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OpenOffice gets pre-load, update notification

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
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Stephen Shankland

Programmers released OpenOffice.org 2.1 on Tuesday. The version that a feature for Linux machines called Quickstarter, which preloads the office suite into memory so it launches faster when a user chooses to run it. (The typical penalty with such approaches is that the preloading process adds more time to the computer start-up process and consumes some resources while the computer is running.)

In addition, the new version includes an improved notification system that alerts users to new versions of the software. Other changes include better HTML export from the Calc spreadsheet software and improved support for Microsoft Access in the Base personal database program, according to project organizers.