Chapter 17. Enhancing Your Work with More OpenOffice.org Features

IN THIS CHAPTER:

128 About OpenOffice.org Macros

129 Create and Use a Macro

130 About Master Documents

131 Create a Master Document

132 About Sharing OpenOffice.org Files with Other Applications

133 Associate OpenOffice.org and Microsoft Office Files

134 Upgrade OpenOffice.org to a New Version

As we begin Part V, you'll get a taste of some of OpenOffice.org's more advanced features, such as the automation of certain OpenOffice.org tasks . If you find yourself repeating the same series of keystrokes or menu selections over and over in Writer or Calc, you can automate those steps to speed the work in the future. In addition, you'll learn how to manage more extensive Writer documents, such as you'll use when writing complete books with Writer. Maintaining chapters and all the elements that go into such a large, multi-part document is no longer a chore when you learn how to use the concept of master documents .

KEY TERM

Master document A repository of document files managed as a single group , within a single window. Its components are called subdocuments , each of which might be a chapter or other composite element, but all of which together form a collective volume.

The integration of OpenOffice.org's programs is crucial to using OpenOffice.org successfully. Any document, produced from within any OpenOffice.org application, can contain functional components of any other OpenOffice.org applicationsuch as a Calc spreadsheet in a Writer document, or a Draw composition in an Impress presentation. You can integrate all these components together within OpenOffice.org's consistent interface, using far fewer steps than if each OpenOffice.org had replicated the functionality of every other one just to get the job done.

To be honest, OpenOffice.org's integrated power shines in its support for loading and saving Microsoft Office documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. You can load, edit, and save virtually all Microsoft Office files within OpenOffice.orgfor instance, Writer can open any document you select that has Microsoft Word's .doc filename extension. There's a good chance you're an OpenOffice.org user yourself because you did not want to continue paying high upgrade costs to keep up with Microsoft Office. So for you, it's critical that OpenOffice.org opens, edits, and saves all the work you've previously created with Microsoft Office.