LibreOffice Productivity Suite
updated 2014-05-30
Don't forget to read the manuals
If you need templates: LibreOffice Templates
the LibreOffice programs
- Base
- allows you to work with databases
- Calc
- spreadsheet program similar to Microsoft Excel
- Draw
- draw some diagrams, charts, post-modern Dali-esque impressionist inspired art, or whatever you like
- Impress
- Microsoft Powerpoint-like program for creating presentations
- Math
- useful program for when you need to create mathematical formulas but aren't able to do so using a wordprocessor
- Writer
- a wordprocessing program similar to Microsoft Word
to change the "Save As" file type
Since so many people use Microsoft Office it makes life easier to save files in the Microsoft Office formats. If you need to e-mail a document to someone it's more than likely their computer will be able to open a Word .doc versus an OpenDocument .odt file.
- From within LibreOffice click on Tools then Options along the top menu.
- Expand Load/Save by clicking on the + to the left.
- Click General right below that.
- Look to the right at the bottom for Default file format
- Select the file type you want in the left pull-down menu labeled Document Type. We'll use Spreadsheet as an example.
- In the right pull-down menu labeled Always save as scroll upwards to select Microsoft Excel 97/2000/XP. This will automatically choose the .xls format when you choose to save a spreadsheet file.
Writer's typing area is small
If the page width only covers a fraction of your screen try zooming in. Click on the View menu then on Zoom. Play around with the various choices until you settle on something you like.
Why does my Word document's layout look completely messed up?
It's possibly the way you formatted your document originally in Word. If you formatted manually using the Tab, Return, or arrow keys on your keyboard you've made a mistake. When you want to apply a format make sure to use templates and proper paragraph types (default, heading1, list indent, etc.) from the pull-down menus. Attempting to center words using a dozen spaces will lead to chaos later. Instead use the center alignment button in the toolbar.
Using Calc
formulas in Calc
NOTE: A cell is a single box in the spreadsheet. Each cell is referenced like the game Battleship. Columns are labeled by letters and rows are labeled by numbers. D7 would be the forth column from the left, seventh row from the top. If you sink a battleship you have gone beyond the scope of this document.
Any cell that will calculate a formula starts with the equals symbol. Simply click on the cell you want to create the formula in, press the = symbol on the keyboard and start creating the formula.
An example of a simple formula would be adding two cells together. If I wanted to add cell A2 to B2 and display the result in C2:
- Click on cell C2
- Press the = symbol on the keyboard
- Click on A2 with the mouse
- Press the + on the keyboard
- Click on B2 with the mouse
- Press Enter on the keyboard
The result will appear in C2. The formula in C2 will appear in the formula bar as =A2+B2.
examples of formulas
- =SUM(C3:C25)
- Adds the contents of cells C3 through C25 and gives you the sum. =SUM is a command to tell Calc to find the sum of the cells that follow. The colon between C3 and C25 tells Calc to use the contents of cells C3, C4, C5, etc. through C25.
multiple lines of text in one cell
Normally when you press the Enter key in Calc it will bring you to the next cell beneath your current location. So how do you add a second line of text into a cell?
Hold down the CTRL key then press Enter