The fact that enterprises are considering an open-source office productivity alternative does not make them anti-Microsoft. In most cases, the decision to switch is being made because enterprises are finding that, for certain applications, a comparable level of productivity can be achieved at a significantly lower cost.
Performing a cost comparison is an important part of the decision making process. This cost comparison tool is a working spreadsheet for doing a head-to-head comparison of Microsoft Office 2003 and OpenOffice 2.0. It includes the following features:
- A pre-filled working example that can be edited to reflect your situation.
- Full guidance and considerations for cost estimates.
Cost comparisons are then used along with user requirements, integration with other productivity tools, compatibility with proprietary application and other business drivers to arrive at the right decision for the enterprise.
This downloadable tool is associated with the research note, "MS Office May Not Be Worth the Price Tag."