Editing PDFs with OpenOffice.org
Repackaged
© mipan, Fotolia
OpenOffice has always been able to export PDF documents. Version 3.0 is the first to introduce an extension that lets you import and edit PDFs.
Adobe originally designed the Portable Document Format (PDF) as a display-only format for platform-independent document viewing, but several tools for editing PDF documents have appeared over the years. OpenOffice.org version 3.0 (OOo) brings the power of PDF editing to the free OpenOffice suite.
Before you raise your hopes too high, let me start by saying that, despite the best efforts of editing tools, PDF remains a format primarily dedicated to rendering documents and has limited editing capability. If you are thinking of using an OpenOffice extension to edit the document in its original format, including templates, paragraphs, images, and tables, you will be disappointed. This limitation is not a failing of OpenOffice; it is inherent in the PDF format itself. If you need to send documents in an editable format, the Open Document Format (ODF, i.e., OpenOffice's native file format) is a better choice.
Despite this, the PDF Import function is a useful feature that lets users open PDF document content for editing, with some limitations. The extension adds a function for loading PDF files as easily as any other format to the free office suite.
[...]
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux May Soon Work on Snapdragon X2-Based PCs
If you're thinking about buying a Snapdragon X2-based desktop or laptop, Linux may soon be an option.
-
KDE for People Initiative Calls for AI Ban in Plasma
A new community of KDE wants the project to adopt a strict no-AI policy for KDE Plasma.
-
KDE Sets Ambitious Goals for 2026 and Beyond
KDE Connect reveals the goals for the Linux desktop darling, with one of those goals long overdue.
-
It’s Time to Test Fedora 45 Beta
Fedora 45 beta has been released with updated Gnome, KDE Plasma, and kernel.
-
Ubuntu Stonking Stingray Gets Even Rustier
Ubuntu 26.10 has completed its migration to the Rust-based coreutils.
-
AI Fixes Linux Bottlenecks Using “Hideous” Code
A Linux developer used AI to fix bottlenecks that caused problems when building the kernel. The resulting AI-generated code needed a lot of work.
-
Advanced Video Coding Still Under Patent
Brazilian patent BRPI0109962B1 has expired, which means that DivX and Xvid are no longer problematic for Linux, but it doesn’t mean that video is all of a sudden fully unleashed.
-
2,000 Vulnerabilities per Linux Release
Thanks to AI bug hunters, the Linux kernel is seeing record numbers of vulnerabilities, and it's overwhelming developers.
-
Linux Exempt from California’s Age Verification Law
So long as Linux is distributed under the GPL, MIT, BSD, and Apache licenses, the OS is exempt from being required to verify the age of its users in California.
-
Roll Out the Cake: Linux Turns 35
35 years ago, a Finnish student began a humble project that would forever change the course of technology.