Juan Carlos Sanz, a long time contributor to OpenOffice and LibreOffice, and a TDF Member, passed away last Friday, August 22. He has been contributing to documentation and localization in Spanish, and has been active in the forums to help LibreOffice users as much as he could.
In July 2022, Juan Carlos was interviewed by Mike Saunders for the Community Member Monday. In 2022, he also attended the LibreOffice Conference in Milan (2022) and Bucharest (2023).
Here’s our summary of updates, events and activities in the LibreOffice project in the last four weeks – click the links to learn more…
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The LibreOffice Documentation Team is excited to announce the release of the brand new Getting Started Guide 25.2, updated with all the latest features of LibreOffice 25.2!
Whether you’re brand new to LibreOffice or just want a fast track to mastering its tools, this guide is your perfect starting point. Inside, you’ll find easy-to-follow introductions to:
📝 Writer (word processing)
📊 Calc (spreadsheets)
📽️ Impress (presentations)
🎨 Draw (vector graphics)
🧮 Math (formula editor)
📚 Base (database management)
This guide is part of our growing collection of documentation — lovingly written, edited, and reviewed by a global team of dedicated volunteers who are passionate about open-source software and digital freedom.
👏 The 25.2 update was coordinated by Dione Maddern, with valuable contributions from Peter Schofield, Jean Weber, Ed Olson, Karen Burke, B. Antonio F., and Olivier Hallot. A huge thanks to everyone involved!
📥 Ready to dive in? Download the guide for free from the Documentation website or check it out on the Bookshelf Project.
Here’s our summary of updates, events and activities in the LibreOffice project in the last four weeks – click the links to learn more…
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Marco Marega writes:
Hi, I’m Marco, an Italian translator and Member of The Document Foundation. Twice a year I take part in an event in Pordenone to promote LibreOffice within the stand “Linux Arena” of the PNLUG Linux User Group. It’s inside a local fair, part of which is dedicated to technology, makers, electronics and so on.
For the event from April 25 – 27 we had a LibreOffice stand with a 32″ monitor, showing an Impress presentation about LibreOffice on a loop. At the stand I met different interested people – some of whom I already know since they visit the fair regularly, while others I saw for the first time.
There is always curiosity about LibreOffice, and this time I noticed an increasing demand about AI integration and related plugins. The LibreOffice coffee/beer mats were very much appreciated by visitors to the stand.
The Pordenone Linux User Group invited other associations to share the stand, so there were also:
The next edition of the event will be on 22 – 23 November.
The Document Foundation and LibreOffice support the international campaign @endof10 https://endof10.org/
The countdown has begun. On 14 October 2025, Microsoft will end support for Windows 10. This will leave millions of users and organisations with a difficult choice: should they upgrade to Windows 11, or completely rethink their work environment?
The good news? You don’t have to follow Microsoft’s upgrade path. There is a better option that puts control back in the hands of users, institutions, and public bodies: Linux and LibreOffice. Together, these two programmes offer a powerful, privacy-friendly and future-proof alternative to the Windows + Microsoft 365 ecosystem.
The real costs of switching to Windows 11
The move to Windows 11 isn’t just about security updates. It increases dependence on Microsoft through aggressive cloud integration, forcing users to adopt Microsoft accounts and services. It also leads to higher costs due to subscription and licensing models, and reduces control over how your computer works and how your data is managed. Furthermore, new hardware requirements will render millions of perfectly good PCs obsolete.
This is a turning point. It is not just a milestone in a product’s life cycle. It is a crossroads.
The new path: Linux + LibreOffice
These two programmes form the backbone of a free and open computing environment based on open standards. For individual users, public administrations, schools and businesses, this combination offers more than enough: it is mature and secure, and is already in use worldwide for mission-critical workloads. Furthermore, using open standards protects users against any attempts by software developers to control them.
Here’s what this alternative offers:
What does migration look like?
Replacing Windows and Microsoft Office is not as difficult as it seems, either at an individual or corporate level. Many organisations around the world have already done so, and many others are planning to do so right now, precisely because they no longer want to be subject to the commercial strategies of Microsoft and its partners.
These are the key steps:
This is not a radical change, but rather a gradual, tailor-made transition depending on user needs.
It is important to start immediately
Microsoft is forcing users’ hands, but it is also opening a door. Now is the time to challenge your assumptions and take back control of how your personal computers work, how long they last, and most importantly, how your content is managed.
Linux and LibreOffice are not just alternatives; they are superior choices that most users have not considered until now because they trusted Microsoft — perhaps too much. This trust has been betrayed by the decision to abandon a functioning operating system such as Windows 10, purely to sell more products and lock users in further, which cannot be justified by any technological assessment.
Here’s how to get started:
The end of Windows 10 does not mark the end of choice, but the beginning of a new era. If you are tired of mandatory updates, invasive changes, and being bound by the commercial choices of a single supplier, it is time for a change. Linux and LibreOffice are ready — 2025 is the right year to choose digital freedom!
The Document Foundation and LibreOffice support the international campaign @endof10 https://endof10.org/
