spreadsheets

Fans of LibreOffice will discover a new and improved version with several features typically found only in Microsoft Office.

For those unfamiliar with the product, LibreOffice is an open-source desktop suite, one of several free alternatives to Microsoft Office. The suite includes applications for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, databases, and drawings.

Released today by the Document Foundation, LibreOffice 4.0 builds on its foundations with a host of new features and fixes.

As just a few examples, users of the Writer word processor can now add comments to entire blocks of text, more easily create different headers and footers for … Read more

I love a good win-win.

From now until December 24, you can get SoftMaker FreeOffice for Windows or Linux absolutely free. And when you do, SoftMaker will donate 0.10 Euros to betterplace.org, which raises funds for a variety of worthy worldwide projects.

So what the heck is SoftMaker FreeOffice? As you may have guessed from the name, it's the free version of SoftMaker's commercial office suite. It provides word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations, all with an interface that closely resembles Microsoft Office 2003.

Speaking of which, FreeOffice is fully file-compatible with Microsoft's suite, though it'… Read more

Apple has been sued by a Texas-based company for allegedly infringing on a patent with its Numbers spreadsheet software.

The complaint, which was filed on Wednesday with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas Tyler Division, accuses Apple of infringing on a patent covering a "system and methods for improved spreadsheet interface with user-familiar objects" with its Numbers software.

That patent was granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 1995, and now belongs to Data Engine Technologies LLC, a non-practicing entity, or what some would call a "patent troll." … Read more

With Microsoft SkyDrive recently touching down on Google Drive's territory, it's only fitting we take a look at how the two cloud storage and file-syncing Android apps fare against one another. On the one hand, we have Google Drive: the incumbent and the darling of the Android platform. And on the other hand, we have SkyDrive: Microsoft's offering and somewhat unexpectedly, the new kid on the block. Each app has its strengths and weaknesses, and we take a look at how they compare.

Microsoft SkyDrive (free) Similar to Google Drive, Microsoft's SkyDrive lets you store files … Read more

Wednesday's top headlines are served with a low-fat triple shot of mobile news:

You may wonder why it matters that Square partnered with Starbucks. Customers could already pay for coffee by using the Starbucks app and show their phone screen to the barista. And how much time does that really save compared to taking out your wallet?

This deal is all about awareness. Seeing the Square logo in stores will help people get more comfortable with the idea of phones being a wallet replacement. Apple will also be pushing this concept in iOS 6 with the Passbook app that … Read more

Google has added a new feature to its spreadsheet product that enables users to lock down particular sections.

According to Google, the feature, called Protected Ranges, is intended to stop cells being modified accidentally when several users are working on the same spreadsheet.

Protected Ranges creates designated sections of a spreadsheet that cannot be changed by users that don't have editing rights.

The feature works like this: highlight the cells you want to lock down, right-click to bring up the menu, and then choose "Named and protect range." Then, click "protect" and "done." … Read more

As you've no doubt heard by now, Microsoft just announced Office 2013 and The New Microsoft Office suite.

Not announced: pricing.

Call it a hunch, but I suspect Microsoft will charge at least as much for Office 2013 as it does for Office 2010. After all, the new suite is chock-full of new features, giving Microsoft ample justification for keeping prices the same -- or even raising them.

Currently, Office 2010 Home and Student and Office 2010 Home and Business sell for $119.99 and $199.99, respectively. That's for a single-user license. The three-user version of Home … Read more

Some people still snicker when they see a coworker toting an iPad. After all, who can get any real work done on that Etch-a-Sketch on steroids?

Lots of people, actually. And as the quality and quantity of iPad apps increase, the devices inch closer to becoming workplace essentials.

Case in point: the free CloudOn program whose mobile versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint give you the Office 2007/2010 interface when working on files stored on the Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box online storage services.

Support for Office XML file types, and a ribbon to boot Speculation continues as to … Read more

As its name suggests, Quickoffice Pro HD is a mobile office and productivity suite for use on the go. It lets you create and edit office files, and even sync them to your favorite cloud storage service.

If you're a fan of Google Docs like I am, then you've probably noticed that editing files from your mobile device can be a bit of a pain. The Google Drive (download) app (which recently slurped up Google Docs) doesn't offer a very robust menu of formatting tools, which makes workflow more complicated than it should be (especially when dealing … Read more