KOffice

KOffice is a office automation Suite free developed by the project KDE.

It includes/understands many components, which can be used individually, in particular a software of Word processing, a advanced design software ( Krita ) and a basic management software data ( Kexi ). These applicatifs can be used as applications independent or integrated in a single interface.

KOffice aims at a perfect integration in the environment KDE and put on the success of open Format OpenDocument that David Faure, one of its principal persons in charge, standardized in collaboration with the office automation continuation OpenOffice.org.

Components

Version 1.6 of the continuation includes/understands:

KWord - word processing.

KWord is a software of Word processing.

It makes it possible to use the orthographical correct : Aspell, Ispell

It makes it possible to safeguard and record documents under several formats: KWD, simple text (TXT), rtf, etc

Starting from version 1.4, its format by defect is the Standard OpenDocument. KWord was the first word processing besides to take it into account.

Krita - final improvement of images bitmap

Krita is the editor of Dessin bitmap of the continuation office KOffice resulting from the project KDE.

Krita is intended to be as well a design software as a editor of image contrary to The Gimp which is only one editor of image.

It is, on certain points, much more advanced than The Gimp. Since version 1.5, Krita deals with CMJN, L*a*b and of many other colorimetric profiles in several levels going from 8 to 32 bits. All that thanks to its architecture interns advanced which promises in Krita to exceed Photoshop, the leader in the field of the edition of image.

The functionalities of drawing make it possible the user to create works of art as if it drew or painted with brushes, pencils or with ink. Even here, of the very advanced functions are envisaged and will allow the user to draw in a very realistic way as with painting which you apply and who dries as you work. Some of these functions already exist in the versions of development and could be left in future version 1.5. (Version 1.5 left - > to bring up to date)

But although all that seems promising and that many things are already in place, there remain however fields in which The Gimp and Photoshop is increasingly riper. However, the development team, very active, is in situation to change that.

Krita left for the first time like belonging to KOffice to its version 1.4.0, the 21 June 2005. In the first days of development before the public exit, it was known under the names of KImageShop and Krayon, but for legal reasons, it was necessary to change the name.

In 2006, Krita gains the reward of the best application KDE.

Kexi - management tools of data

Kexi is a system of integrated development and management of database. It makes it possible to create personalized databases, requests, forms and states of edition.

As a member of the projects KDE and KOffice, Kexi is integrated into them. It is available under environment Unix and ms Windows, a version under Mac OS X is envisaged.

The developers of Kexi present this software like " the Open Source competitor awaited a long time vis-a-vis 4 {{E}} Dimension, ms Access, FileMaker and Oracle.

One of the persons in charge of the project is a Polish, Jarosław Staniek.

KSpread - spreadsheet

KSpread is a Tableur; it makes it possible to safeguard sheets under several formats: KSP, CSV, HTML, TeX, etc

KSpread is (in 2005) usable for very simple needs, but immature and low in functionalities compared to Excel or with Calc, the spreadsheet of OpenOffice.org.

KPresenter - software of presentation

It is about a software to carry out presentation following the example Powerpoint and Impress of OpenOffice.org.

Kivio - creation of diagrams

Kivio is a tool for creation of diagrams.

Karbon14 - vectorial drawing

Kugar - tool to generate and visualize reports/ratios

KChart - creation of graphs

KFormula - tool to create mathematical formulas

KPlato - Management software of project

KPlato is a management software of project like Microsoft Project. It is provided with Koffice 1.5 in preliminary version 0.5.0.

Positioning of KOffice

To produce and make use a office automation Suite is an extremely difficult task, especially for a project like KOffice having financial and human resources very limited. Also, KOffice was a long time and still until today incomplete (in particular with regard to its spreadsheet), immature and little used.

The sector is indeed encumbered by two mastodons:

It is, right now, certain that however waited version 2 of KOffice will not know to compete with these two continuations in terms of functionalities. For, nevertheless, finding its niche of use, the KOffice project pursued, as from 2005, the following strategy:

  • to propose integration with its environment of predilection KDE where it cannot be competed with. As true application KDE, an any application KOffice brings to the user of KDE the following benefit: standardization of the behaviors, the menus, the icons, the short cuts keyboards; transparency network thanks to technology KIO; integration with other applications in particular Konqueror thanks to technology KParts; lightness because of re-use of the libraries of KDE. Let us note, however, that an ambitious project integrates OpenOffice.org with KDE, to see kde.openoffice.org
  • betting on the success of OpenDocument . If Microsoft Office reign as a Master on the sector, they is also because of omnipresence of different the formats owners from this continuation which reinforces its monopoly and reciprocally (see Externalité positive). KOffice does not have, like OpenOffice.org, the extenuating circumstance to be a last expert in the handling of these formats .DOC which is a format closed and thus complicated to open correctly without the agreement of Microsoft. Also, to break this insulation, KOffice its format of opened file gave up, but which was clean for him. David Faure took part in the definition of OpenDocument. While being the first continuation right before OpenOffice.org to announce a follow-up (variable according to the components) of this format, KOffice allows this Format open and standardized to be more than simply the format of the office automation continuation OpenOffice (any standard must be the subject of two distinct implementations) and will be able, on its side, surfer on a possible success of OpenOffice.org in particular under Microsoft Windows.
  • to innovate as regards ergonomics. Tom Thumb compared to the two mastodons largely more complete and known, KOffice will not be able to find its way that if it simplifies the life of its users, in particular for the simple tasks and the large documents. Conscious of this, the KOffice project launched a contest, with rewards with the key, to give to KOffice 2.0 a singular and practical interface. The best contributions, selected at the beginning of March 2006, were considered to be very interesting.

GUI and Functionality Design Competition for KOffice 2 - Brainstorming for the future of Koffice

History

External bonds and notes

Related articles

  • Microsoft Office: office automation continuation owner under Microsoft Windows
  • OpenOffice.org: office automation continuation free multiplate-form and Co-initiator with KOffice of the format OpenDocument

External bonds

  • Official site
  • Passage in review of Koffice 1.4 in the edition of November 2005 of Linux Magazine

Refer

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