OpenOffice.org 2.1 on the Mac OS X

I have been using OpenOffice.org on Windows and Linux for many years now. I just recently got myself a MacBook and have spent the last three weeks using it and learning how Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) works. I have to say that I am getting more comfortable using the Mac OS X. I am using Firefox as my browser, have gotten used to the various Mac OS X applications and am now getting serious about using my new Mac as a software development machine. I primarily develop in Java so getting all my development tools setup on the Mac is a must. This includes Eclipse, NetBeans, Tomcat, JBoss, Nvu and OpenOffice at a minimum.

Well I must say that OpenOffice runs fine on the Mac OS X after finally getting it installed last week. Currently you must have X11 running in order to use OpenOffice on the Mac. A pure Aqua version of OpenOffice is in beta and should be ready for primetime in 2007. Look here for details. I downloaded NeoOffice which runs fine however, for me I noticed a few performance issues with NeoOffice. So I reverted back to OpenOffice as my word processing, presentation, spreadsheet, and desktop database suite of productivity applications.

What really amazes me is how brainwashed so many users are with the perception that they 'must have' Microsoft office in order to function on a computer. I met several Mac users that said they purchased Office for the Mac in order to do word processing. Wow, the marketing machine at Microsoft sure does have everyone fooled.

This is the reason why I am blogging about OpenOffice on the Mac. It is available today and works as advertised. If only more Mac users or recent converts were aware of OpenOffice and its capabilities they could save themselves a few dollars and rid themselves of Microsoft. Personally, I enjoy have a Microsoft free laptop using my new Macbook. I have had the same on my Linux notebook for years and it sure does feel great not having to be dependent on Microsoft for my personal computing requirements.

Too bad that I work in a predominately Windows environment at work. It would be nice to see Macs brought into the workplace. Based on my experience, it just works like my refrigerator. No strange behavior, bugs, or just plain oddness to worry about anymore.