Open Office

I might've mentioned that I decided to use a new word processor because one of my publishers had something included in the contract that I needed to have Change Tracking software or had to get it.

Change Tracking?

I've been using Microsoft Works for years and thought I knew every little things hidden inside the software. But, this wasn't included. So, here comes Google Search!

Lo and behold - I found it! In MS Office. And that's not something I had - or could afford to buy.

I ran across Open Office and remembered reading about it in various writer's forums. So, sucking in my gut, I downloaded it. But, as usual, I figured I knew so much, I just went ahead and started using it.

Uh, isn't there something somewhere about reading a User's Manual? I quickly found it had a whole lot of bells and whistles Word didn't - and didn't have one thing Word did - a somewhat decent grammar checker. And, the whole reason I downloaded wasn't that easy to use - tracking changes, comparing documents and merging documents. So, showing my ignorance, I went to the support website and asked my dumb questions - and got plastered for it! I got responses from two _moderators_ who were downright rude!!!

Well, I finally wised up, checked around and finally found the User's Manual. I downloaded all the pdf. files and quickly learned what I needed - except for how to add a Spanish Dictionary extension.

I figured out how to get around the grammar checker shortcoming by converting an OO document to MS Word, using that grammar checker, then converting it back to a new OO, then comparing the two to see and accept the changes. I even just learned how to remove some words from the dictionary that don't match what I need for my writing - example Señor instead of Senor.

Someone on the OO support forum suggested I go ahead and download LibreOffice as it has more updates and gadgets. But, someone else told me to stick with learning OO before I go any further - probably the best instruction I've found on the site.

So, as I continue to use OO and find out all the little goodies, I'll try to share them here. And, I hope all of you who have or think of downloaded will do the same. What do you like best about it? What drives you crazy?

One thing I just noticed, the text files come out far smaller than the Word files!

News and New Stuff

Well, after holding my breath, I opened my email this morning and there was a contract from Bluewood Publishing, Ltd. I read it carefully and found the terms more than satisfactory. Not only are they seeking world wide digital format [ebook] but also print rights. I gladly signed and sent it back, along with a lot of the information they needed to start on Father Serra's Legacy, Book One, The Sailor and The Carpenter, El Marinero y El Caprintero.

The part that caught me by surprise was a requirement that I have software that does Change Tracking. Huh? What's that?

I've been using word processors since the late 1970's and computers since the early 1980's. I bought a PC with XP, then upgraded to this one with Vista [Yeah, I know - I need to upgrade to 7] and work with MSWord daily. I never HEARD of Change Tracking and my software doesn't have it! 

Well, thank you Google Search. First thing I found was that it's a feature of Microsoft Office - which I don't have and can't afford to upgrade to. Then, it showed something I've seen people refer to but never really paid attention to - Open Office. Well, I checked it out, and as it's FREE[!!]. I downloaded it.

Voila!   

There it was. The help menu makes it quite easy and I now know how to compare two different documents to see the changes and even how to merge one with the other. A few of the control commands are a bit different but I notice it actually takes up less space than MSWord or WordPad.

Now, it's a case of converting my working files to Open Office so I can use it on a regular basis.

If any of you use it and have tips/suggestions, feel free to comment and perhaps you will not only help me but a lot of others who use it.