Infra-Resource Company has released a commercial version of its package build office programs open source code OpenOffice.org called InfraOffice.pro.
The developer's website says:
InfraOffice.pro is a commercial product based on OpenOffice.org pro, optimized for working with documents containing confidential information and personal data.
InfraOffice.pro - designed for installation and use in areas:
customer service with access to an unlimited number of persons;
with increased demand for confidential information and personal data;
with mass jobs for working with conventional electronic documents;
qualified preparation of complex documents, including the creation of templates, macros, etc.;
professional preparation of compound documents with embedded objects, user fields and forms associated with databases, with elements of automation of water and information processing.
InfraOffice.pro generates warnings when signing, saving or sending a document with hidden information (edits, comments, fields, etc.) and / or personal data, providing automation tools for their removal. Privacy alerts can be easily turned off if information leakage is not a concern, but reminders are annoying.
InfraOffice.pro contains the most stable version of OpenOffice.org pro 3.1.1, supplemented by the original ideas of Infra-Resource, the best that has been implemented in the last 2 years.
"Issue by Infra-Resource commercial office suite- a bold and timely step, - says Alexander Fedichkin, Head of the System Integration Center of the SVEMEL group of companies, - The practical value and democratic price of InfraOffice.pro opens up new prospects for improving the legal climate, as an affordable replacement for counterfeit software.
InfraOffice.pro is released under two licenses:
1. "Licenses to use software Infra-Resource for the end user (EULA InfraOffice)".
2. "License agreement Infra-Resource for Programs without Warranties (ILA InfraOffice)".
The first licenses by the number of jobs, the second determines the area of authorized use, if the use of the first is difficult due to objective reasons (for example, in educational institutions).
The cost of InfraOffice.pro is 495 rubles for one EULA license.
For educational institutions, InfraOffice.pro is offered at a reduced price of 2900 rubles. for 1 educational institution (the license allows all teachers, staff and students to use InfraOffice.pro at school and at home).
Recall that the Infra-Resource company is the developer of OpenOffice.org Pro - a semi-large assembly of OpenOffice.org in the Russian-language environment, distributed under the LGPL license, in other words - free of charge for both individuals and organizations. It is not yet known whether further development of OpenOffice.org Pro will continue or Infra-Resource will continue to deal only with a commercial package - InfraOffice.pro. At the time of writing this note on the Infra-Resource forum, such a question has been asked, but the answer to it has not yet been seen...
Summer is probably a great time to prepare numerous teams of budgetary institutions for the "monetization" of what has been free until now.
Long-suffering teachers and others like them do not even suspect yet what kind of pig they are ready to put on them by domestic developers, who are rooting for the Fatherland, presumably.
For a whole year, educational institutions were “sausaged” from the incomprehensible situation of either “pirates”, since the term of licenses for “First Aid” was expiring, or teachers continuing to engage in their direct duties, since the issue of legality will continue to use the available copies of Windows was discussed, decided, extended and, in general, safely hushed up - "windows" continue to work, as if nothing had happened, even after the day "X".
Such a delay is most likely the calm before the storm: the elections are coming soon, and the teachers' collectives are an inexhaustible electorate, and they are also good agitators.
It is quite possible to go in the right direction with the help of a “scandal” with software, threateningly asking: “Do you have licensed software? And what is the percentage of SPO?
A small quote from Wikipedia to understand the essence of the issue: “Free software (FOS) - a wide range of software solutions, in which User rights("freedoms") to unlimited installation, launch, as well as free use, study, distribution and modification(improvements) of the software are legally copyrighted under free licenses.”
Subtly capturing future trends, the company "Infra-Resource" announced the release of a commercial version of the popular OpenOffice.org open source office suite called InfraOffice.pro.
Notice the difference: free version called OpenOffice.org Pro and was released under the LGPL, in other words - free of charge for both individuals and organizations, but now the fate of this version is unknown. It is possible that they will no longer develop it.
In return, the country will receive InfraOffice.pro with two license versions:
1. "Licenses for the use of Infra-Resource software for the end user (EULA InfraOffice)".
2. 2. "Infra-Resource License Agreement for Programs without Warranties (ILA InfraOffice)".
The first version means that a certain number of jobs are licensed, the second is used if the use of the first “is difficult due to objective reasons (for example, in educational institutions)”.
Another quote: The release of a commercial office suite by Infra-Resource is a bold and timely step. The practical value and democratic price of InfraOffice.pro opens up new prospects for improving the legal climate as an affordable replacement for counterfeit software.”
These are the words of the gray-haired fox Alexander Fedichkin, head of the System Integration Center of the SVEMEL group of companies. I will especially note the words " affordable replacement for counterfeit software”…
You'd think the free version of this "affordable replacement" wasn't...
The current cost of the former free office suite is 495 rubles for one EULA license.
For schools, of course, discounts: 2900 rubles. for one educational institution. At the same time, the “goodies” are that the license allows all teachers, employees and students to use InfraOffice.pro at school and at home.
And is it necessary?
This is how the Infra-Resource company marked the beginning of the end of the good idea of free and open software, at least in Russia.
And so it is in everything: decide to download a photo recovery program, be prepared for the fact that you will have to pay for quality.
In 2003, the Infra-Resource company was created, and its first project was the Russification of the popular free office software package OpenOffice.org. As early as next year, the “infrovtsy” decided not to limit themselves to simple localization and began to introduce their own developments. The package received a new name (OpenOffice.org pro), integrated dictionaries, Russian language checkers, improved compatibility with Cyrillic documents, and a number of other changes.
Before we move on to describing the features InfraOffice.pro, you should talk a little about the OpenOffice.org office suite. Its history began in the late 90s, and today OpenOffice.org ranks second in popularity after Microsoft Office, almost not inferior to it in terms of functionality and classic interface. But unlike the latter, it is distributed absolutely free of charge. There are package versions for the following operating systems: Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X Intel/PowerPC, Solaris, FreeBSD.
AT last years in many countries of the world, government, educational and commercial institutions are gradually moving to use the OpenOffice.org package. According to Wikipedia, about a quarter of German users use OpenOffice.org and programs based on it; a number of ministries and departments of Western European countries have been using Open Source applications for several years (including OpenOffice.org). In Russia, Rostelecom has been using the office suite since 2007, federal Service bailiffs of the Russian Federation - since 2009.
OpenOffice.org includes the following programs: Writer ( word processor and visual HTML editor), Calc (spreadsheet), Draw (vector graphics editor), Impress (presentation preparation system), Base (database program), and Math (formula editor). OpenOffice.org fully supports open format OpenDocument Format (ODF) and at the same time copes well with Microsoft Office 97-2003 formats (.doc, .xls, etc.) and Microsoft Office Open XML (.xdoc, .xxls, etc.).
The Infra-Resource company first appeared on the computer market in 2003. The first thing this company did was to translate into Russian a fairly well-known free set office applications openoffice.org. After that, it was decided to release their own software package.
This set was given a new name InfraOffice.pro, dictionaries were introduced, spell checking was introduced, compatibility with Russian-language documents was improved, and many more different additions.
Initially, it is worth a little description of the OpenOffice.org office suite. This set appeared in the late 90s. Today it is the second most common after MS Office. By functionality and the interface is almost the same. However, there is one significant difference: the first is distributed free of charge. OpenOffice.org can be installed on almost all existing operating systems.
Recently, in many states, various educational and commercial institutions have gradually begun to switch to the use of this package. According to research, almost a quarter of German users use OpenOffice.org. In addition, some domestic organizations are also switching to the use of this set of utilities.
OpenOffice.org consists of several utilities. It includes the Writer word processor, Calc spreadsheet application, graphics program Draw, an Impress presentation utility, is designed to handle databases in Base, formulas can be written in Math. In addition, OpenOffice.org can handle the ODF extension and supports MS Office 97-03 extensions.
Kit components and scope of delivery
InfraOffice.pro is based on OpenOffice.org pro, but it has several additions from Infra-Resource programmers. One of them is to warn users when signing, saving and sending files with hidden information or personal files. In addition, automated tools for their elimination are provided.
In order not to confuse this package with OpenOffice, it has its own icons for documents in windows explorer, as well as different design of some elements. It is worth noting that there can be several office suites on a PC, and there will be no conflicts.
InfraOffice.pro can only work on Windows operating systems not higher than "seven". In addition, during installation, Java is installed or updated immediately. In addition, there is a portable version of the program without Java, but with limited features. You can work with it from a flash drive. The delivery includes a certificate of use for InfraOffice.pro, training material with a disk. In addition, the image can be downloaded from the official resource of the manufacturer.
The program consumes a minimum of system resources. RAM requires a minimum of 256 MB, free space the disk needs 650 MB for installation and 440 MB after eliminating the temporary installation files. Almost all modern computers are suitable for such requirements. It is only important that the operating system should not be lower Windows versions xp.
Immediately installs four standard dictionaries, but if necessary, you can increase this number from the OpenOffice.org database.
The main features of the InfraOffice.pro suite
This application package is able to work with many modern and old formats. For example, a text editor is capable of handling 20 extensions from .txt to .xml.
The utility provides the ability to process documents of varying complexity that contain integrated objects, user forms, fields connected to databases, automatic input elements, and so on. In addition, the program has templates that can facilitate the creation of simple documents. All presets for text editor, spreadsheets and presentations can be downloaded from the official resource or you can make your own.
The creators of the program claim the ability to perform a large number of different operations with digital documents in it. In particular, the application is able to process markup texts containing embedded elements, forms, a system of footnotes and links, and more. In addition, you can work with spreadsheets that link to databases and are automated on different languages programming.
You can create presentations and distill them into modern formats. In addition, you can work with business graphics. At the same time, it is possible to work with common vector and raster formats. It is also possible to process mathematical formulas using description languages, graphics and databases.
Any edition of OpenOffice.org handles such operations. Distinctive feature InfraOffice is the ability to work with personal data. If you are transferring or saving files with hidden data, then a warning will pop up.
In addition, it is possible to activate the cleaning of documents from hidden information in automatic mode. In addition, the program allows you to enter digital signatures according to the CAPICOM standard for ODF files.
Extensions and additional options
The indisputable advantage of OpenOffice.org is the change in the functionality of applications using add-ons. However, after the project was taken over by the Apache Foundation, additions and presets to official resource have ceased to exist. But you can download all this from the Infra-Resource resource.
Initially, several common extensions were added to the InfraOffice installation kit. FROM using PDF Import can work with PDF files and correct them using the PDF/ODF hybrid file extension. Similar files are PDFs that contain an integrated ODF file. At the same time, it starts without adjusting the structure.
The Presentation Minimizer add-on is designed to reduce the volume of a presentation. Applying the elimination of unnecessary information and image compression. It can also be used to eliminate notes and covered frames so that personal data is not accidentally published. In addition, Microsoft PowerPoint projects can be processed.
The ReportBuilder add-on is a customizable report editor. Working together with databases, you can produce reports for Oracle, HSQL and other databases.
MediaWiki Publisher is designed to create Wiki articles on MediaWiki services without using the required markup language. The extension allows you to work with text elements and primitive tables. To publish a file on the MediaWiki service, you need to open it, activate the extension using the Submit - MediaWiki Server command, and perform a few primitive manipulations.
In addition, on the disk you can find several extensions from Infra-Resource.
Addition "Mini-calculator" contains the means to add a calculated result to the document. It can be applied for different kind calculations.
The Paste from Web extension makes it easy to paste data from web pages using the clipboard. If anyone has tried to add a page with many pictures to an OpenOffice file, they know how slow files are processed and freezes occur. Using this add-on, such problems should not arise.
The Mini Corrector extension is designed to automatically correct text. With it, you can perform large-scale search and replacement on a file using a list of rules that can be used in full or separately. In addition, it can change or move.
Price and license features
InfraOffice.pro does not come with technical security features, so only a certificate is used to verify the license of the copy being used. It is printed on paper with technical security features in the form of watermarks, microtext and a background grid. In addition, name lines are filled in the certificate and a hologram with a number is glued.
InfraOffice is distributed in two license types: EULA and ILA NWP. Nothing strange should happen during the acquisition and licensing. Everything is simple and clear. By purchasing a license for educational institutions, you can install the program on an unlimited number of PCs.
InfraOffice.pro vs. Microsoft Office
On the company's resource you can find a comparative table of office suites. If we compare all the parameters, then InfraOffice.pro is far superior to Microsoft Office in terms of functionality and price. However, the latter has a huge audience of users from all over the world who have been working with it for many years.
It is worth noting that OpenOffice.org is able to completely replace Microsoft Office. However, here it must be borne in mind that full compatibility cannot be achieved, since many Microsoft formats are closed. It is worth noting here that, in general, those companies and users who have started working with OpenOffice.org do not experience significant inconveniences and problems.
Judging by the foregoing, we can conclude that it is not necessary to pay huge amounts of money to use the popular Microsoft Office suite. Free developments like OpenOffice.org are quite capable of replacing a well-known competitor. Moreover, in some respects they even surpass it. However, the choice is always up to the user.