However, StarOffice could make an impact due to Sun's marketing strategy. Currently this strategy appeals to cost-conscious environments such as educational institutions and some small businesses. If Sun can persuade most new computer manufacturers to install StarOffice instead of Microsoft Works or some editions of Microsoft Office such as the small business edition, then StarOffice could have a significant impact. Such a strategy would be taking a page of Microsoft's playbook, the one that was used to popularize Windows in the initial stages. While StarOffice could have an impact on Microsoft Office, it is unlikely to have an impact on Windows itself.
Few users make their OS choices just based on savings in an office suite.
For cost-conscious UNIX IT managers, StarOffice is definitely worth evaluating. StarOffice is an excellent choice for managers who administer heterogeneous environments, including Solaris, Windows and Linux, and who need office documents to be shared between the environments. UNIX IT managers should also include in their evaluation the StarPortal offering due shortly from Sun. StarPortal will support the Web-based computing model for StarOffice, which will free you from having to install StarOffice on individual machines, one at a time. StarOffice is not suitable in environments where the cost of the office suite is not significant compared to the overall IT costs.