OER Handbook/educator version one/Compose/Office



Open source office programs are a great example of open source programs competing well with their proprietary counterparts. Be careful when selecting a format to save in, especially when you plan on switching between a proprietary office program and an open source one. For example, Open Office saves word processing files as ODT, which cannot be opened in Word without a special plug-in.

Online office suites
Online office suites are not open source, but many are free to use. When using an online office suite you do not have complete control over your information. Though many of these services have privacy policies which stipulate that they will not use your information, they may be incompatible with privacy laws regarding students' information. Online office suites are compatible with all operating systems, but not all web browsers.