The best part about openoffice.org is that its free (Microsoft 2003 editions available @ $499, $329 to upgrade) ideal for small, medium and home office work and supports an open format document standard. The latest version (free download here) of Open Office 2.0 is expected to reduce reliance on Microsoft product heavily. But the in question point is not only how your CPU is gong to embrace it but also needs to be seen how their file creation and file load times fare against the giant competitor. Normally open office takes more Ram than Microsoft but devoid of fancy documents Open Office’s effective simplicity allows you to transfer papers, documents and spreadsheets without much ado.
This time with version 2.0 the look of the interface is improved and irrespective of the platforms it runs all same. But as far as power point is concerned I think Microsoft wins hands down. Though Impress (Power Point version of Open Office) has shaped much better now than earlier 1.1.5 and can be an ideal tool for small businesses where you don’t need super complex jargon based charts and diagrams.
Full release here.