The cheapest way to get Word is to buy Microsoft Office 2021 Home & Student (£120), or subscribe to Microsoft 365 (from £60 a year). If you’re using an old copy, note that unsupported versions aren’t safe to use as they no longer receive security updates.
Alternatively, you can pay absolutely nothing. There are some excellent free Microsoft Office equivalents around, including LibreOffice. And, unlike unsupported versions of Word, LibreOffice continues to receive regular updates. Below, we highlight its key features.
What is LibreOffice?
LibreOffice is a full office suite comprising equivalents for Word (Writer), Excel (Calc), PowerPoint (Impress) and more. It’s free to use and, unlike unsupported versions of Word, continues to receive regular security updates.
Unlike many other free office tools, it doesn’t require a constant internet connection, so you can install and use it offline.
Download Download LibreOfficedouble-click Installation Wizard.7 useful LibreOffice features you should know about
1. Explore the toolbar
yellow highlighter tool iconPropertiesRight at the bottom of the program window is another bar that includes a running page count and word count for your document, information about the page style, plus a slider that will increase or decrease the size of your document view.
2. Set up your menus to match Office
In recent iterations of its Office programs, Microsoft moved away from a drop-down menu style to the Ribbon – a tabbed toolbar that shows a selection of different tools and options. If you’re more used to working with this type of toolbar, you can switch from Writer’s default interface to one that’s more like Ribbon.
View > User InterfaceTabbed Apply to Writer
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3. Use templates to save yourself some time
Being faced with a blank page can be daunting. Luckily, Writer comes with a selection of free templates to get you started.
File > Wizards > LetterFile > New > TemplatesDownloadFile > Templates > Manage TemplatesManage > ImportMy Templates OKDownloads Windows KeyEOK
4. Import, format and edit images
Insert > ImageOpen.double-headed arrowTo move your photo where you want it, click on it and drag it. By default, text will flow around your image.
Properties Colour mode aGreyscaleWrapArrange Align Insert Table Insert Table
5. Convert documents
By default, Writer saves to the ODF open document file format, but you can easily save or convert your documents to Word, PDF and more. This will make it easier for others to open and view them.
Convert your document to a Word fileFile Save As ODF Text Document Save as type2007-365SaveConvert your document to a PDF File Export As Export As PDFExport > SaveFile Templates Save as TemplateSave.
6. Print documents
File Print PreviewFile Print forward and back buttonsGeneral Range and Copies Page Layout.LibreOffice Writer Page background Images and other graphic objectsPrint
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7. Recover a lost document
Losing hours of work is a pain, and the best way to avoid this is by making sure you save regularly. If your PC crashes or Writer unexpectedly quits while you’re typing a document, however, it might still be possible to retrieve your work thanks to LibreOffice’s automatic recovery function.
Document RecoveryStart Finish
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source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/free-microsoft-word-alternative-best-libreoffice-features-explained-aorxA3u95KIu