ThinkFree Office - a Cheap/No-Cost Alternative to Microsoft Office

There are many options for computer users wanting a complete office suite. Microsoft Office, AppleWorks, StarOffice, iWork, KOffice... but one of the least-known (and in my opinion most feature-filled), is ThinkFree Office. ThinkFree Office is a Korean-owned office suite, which includes a word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation program.

Is ThinkFree Office ready to compete with such office suite stalwarts as Microsoft Office, AppleWorks or OpenOffice? That depends on how much you're willing to spend, and whether or not your Internet connection is solid.

ThinkFree Office is, depending on which option you choose, either a low-cost desktop alternative, or a free web-based solution to all your document needs. ThinkFree is a java-based application that can be downloaded to run as a regular program on your desktop, or a java applet-based program which runs in a browser window. It is similar to Google Docs, but has a page-based view, more similar to a traditional word processor. Along with word processing functions, ThinkFree also includes a spreadsheet and a presentation program.

As far as features and ease of use, ThinkFree stacks up quite well against its competitors. Like Microsoft Office, ThinkFree Office can handle (in its word processing module), tables, styles, bullets, borders, multiple columns, headers and footers, inserting pictures and graphics, as well as offering outlining support. In addition, ThinkFree Write offers light drawing and shapes support, as well as text colorization, background colors and a variety of line and arrow styles.