Hi Mark,

No contest - OpenOffice is dead.

Many of the programmers left the Sun/Oracle fiasco and forked to LibreOffice.  Now that OpenOffice is under Apache it is more of a relic and nostalgic than the future.

Apart from the aforementioned rant.... what you are seeing in open-source software is typical of life cycles and human resources changes.

Redhat forked, Mambo forked, as is OpenOffice.

Sadly solidarity and cohesion of the free stuff is not the same as commercial stuff, where share-holders control the stakes.  However, in a quantum reality open-source evolution is entertaining.

If I were to give some 'free' advice to the OpenOffice/LibreOffice camps:

Now that you have established an evolved version of the OpenOffice code, all the developers need to come together to focus their energies on producing the best Open-source  Office application possible under LibreOffice protection…. (after all even the icons look better in LibreOffice)

I know it is hard to leave something you have been entrenched in but LibreOffice offers a fresh brand change, legal protection from future take-over, and an exciting opportunity to create an integrated suite of office tools for the world.

C'est la vie!

PS.  Would be fantastic if a rich Sheik donated a few million to LibreOffice to develop the code to the next level.

Thanks for the update. Guess we'll see if LibreOffice proves tobe as "future-proof" as OpenOffice once claimed to be.

Hi Mark,

The legal framework for open-source applications is messy, leaving me wondering what is really "open".  If you have heard of 'green washing' then I submit to you 'open washing'.  Currently, according to sources on the net, the Apache Foundation open-source license is incompatible with The Document Foundation.  This only serves to weaken the overall credibility of the 'open-source' office as a corporate solution.

Having IBM standing behind OpenOffice should make for interesting times, as their Thinkpads downgraded to Lenova.  Not to mention the Lotus Office Suite of the past (while having great potential, just didn't have the 'business quo').

Given the history of Linux flavours - more specifically Open Office flavours - OpenOffice, LibreOffice, NeoOffice...etc., this again will weaken credibility of one ring to rule them all.... ahem... one Office application for all.

C'est la vie!

Some surfrefs:

http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/open-office-dilemma-openofficeorg-vs-libreoffice-716

http://olex.openlogic.com/wazi/2011/libreoffice-vs-openoffice-org-showdown-for-best-open-source-office-suite/