# What word processor I can use now that Word has gone crazy **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 22, 2023, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924 "2023-10-22T16:21:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/1 "2023-10-22T16:21:01Z")
I don’t do a lot of word processing but when I do I want to just do it! Not relearn a new program! Help me with a really solid basic word processor, preferably one I can import my Word files into somehow. I do use tables and I used to do MailMerge if that’s not too old hat. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/2 "2023-10-22T16:27:04Z")
> **[Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice...](https://www.libreoffice.org/download/download-libreoffice/)** > > Download free office suite for Windows, macOS and Linux. Microsoft compatible, based on OpenOffice, and updated regularly. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/3 "2023-10-22T16:54:11Z")
It seems like most everything has migrated over to Google Docs, now. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/4 "2023-10-22T17:45:11Z")
It might depend on what, specifically, you object to in Word—I haven’t noticed it becoming particularly “crazy” or hard to use lately—but yeah, LibreOffice Writer and Google Docs seem to be the alternatives that most people use who don’t use Word nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/5 "2023-10-22T19:13:28Z")
If you want something that works like Word did 20 years ago, _waaay_ back in 2003 on XP, well, you’re probably out of luck. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/6 "2023-10-22T19:37:40Z")
Try Atlantis. > **[Atlantis Word Processor. The creative writer's best friend](https://www.atlantiswordprocessor.com/en/)** > > Atlantis Word Processor is powerful, fast-loading and fully customizable. Create documents and reports, make eBooks, write novels, articles, and letters. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/7 "2023-10-22T20:09:54Z")
On the offchance that you’re on a Mac, take a look at [Nisus Writer Pro](https://www.nisus.com/pro/). ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/8 "2023-10-22T20:44:17Z")
One option is just to actually use older Word. Security issues are only a problem if you tend to open documents from untrusted sources. If all you do is make your own Word documents, then there’s not really anything to exploit. And Microsoft is good at making sure that DOCX files made in older versions still work on newer versions, so you can still publish the files if you need to. (Though, if you want to make sure people get the exact same document you wrote, export or “print” to PDF.) ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/9 "2023-10-22T21:08:28Z")
> [@kayT](#): > > preferably one I can import my Word files into somehow In my experience, the only program that properly opens Word documents is Microsoft Word. LibreOffice (see @DPRK’s link above) is probably the closest, but some formatting-type things will go screwy. Some of your tables might not display correctly. LibreOffice has worked fine for every document that I have created at home, but a lot of the documents I use for work (like our R&D design documents, which have to follow a particular format) don’t display properly. I have to use Microsoft Word for all of my work stuff. LibreOffice does do MailMerge, but I have never used it and I have no idea how well it works. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/10 "2023-10-22T21:31:35Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > In my experience, the only program that properly opens Word documents is Microsoft Word. This has been my experience with Google Docs. I need to use certain formats for cites and footnotes, and they don’t port well to Google Docs. But on the other hand, I’ve not had any troubles using Word, so I’m not sure what problems the OP is having with it? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/11 "2023-10-22T21:39:07Z")
On the other hand, one might argue that if fine details of complicated formatting are that important to you, a word processor might not be the right tool for the job in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/12 "2023-10-22T23:03:50Z")
I don’t think footnotes are complicated. They work fine on Word. But they don’t port well to Google Docs. If I got a more complicated programme, even less chance that they would transfer to Google Docs. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/13 "2023-10-22T23:28:56Z")
I use Microsoft 11. Evidently Word (Office?) upgraded a few weeks ago and I just got around to using it. I am surprised to hear that no one except me finds Word nearly impossible to use now. The “views” I can choose make it difficult to figure out where I am in my document; the editing is a lot less intuitive; if I click on “tell me what you want to do?” to get help, I get a list of things that are supposed to help and yet most of them are either off topic or don’t open. Maybe all this stuff happened a long time ago and you are just used to it, but boy this is a pain in the ass. Example: When I open an old document it opens in **tiny little** text shoved over to one side of the page. I try out “view” choices for a while, and eventually I find one I can use to see the document as it used to be, then find I cannot edit in that view. Do none of you other Word users have this trouble? I used LibreOffice a long time ago and it stopped working for me. Guess it’s time to give it another try. Thanks and if anyone has some clues about how I can make Word a little easier to use I would love to hear them. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2023, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/14 "2023-10-22T23:52:46Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > It seems like most everything has migrated over to Google Docs, now. Man, I would have thought so. I interact with a lot of law students who do some pro bono work for me. I send them a Google doc link to fill in some information. I specify to please edit directly in the Google doc in the email. And about half the time I still get a word doc back as an attachment. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/15 "2023-10-23T00:07:44Z")
Are there advantages to Google Docs? ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/16 "2023-10-23T00:20:59Z")
I use it only for writing D&D adventures but it looks good, is easy to use and I can open it anywhere without installing MS Word or even Windows. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/17 "2023-10-23T00:23:00Z")
> [@kayT](#): > > Are there advantages to Google Docs? I can open and edit documents on any of my computers or my phone and it’s even possible to read and edit shared documents. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/18 "2023-10-23T00:23:45Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > I interact with a lot of law students who do some pro bono work for me. I send them a Google doc link to fill in some information. I specify to please edit directly in the Google doc in the email. And about half the time I still get a word doc back as an attachment. My peeps! ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/19 "2023-10-23T00:26:30Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@kayT](#): > > > > Are there advantages to Google Docs? > > I can open and edit documents on any of my computers or my phone and it’s even possible to read and edit shared documents. My understanding—which could easily be wrong—is that Google Docs was designed to make it easy to share and collaborate on documents, allowing multiple people to access and edit the same document. And that Microsoft in response tried to include similar features in Office. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2023, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924/20 "2023-10-23T00:29:27Z")
Right. I _think_ those collaboration features are available in Office 365, the online version of Microsoft Office, though I wouldn’t know as several years ago my employer chose to switch from local installations of Microsoft Office to the Google Suite. We _could_ have switched to Office 365, but didn’t. We’re still working out how to reproduce things we once easily did in Office in the Google Apps. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-word-processor-i-can-use-now-that-word-has-gone-crazy/991924.md?page=2)