KubuntuKofficeByDefault
Please check the status of this specification in Launchpad before editing it. If it is Approved, contact the Assignee or another knowledgeable person before making changes.
Launchpad entry: https://features.launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+spec/kubuntu-koffice-by-default
Packages affected: koffice, openoffice.org-*
Summary
Replace OpenOffice.org with KOffice 1.6
Rationale
KOffice uses the already loaded kdelibs so will use less resources than OpenOffice.org and startup
- is much faster.
- Better integration with other default Kubuntu applications such as Krita,Kopete,Kontact/Kmail
- Uses less space on the CDRom leaving room for future apps without removing lang packs as Kubuntu grows
- Support KDE apps in our KDE Based Distro
Use cases
Scope
Moving KOffice to Main from Universe and adding it to the kubuntu-desktop seeds as well as removing OpenOffice.org from the seeds
Design
Implementation
Data preservation and migration
All file formats supported by OpenOffice.org are also supported by KOffice 1.6
Unresolved issues
BoF agenda and discussion
Before we add KOffice into Kubuntu we should conduct some comparative tests with OpenOffice. Especially the support of Microsoft Office formats is a feature essential for a common user and as such it should be thoroughly tested.
Comments
Absolutely not. KOffice is not a suitable replacement for OpenOffice.org at this time.
Not all file formats supported by OpenOffice.org are supported equally well in KOffice. This particularly applies to the Microsoft Office formats. Improvements have been made in this area over the 1.5x and 1.6x releases, but the file format support is still insufficient.
KWord, KSpread and KPresenter are not as stable, polished or well tested as their OpenOffice.org counterparts, which have benefited from much greater manpower over many years.
KWord, KSpread and KPresenter have a considerably smaller feature-set than OpenOffice. I believe that experienced spreadsheet users will find KSpread in particular wanting.
- KWord and KPresenter in particular still have a critical issue with font kerning where text runs into itself, depending on the font being used.
OpenOffice.org already has a number of features to help integrate it into the KDE environment - such as support for the KDE file open/save dialogs and a connector for the KDE address book. I think time would be better spent improving these features.
OpenOffice.org performance has already improved in the latest release, and I suspect that it will continue to do so.
OpenOffice.org is well supported commercially - which has obvious implications for those who bankroll Kubuntu.
I think the best way for Kubuntu to support KOffice is by continuing to provide up-to-date packages of new versions as they are released and continuing to advertise those packages on the Kubuntu website.
-- Robert Knight
I use koffice for all my (simple) office tasks. I prefer the quick startup times and better integration into the KDE desktop to the slow startup and bulk of features I never use and need.
Question is, if the huge majority of Kubuntu users does not need the features present in OO.org and not yet in Koffice.
Poweruser usually have usually no problem adding missing software 
-- allee
It think it is a mistake to assume that power users of office productivity programs are also power users of Kubuntu in general. Consider the case of a person running a small business managing their accounts using Excel or OpenOffice on Windows. They may be a reasonably experienced user of Excel, but may know very little about what software is available for Kubuntu or how to install it.
I think it is also a mistake to assume that OpenOffice.org's startup is necessarily slow because of the features it has. Microsoft Office probably has at least feature parity with OpenOffice and starts up extremely quickly (around 5s cold, 2s warm start). Aside from improvements in OpenOffice itself (which are ongoing, performance was a hot topic at this year's OpenOffice conference), there are changes that the distribution can make to improve the situation. OpenOffice.org's startup time will benefit heavily from preloading relevant files into memory and dynamic linker optimisations.
> "if the huge majority of Kubuntu users"
This isn't just about Kubuntu's current users. It also concerns the new users that we wish to attract to Kubuntu. This also brings up the important question of who Kubuntu's users are and what their requirements are from office software. Making such a serious change to one of the most important programs provided with Kubuntu cannot be done lightly.
-- Robert Knight
I am of the opinion that this is a good idea. Apparently it has some opponents however. I think the best solution would be a 'kubuntu-desktop' in main AND 'kubuntu-koffice' package in universe. I believe this is the best solution because:
- Eases upgrades for those that choose KOffice but aren't savvy with the system in general.
- Gives the KDE derivative a purely KDE environment...
Faster startup times - OpenOffice.org still can take 10-20 seconds to start, and feels sluggish on many systems. This looks bad for all of Linux.
- More users, thus hopefully more motivation to improve MSOffice file formats.
- Better for lower end hardware.
- Makes the default appease more people.
For all the good things OpenOffice.org provides, its sadly lacking in performance. I have honestly never used it for any length of time because of its performance. Is it really better to have a more feature-full application if that application is avoided by the user?
Whether you agree its a valid replacement candidate is next to irrelivant, it should still be possible to ease upgrades for those that want a more responsive office suite.
Now let me respond to things specifically:
> "This also brings up the important question of who Kubuntu's users are and what their requirements are from office software."
Obviously, Kubuntu's users are currently those that are interested in Ubuntu due to mind-share, but do not like Gnome. This means Kubuntu users have already made choices, thus are more interested in things.
I think a good requirement is that the office suite fits into the desktop. I prefer to have an Application menu panel for instance, non-Qt apps look ugly when you're used to this. There are other examples where non-Qt apps don't fit also.
I think the user-base would prefer a cohesive desktop, and wait for the features you describe than continue forgetting why they wish to use a Word Processor by the time its open.
> "Making such a serious change to one of the most important programs provided with Kubuntu cannot be done lightly."
I believe it was a bad choice to start with, and thus should never have required a spec to change it.
-- TreyEarl