OpenOffice.org 3.0 is available

The new version 3.0 of OpenOffice.org has been released recently. OpenOffice.org is absolutely free alternative to the Microsoft Office software with a Word compatible word processor, Power Point like presentation manager, Excel compatible spreadsheet software and drawing program. It includes features similar to other office suites.
OpenOffice.org 3.0 offers a lot of new features and enhancements, that have been made across the board to its various components. Let 's take a look at some noteworthy features of OpenOffice.org.
The most immediately noticeable modification is the splash screen named the Start Center. It appears when OpenOffice.org 3 starts without a document and without a module. From the Start Center, you can choose which component of OpenOffice.org you want to use.



OpenOffice.org's word processor called Writer can be used for anything from writing a fast letter to creating an entire book with embedded illustrations, tables of contents, cross-references and indexes. Now working in Writer, you are able to see multiple pages. Notice the two new controls in the status bar (bottom-right-hand corner). The first one is the "View Layout" mode selection, that allows user to switch between a single page, several pages side by side, and book layout. The second control is the zoom slider.



Another interesting improvement of the Writer is so called Notes. It displays notes or comments in a sidebar. Auto-complete, auto-format, and real-time spelling check make easy work of the hardest task.



OpenOffice.org's spreadsheet processor called Calc offers all the tools you need to summarize, calculate, analyze, and present your data in numerical reports or red-hot graphics.
The spreadsheet has been extended to 1024 columns of data compared with the 256 available in previous version of OpenOffice.org software.



You also get such improvements as impacting charts, spreadsheet collaboration and new Solver component that makes calculating dependent spreadsheet cells much easier.



Impress is the powerful tool for creation effective multimedia presentations. Now it has native tables. The new Table Design panel makes it easy to apply colors.



OpenOffice.org 3.0 provides enhanced support for PDF files, letting you better control over security, printing, and editing options. It also works with formats like .docx, .pptx, and .xlsx.
Additionally, OpenOffice.org provides enhanced printing capabilities and options for direct connection with external email programs as well as form-letter management to mail letters to addresses from a database.
OpenOffice.org is available in 27 languages and runs stably and natively on Solaris, Linux, Mac OS and Windows.
Open Office is one of the best alternatives to the MS Office software. Maybe it is not as powerful as Microsoft Office, but it is free. So if you are looking for free alternative to Microsoft Office software, I recommend you to try the latest version of OpenOffice.org, that is available for download here.

ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 – The Best Digital Imaging Software

ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 is now available. The new version of these powerful digital imaging software designed for digital photographers, crafters and scrapbookers. ACDSee Photo Manager is a comprehensive application ideal for viewing, acquiring, enhancing, organizing and sharing your images. Improved features make ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 the quickest, most flexible and affordably priced organization software available for at-home use.
The new user interface is wholly customizable, and offers fast access to tools and features. You can customize the screen layout, the order of pictures, toolbar display, and many other options to suit your preferences. ACDSee Photo Manager is very easy to use image management software that everyone from novices to professionals can use and enjoy.



The latest version of ACDSee Photo Manager adds many features designed to help users handle their digital images, stay organized and share memories with friends. Here are some of them.
ACDSee lets you organize your entire collection the way that works best for you. The new PhotoDisc feature puts its power into the hands of users, who can now organize images stored on CDs, DVDs, and external hard drives without copying them to your computer. With new tools from ACDSee you can rename, categorize, back up, add ratings and keywords to images on any storage device connected to your computer.
The program allows you to assign images to as many categories as you like without taking up more space on your computer.
ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 is the fastest viewing software around. With it you’ll never wait for an image to open. Fill your screen with images, quickly browse through your thumbnails and view photos at full size. Plus you can use ACDSee's Quick View feature to instantly preview e-mail attachments or files on your desktop.
ACDSee supports over 100 image and multimedia file formats including BMP, IFF, JPG, PNG, RAS, RSB, GIF, PSD, and TIFF.
ACDSee Photo Manager allows you to supplement camera metadata (IPTC and EXIF) with their own custom metadata, including categories and ratings. So you can now protect and share this custom information with other ACDSee users by embedding it into their images. Program lets users to include custom information even with such file formats as GIF, PNG and PDF. ACDSee's Database Backup feature also helps you backup your images to CD or DVD so you don’t lose them if your computer fails.
With this software you can share your photos by e-mail without worrying about file sizes. ACDSee also simplify online photo sharing with integrated uploading to such sites as Smugmug and Flickr.
Another new feature of ACDSee Photo Manager is ability to create PowerPoint presentations. So you can create your own stunning slide shows with transition effects, notes, captions and sound.
Also, ACDSee includes a lot of image editing tools you can use to edit, enhance and correct your digital photos. ACDSee allows you to add a custom border, aply various effects like crop, sharpen, saturation, blur, shadow or edge effect. Use advanced red-eye tool to get natural-looking results with custom eye colors to replace red areas.



The program automatically saves and keeps the original image when it is first opened for editing. So you can restore to the original at any time after editing.
ACDSee’s print layout tools help you print multiple prints on a single page, fill an entire page, or create custom print sizes.



I think that ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 is for the real digital photographer who requires almost endless ways to categorize, rank, and document digital images, while having abundant ways to enhance those images. This software system lets the photographer's originative side to show itself through the various effects.
ACDSee Photo Manager 2009 is available for a free 30-day trial and for purchase for $49.99 (USD) at http://www.acdsee.com