foundation’s incorporation process.
“The creation of such a Foundation is unique in the history of free software. There are not many, if any, entities that guarantee such strong rights to active contributors. Embedding those into legal language was a tremendous task, but one that was very worthwile,” he wrote. “The Foundation and its statutes provide the ideal grounds for a free office ecosystem, including users, developers, marketeers, adopters, service providers and many, many more, and they can serve as an example for other communities with similar goals.”
