[Solved] New user - a couple of queries

[akirakun]

Welcome beginner. Please answer all of the questions below which may provide information necessary to answer your question.
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Which version of OpenOffice.org are you using? : 2.4.1
What Operating System (version) are you using? : Windows XP SP2
What is your question or comment?

1. Having downloaded OpenOffice can I now uninstall MS Office 2000?
2. Should I install another e-mail software such as Mozilla Thunderbird before uninstalling above (as I will lose Outlook Express - in itself no great loss but I have a host of business e-mails that I need to preserve...)
3. My wife is Japanese and needs to switch languages when she uses the computer - is this easily done?

[r4zoli]

The best to ask one question in one post, see Survival Guide.

1. Having downloaded OpenOffice can I now uninstall MS Office 2000?

It's up to you.

2. Should I install another e-mail software such as Mozilla Thunderbird before uninstalling above (as I will lose Outlook Express - in itself no great loss but I have a host of business e-mails that I need to preserve...)

OOo not consist integrated email application, use Thunderbird for emails, Outlook express not part of MSO 2000, it is a part of winXP other version.

3. My wife is Japanese and needs to switch languages when she uses the computer - is this easily done?

You can install Japanese language pack, and can easily switch between two language, Tools>Options>Languge settings>User interface, change from Default to installed langpack language.
If you want to use for Japanese activate on Language settings, Asian languages.

[Phil]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

1.
If you hold an official license for it, I would keep MS Office for the following reasons:

• If you get MS Office documents (especially spreadsheets) containing macros, then the macros would not run with OpenOffice. Thus keeping MS Office might help in these cases.
• If you export files from OpenOffice to MS Office formats (.doc, .ppt, .xls), it allows you to check if files have been correctly converted, as the export filters are not always perfectly working.
• It does not really do any harm keeping it installed.

This applies to complex documents. If you only do very simple documents, you may not need to keep MS Office.

2.
Yes, as OpenOffice does not include any PIM (Personal Information Manager). I would recommend installing Thunderbird.
However, you are not forced to that, as you will not loose Outlook Express, which is part of Win XP. You will instead loose Outlook 2000 (which is way better than Outlook Express).
But I would definitely prefer Thunderbird over both of them!

3.
Yes, you can install additional language packs, making available additional languages via Tools > Options > Language settings > User interface.
They are not quite easy to find:
Go to http://distribution.openoffice.org/mirrors/#extmirrors, then choose a mirror site near you, and then go to the folder ./extended/2.4.1rc2/.
The right file for Japanese under Win XP is OOo_2.4.1rc2_20080529_Win32Intel_langpack_ja.exe.

HTH!
phil

[RGB]

1- You can but, need you? That's depends on your needs. I'm using OOo since version 1, and my last version of M$Office was office97. So far, so good, I'm a really happy Linux user without any need of M$ software... but that is my experience: you need to build your own.
2- There is no relation with Thunderbird, outlook, etc with OOo other than the fact that OOo can be integrated with any of them. Thunderbird is IMHO more "user friendly" than outlook (even if I prefer kmail). But again, I'm a Linux user since 2000, I cannot talk about today M$ products.
3- No problem with that. Just install the corresponding language packs and in Tools -> Options -> Languages settings -> Language you will be able to change the language.

[Phil]

Uuups - seems reactivity is quite good currently!