Free office package: FreeOffice 2024 released
SoftMaker releases version 2024 of its free office package FreeOffice with word processing, spreadsheet and presentation program.
- Stefan Wischner
The Nuremberg-based manufacturer SoftMaker has released a new version of FreeOffice (Download). This is the free offshoot of the commercial office package SoftMaker Office. Like this, FreeOffice consists of the text program TextMaker, the calculation program PlanMaker and the presentation software Presentations. There are versions for Windows (from 7), macOS (from 10.12) and Linux (rpm, deb, tgz).
Compared to the paid packages, FreeOffice contains all the core functions and should be sufficient for many users. However, it also lacks some features, such as various template and table functions, cross-references and form objects in the word processor, input validation and transposing in the spreadsheet, diagrams and overview slides in the presentation program. A complete comparison of FreeOffice and the different versions of SoftMaker Office is shown in a table on the manufacturer's website.
New features
The new features of FreeOffice 2024 compared to its predecessor include multiple text selection and the optional embedding of fonts in TextMaker, filter and sorting functions by color in PlanMaker and multi-column texts in Presentations.
SoftMaker advertises its high compatibility with the MS Office formats DOCX, PPTX and XLSX. Optionally, the programs also work directly with files in these formats and do not require import or export with conversion.
The manufacturer also emphasizes the high, GDPR-compliant data protection standard. There is no account or cloud obligation and no transfer of content. Once FreeOffice has been installed, it must be activated using a key that is sent by email to an address specified during registration. After this, permanent offline operation is possible.
(swi)
