The second part of the series on saving money using open source technology looks at OpenOffice, a complete Office software suite comprising word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation package, among other tools. From the intro:

On the desktop, the operating system and environment are less important than the applications that support the main operating functions for your office. Your business drives your application requirements, but most businesses will also use an office suite, such as OpenOffice, to support their core operations.The OpenOffice suite is open source, freely available, and completely compatible with a wide range of different office suites, including Microsoft Office. It’s a compatible product, both in terms of file readability and usage, and you can try out OpenOffice with no barriers.

Read: Saving money with open source, Part 2: Tap into the power of OpenOffice