Kixtart Scripts

OpenOffice.org Network Installation Utility

This utility will allow you to "Mass Install" OpenOffice.org onto network computers.

OOo_NetInstall

This version does not contain the OpenOffice.org files. You must install a version of OpenOffice.org onto a computer (using the C:\Program Files\OpenOffice.org\" directory) then copy the OpenOffice.org directory into the "files" directory within the archive. Use this if you want a customized installation for your site, or if I haven't created an updated version of a new OpenOffice.org release yet.

Note: With the release of OOo 3.0, this script may not work properly as OOo now relies on specific MS files located within the Windows directory, for more info on this issue, download the Novell version below and browse the source files.

Download this script from here or here

Novell's OpenOffice.org Release

This version will allow you to install Novell's version of OpenOffice.org for Windows onto your Network Computers. IMO - Novell's version of OpenOffice.org has a number of features that I prefer to the standard version - see below for more information about the differences between the versions.

To download this version, you can either use a BitTorrent client, with the torrent files located at:
http://tracker.pcc-services.com:6969/

Or you can use one of the following mirrors that have the files.
Mirror 1
If you wish to add your site as a mirror, please contact me.

Standard OpenOffice.org Release

I no longer offer a full install for the Standard OpenOffice.org Release. If you want to utilize the Standard OOo release, download the OOo_netinstall utility and add the OOo files to it yourself, or just use the Novell Edition (above). FWIW, most Linux Distros use the version from http://go.oo.org/, which is the source tree that Novell (and others) maintains.

For information on differences between these versions, check out this Interview with Michael Meeks, an OpenOffice.org developer currently working for Novell.

Adding more Clipart

Currently OpenOffice.org does not come with a rich Clipart Library, however it is relatively simple to add a "Network Repository" for your Networked Workstations.

First thing you want to do is to download more Clipart and sort them into various directories. You can download the OpenClipart repository that I use here. Extract this to a network share.
Now that you have additional Clipart, go ahead and deploy OOo onto 1 networked Machine. You need to "register" these additional files with OpenOffice.org before it can use them.
Log into the Machine you installed OOo onto. Delete the OpenOffice.org directory within the Profile (%Profiledir%/Application Data/OpenOffice.org2).
Launch OpenOffice.org, then view the contents of the folder "Application Data/OpenOffice.org2/share/gallery" within your profile, make note of all the files listed.
Open the Gallery within OpenOffice.org and create a new theme for each directory within the Clipart Archive, use "Find Files" and browse to the sub-directory to find all files within the directory structure, then hit Add All. Ensure you name the Theme appropriately, then hit OK.
NOTE: I highly recommend not adding Clipart to an already installed "Theme", as doing this will change the files within the OpenOffice.org Program Files directories and not add files to your profile (which you will copy later).
Now go back into the "Application Data/OpenOffice.org2/share/gallery" folder within your profile and copy the newly created files that were created there into the \files\OpenOffice.org\share\gallery directory of the network installation files.
Deploy OpenOffice.org onto your networked Workstations.

Changes made to the Default Install

In order for OpenOffice.org to work more to my liking, I made the following adjustment to the default install.

Added Custom Template Files

I include numerous Template files that I have created/collected over the years.

Uses the Large Tango Icon Set by Default (better integrated into Windows)

To do this I adjusted the file "OpenOffice.org\share\registry\data\org\openoffice\Office\Common.xcu" with the following:

<node oor:name="Misc">
	<prop oor:name="SymbolStyle" oor:type="xs:string">
		<value>tango</value>
	</prop>
	<prop oor:name="SymbolSet" oor:type="xs:short">
		<value>1</value>
	</prop>
</node>

Use Extended Tips by Default

To do this I adjusted the file "OpenOffice.org\share\registry\data\org\openoffice\Office\Common.xcu" with the following:

<node oor:name="Help">
	<prop oor:name="ExtendedTip" oor:type="xs:boolean">
		<value>true</value>
	</prop>
</node>

Add a Insert Graphic -> From Gallery.. menu item

This was added because some teachers could not quite figure out that the Gallery was in fact Clipart.

To do this I adjusted the file "OpenOffice.org\share\config\soffice.cfg\modules\swriter\menubar\menubar.xml" with the following:

<menu:menuitem menu:id=".uno:Gallery" menu:helpid=".uno:Gallery" menu:label="From Gallery..."/>

Disable the First Run Wizard

To avoid having ALL of your users click through the "License Wizard" I added the following to the default OOo installation (Novell's Version already disables the wizard by default).

<node oor:name="Office">
	<prop oor:name="LicenseAcceptDate" oor:type="xs:string">
		<value>2007-09-17T14:13:24</value>
	</prop>
	<prop oor:name="FirstStartWizardCompleted" oor:type="xs:boolean">
		<value>true</value>
	</prop>	
</node>

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Mike Petersen

Network Admin, Technical Writer, Programmer, GNU/Linux Fan, etc.