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StarOffice 8.0(Free Version) Review: Features, Pros, and Alternatives

September 11, 2023 3.6K views

StarOffice is a powerful office productivity suite developed by sun microsystems( which was later acquired by Oracle) It's an awesome designed suite that features all utilities needed to complete daily work tasks.

Whether it's a presentation you're preparing, or you're producing a text document, a spreadsheet, or a professional layout, StarOffice is exactly what you need. However, many people don't know what it's and how to download it.

In this article, we will give you guidance on what it's and how to download it.

What's starOffice? Its Pros and cons

According to Wikipedia, Star Office is referred to as a discontinued proprietary office suite. Its source code continues today in derived open-source office suites collabora online and LibreOffice.

The software was developed in 1985 as Starwriter by Star division, the division that marketed the Suit with some conquest, mainly in Europe. StarOffice was later acquired by Sun Microsystems during the 1999 summer period, and they released it as a free open-source office suite called OpenOffice.org, which subsequent versions of StarOffice were built on, with extra proprietary features.

Fast forward to 2010 when sun microsystems were acquired by Oracle, and the product was known briefly as Oracle Open Office before being halted in 2011, with Oracle turning OpenOffice.org into a purely community-based project.

Here are some benefits of using StarOffice;

Pros

Installation and configuration

One of the main benefits of this software is that it is installed on a single CD. It offers either a basic installation that installs everything you need to run the entire suite without wasting time, or a custom install that allows you to fine-tune the installation to save disk space.

Also, configuring the StarOffice suite is simple - opting for more will never exceed one level deep, and it's always in a logical arrangement. Since the database application drives mail merges and other common office tasks, every application has the same database connection menu in its options, which gives room for quick access to pre-existing data sources.

Applications

StarOffice suite offers an awesome alternative to Word but may require a more extensive feature-to-feature look than we're giving it here on the chance that a feature you're familiar with in the office doesn't show up in Staroffice's suit.

StarOffice Writer is designed for people who are very familiar with using Word. Its basic look is similar, and many of the basic toolbar icons, such as opening and saving documents, are virtually identical, and its menus have a largely similar organization. StarOffice has many special features, many of which you'll discover with constant use.

File imports and exports

The major concern for anyone considering StarOffice over any other suite is how well legacy documents will survive the transition. Relax! Sun has dedicated a lot of time to file import functionality, and it does reflect.

Documents of varying complexity are imported into the writer, Calc, and express. For the most part, the document made the transition easy. Moreso, it's noted that the "round trip"  process of importing a Word document, editing it, Saving it as a StarOffice document, and exporting it back to Word caused no issues.

Moreover, StarOffice enables you to export files directly to Adobe PDFs (Acrobat), another welcoming feature in which its files are not always the most welcome thing globally, if only you have to open yet another application to read them, however, when it comes to making sure a recipient can read a document or presentation and make copies for signing or marking up, they're difficult to outdo.

Cons

  • File imports from other formats, while excellent and generally accurate, are not always perfect and might require a thorough examination before use.

  • less comprehensive official support and updates, potential compatibility issues with complex Microsoft Office documents, and the reluctance of users familiar with other office suites to switch.

  • Not the most feature-packed suite you can see, so it may not have a particular tool some businesses are used to in Office or others.

Like Microsoft Office, StarOffice has a few different features. Use writer for word processing, Calc for spreadsheets, draw for illustration work, base for database activity, and impress for presentations. We will detail each part of the software one after the other;

Writer- word processing

StarOffice Writer makes it easier to create, convert, and collaborate documents. Unlike OpenOffice.org software, StarOffice comes with a lot of extra form templates including faxes, sample memos, resumes, and letters. It easily creates documents that include text frames, indexes, tables, nested tables, columns, embedded hyperlinks/external links, and Java applications. The mail merge wizard is included for hard copy and email letters.

StarOffice Writer is also consistent with Microsoft Office and WordPerfect and enables you to publish Adobe. Moreover, if you want something technical, the writer provides extensive XML and XHTML support. Corporate with others through the record change management function, and compare and merge modifications made by others to a shared doc.

Calc- spreadsheets

Whatever it's you want from a spreadsheet, StarOffice Calc got you covered. Beyond the fundamental features we've all come to expect the software also includes several additional features. Use the function wizard to create advanced formulas or depend on one of the over 275 pre-defined functions that you get out of the box.

The Calc gives you the ability to do real-time calculations - also create charts, pivot tables, and macros. You can as well create Adobe PDF files to share information without revealing the formulas and logic in your spreadsheet. StarOffice is compatible with Microsoft Excel and Lotus 1-2-3.

Draw- illustration

This component of StarOffice is developed amazingly. Starting with the layout tools which include grids, rulers, guides, snap-to, position, and sizing tools lets you concentrate on the graphics rather than the technology. StarOffice Draw offers advanced vector graphics abilities. Customize colors, textures, and shading until they form what you want.

You can also use the font work feature to make cool 2-D and 3-D. Delve into the gallery for pictures, sounds, and animations. Also, StarOffice Draw is compatible with all the common graphics file formats including GIF, JPEG, PNG, SVG, WMF, WPS, and more.

Base- Database

StarOffice base supports 11 database formats including SQL, MYSQL, Microsoft Access, dBase, Oracle, and Excel. The new database table wizard guides you through creating refined tables quickly without a lot of technical knowledge. They include over 30 predefined table schemas to help design. Through base, you can create simple queries without any SQL knowledge.

Impress - Presentations

StarOffice Impress does not carry last too, it includes slide design templates going aimlessly from marketing plans and business reports to collaboration sessions and sales training. You can save your templates and share them with your friends, you also have access to several pre-designed formats. Spreadsheets and charts from other StarOffice can as well be imported in.

There are a lot of things to enjoy with this feature of StarOffice, you'll get to know more when you have it on your pc.

How to Download and Install StarOffice 8.0

The steps below will guide you to a successful installation of StarOffice 8.0;

  • Visit the website https://en.freedownloadmanager.org/Windows-PC/StarOffice.HTML This website allows free downloads of various software programs.

  • Hot the green Download button next to the Star Office logo and you'll be redirected to the developer's website, where you can get the latest version of StarOffice.

  • Click on the Download Now button on the developer's website. This will start downloading a file, save this file to your preferred location on your pc.

  • Double-click on the file to launch the installation wizard after the download is complete. Follow the instructions on the screen to install StarOffice 8.0 on your pc. You might be required to accept the license agreement and choose a destination folder for the program.

  • After the installation is completed, you can start using StarOffice 8.0 by clicking on its icon on your desktop or in your start menu. You can also access the individual applications from the start menu under "sun microsystems".

Congratulations! You've successfully downloaded and installed StarOffice 8 for free. You can now enjoy its features and benefits.

Moreover, you can't be ranking some of the best office suites without including wps office suite- never!

What's the WPS office?

WPS is a free all-in-one office software, which was established in 1989 by kingsoft office, currently has more than 500M users worldwide with about 4.8 stars reviews. Here are some common benefits of the software;

Pros of WPS

  • Rich functions, it has a lot of features including powerful writing, presentation, spreadsheets, PDF, resume assistants, smart forms, screen recording, file repair, and other small tools integrated into the suite.

  • All these features, i.e. Word, excel, ppt, and a powerful PDF toolkit are all free to use.

  • Rich templates store, which contains various free and paid templates for Word, ppt, and Excel.

  • WPS supports Linux systems, android, and ios systems. All you need to do is to log in to the same account if you want to use WPS office products on different systems, and all files will be synchronized.

  • The light weight of the product is only 200M, and it occupies a small amount of computer memory.

  • It's safe and stable, rarely crashes, and pays a lot of attention to users' privacy and security. These are just a few of WPS Office suite benefits.

How to Download WPS

Here are the steps involved in downloading and installing wps software on your pc;

  • Click the free download button.

  • When the download completes, open the WPS Office inste.exe file from the downloads list in the lower-left corner of the interface.

  • The WPS office wizard dialog appears. Read and review the WPS office license agreement and privacy policy. Clicking the Install Now button will instantly take you to finish the installation with just one click.

  • WPS is finally installed on your pc.

FAQS

1.Which is the most widely used software for office use?

Here are the top 6 most widely used software for office use;

  • Microsoft office word

  • Microsoft office excel

  • Microsoft Office PowerPoint

  • Microsoft office outlook

  • Microsoft office onenote

  • Microsoft office access

2.What's the Difference Between open office and Staroffice?

StarOffice and openoffice.org are both office productivity suites built on the same code base. OpenOffice.org is an open-source product and project that is free for users. Whereas StarOffice is a commercial product that is based on a snapshot of the openoffice.org code at the time of release.

No doubt, StarOffice suite is good, and it has been one of the best office suites that fulfill users' requirements. However, WPS is one of the most excellent alternatives to Microsoft and Star Office software, and that's why you should try it out!


15 years of office industry experience, tech lover and copywriter. Follow me for product reviews, comparisons, and recommendations for new apps and software.