Documentation/OOoAuthors User Manual/Getting Started/How to get Help
How to get Help
Help system
OOo comes with an extensive Help system. This is your first line of support for using OOo.
To display the full Help system, press F1 or select OpenOffice.org Help from the Help menu. In addition, you can choose whether to activate tooltips, extended tips, and the Help Agent (using Tools > Options > General).
If tooltips are enabled, place the mouse pointer over any of the icons to see a small box (“tooltip") with a brief explanation of the icon's function. For a more detailed explanation, select Help > What's This? and hold the pointer over the icon.
Free online support
The OpenOffice.org community not only develops software, but provides free, volunteer-based support. Users of OOo can get comprehensive online support from community venues such as newsgroups, forums, or mailing lists. There are also numerous websites run by users that offer free tips and tutorials.
- Users Mailing List. Free community support provided by a network of hundreds of experienced users. You must be subscribed to post messages. To subscribe, send a blank email to users-subscribe@openoffice.org. List archives are here: http://www.openoffice.org/servlets/SummarizeList?listName=users.
- Documentation Project. Templates, user guides, how-tos, and other documentation. http://documentation.openoffice.org/.
- Native Language Project. Information, resources, and mail lists in your language. http://projects.openoffice.org/native-lang.html
- Mac Support. Support for installing and using the Mac OS X (X11 based and Aqua -under development- ports). http://porting.openoffice.org/mac/support.html.
- The OpenOffice.org Forum. Extensive discussion forum for OpenOffice.org issues from setup to advanced programming features. http://www.oooforum.org/.
- OOo KnowledgeBase. A collection of questions and answers that users can query. http://mindmeld.cybersite.com.au.
Read more about the support options for OpenOffice.org at: http://support.openoffice.org/index.html.
Paid support and training
Alternatively, you can pay for support services. Service contracts can be purchased from a vendor or consulting firm specializing in OpenOffice.org.
OOo is supported by Sun Microsystems, Inc. under the Sun Software Support program, which includes two levels of support that cover extended business hours or around-the-clock service for mission-critical deployments.
http://www.sun.com/service/support/software/openoffice/index.html
A list of independent consultants and the services they offer, listed alphabetically by region and then by country, is provided on the OpenOffice.org website. http://bizdev.openoffice.org/consultants.html
Other resources and addons
Several websites provide additional free resources and addons to enhance OpenOffice.org. The following table lists a few of these websites.
Free OOo templates, artwork, addons, and other resources
- OOExtras. Provides templates, samples, and macros in several languages. http://ooextras.sourceforge.net/
- OOoMacros. A repository for OOo macros and addons and documentation about writing macros or extending OOo. http://www.ooomacros.org/
- Open Clip Art Library. An archive of clip art that can be used for free for any use. http://www.openclipart.org/
- OpenOffice.org Macro Information. Andrew Pitonyak, the author of OpenOffice.org Macros Explained, maintains this site, which provides extensive documentation on OOo's macro capability. Many good referral links are also provided: http://www.pitonyak.org/oo.php
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