If you’re looking for an alternative to Windows Office, OpenOffice or other software suites, you might want to give IBM Lotus Symphony 1.3 a look. Although the name of the suite is derived from a similar software package that failed to make an impact in the 1990’s, this suite seems to have more potential and a wide range of features that might make it more appealing to consumers and computer users.

New Features in 1.3

One important feature is support for Microsoft Office 2007 files. This makes the software more versatile and allows you to easily access your older files or files from work, school, or another computer without worrying about file compatibility. Improved hyperlink support, password protection for spreadsheets, and envelope printing also increase the versatility of the software in homes and offices. The help content is also greatly improved to make learning the features included in the suite easier.

Additionally, many elements of the suite have been improved or enhanced to make them more usable. For example, the animations in the Symphony version of Microsoft PowerPoint have improved animations between slides. More clip art, graphics, and text enhancement options are also available to help users make better presentations and documents. The toolbar and menu are more accessible and usable, too. Mail merge, drop and drag file access, and Arial default font seem like small changes but they dramatically increase the usability of the suite.

The Benefits of Lotus Symphony

There are a wide range of reasons to consider Lotus Symphony for your office suite needs. Below is a list of some of those benefits:

• Price – One of the most notable advantages of the Lotus Symphony 1.3 is the price tag. This software is completely free and can be downloaded directly from the IBM web site. Considering the price of Microsoft Office 2007, this price is going to meet the budgets of more users.
• Software Included – The suite contains spreadsheet, presentation, and document creation software. Nearly anything you might need to do on your office suite at home or at work can be done using this software.
• Easy to Use Interface – Many users shy away from non-Microsoft suites because of the learning curve. With Lotus Symphony that is not the case. The program is easy to use, convenient to learn, and lets users move between documents easily with a tabbed layout.
• Easy Installation – The software can be installed very easily even by new users. This is an advantage over other software suites which can require multiple disks for installation.

Despite these benefits, there are some disadvantages that should be considered.

The Disadvantages of Lotus Symphony

Although the price may be a huge benefit, users must weight all of the positives along with the negatives.

• Download Size – While having a large file to download may not seem like a tremendous disadvantage, if you have a slower Internet connection it could take a long time to download the file. (note, it's not bigger than OpenOffice, but still big).
• Hogs Memory – Another disadvantage is that the program does suck up a lot of memory while in use and this could cause significant slowdown to your other programs, especially if you’re using other memory draining programs at the same time.
• Default File Format – With Lotus Symphony, the default file format is ODF (the same used by the free Open Office suite) which is fine but you need to remember that this format is not recognized by Microsoft Office or by Apple iWork. That means that you need to remember to save them in an alternative format (Microsoft's .doc) or you can configure Symphony from the preferences to always do that.

Other Things to Know

Besides the advantages and disadvantages, it might be a good idea to know that Lotus Symphony is based on the same technology as the Open Office suite. However, it is not an open-source software. The program’s functionality and file formats are similar to the other suite but the interface is cleaner and easier to use, even for new computer users.

The suite of programs also includes a web browser. However, the browser is not very functional. It works very slowly and sucks up a lot of memory without really performing any better than other web browsers.

Some users have also complained about the number of shortcuts that are automatically placed on your desktop when the software is installed. This is a minor complaint given that the shortcuts can easily be removed manually. Each of the shortcuts provide you with access to one of the three main portions of the software: presentations, spreadsheets, or word processing. If you don’t mind a cluttered desktop, they do provide handy access to the tools you need.

Some Concerns with the Beta Version

Back in November 2008, the Beta version of Lotus Symphony was released for testing. Some of the early reports have said freezing was one of the more common problems. This might have been because of a bug that hadn’t been fixed in earlier versions or could be because of its memory requirements. Since the software is free, trying out the software then determining whether or not the software is problematic is a possibility.

Conclusion

Despite some of the concerns with the Beta Version which very well be improved in the final version of the suite, and tweaked over the other point releases, the free program does provide some benefits which make it a good option for students, offices, and homes. Most users do not want to spend several hundred dollars on the Microsoft suite so this free option can ensure they have the tools they need at an affordable price.

Additionally, the program is designed on the Open Document file format which is versatile and has proven itself to be highly useful to millions of users around the world. Just remember to save your files in an alternative format if you want to read them on computers with other software installed, even though plugins exist.

Overall, if you’re looking for a non-Microsoft option and you don’t have a huge budget, you should consider trying Lotus Symphony.

Resources
Website | Download