OpenOffice and other questions

[Polly]

Hello, I'm very new here; my first two articles are still under review.

I have a few questions:

Is anyone here using OpenOffice? Does CC accept the default ODF text file? I've been converting mine but it's one extra thing to remember and I know I'll mess up eventually.

Can the title of the article be the same title as the one used in the customer's request, or should we always composed a new title? I used the customer's title on one article, so now I'm biting my nails.

Is the requested word-count cast in stone? One of mine was 300 words instead of the 250 requested. I just couldn't edit out any more content without losing vital information.

Thank you for any help.

Please wish me luck. My first article was sent back for revision. CC seems to be a wonderful place and you're all so helpful here in the forum. Hope I will make the grade.

All best wishes,

Polly

[nichewriter]

Is anyone here using OpenOffice? Does CC accept the default ODF text file? I've been converting mine but it's one extra thing to remember and I know I'll mess up eventually.

Hi, Polly! Welcome to CC. I use OpenOffice, and no, CC doesn't accept the .odt extension. I simply convert mine to .doc right before sending. I think a couple of weeks ago, I forgot to convert one of my articles to .doc and missed that one during submission In general, though, I don't have a problem converting and uploading files from .odt to .doc.

Again, welcome to CC!

~Sherry

[Celeste Stewart]

It's fine to use the customer's suggested title but only one title can be registered with CC if that makes sense. For example, if the customer suggests "How to Groom Dogs" the first CC writer to submit that title gets it. It's used as an identifier on the Web site or something like that. The next writer that submits "How to Groom Dogs" will need to use a variation or they'll get an error message along the lines of "title already registered." A variation such as "Simple Tips for Grooming Dogs" may be all that's needed.

Word count ranges usually have a little flexibility built into them so I wouldn't worry too much about your 300-word submission. Most of the publishers are Web publishers and don't have the problems of newspapers with limited space for a column.

*edited: Simple Tips for Groom Dogs (Grooming)

[Ed]

Titles must be grammatically correct, even if the title of the request given by the customer is not.

[Polly]

Thank you so much for the speedy replies!

Oh dear, Ed, is that a hint? I had a title for that article but I began to second guess myself and decided that the customer probably wanted it worded that way for SEO purposes. I’ll be sure to make up original titles in the future.

Thanks again to you all.

Polly

[Celeste Stewart]

Ed may have been referring to my example which had a blatantly horrendous error in it (Simple Tips for Groom Dogs should have been "Grooming").

[Ed]

No, nothing in particular, and I'm not hinting at anything. Just reminding. A lot of authors just copy and paste the title of the request into the title field with shocking results.

I don't think it's necessary to understand the request title as the intended title for the article, anyway. Sometimes, customers may specify or propose titles, but you should create a title that suits your article.

Thanks,
Ed

[Debbi]

Plus, if customers buy full rights, they can change the title of your article to anything they please.

[Elizabeth Ann West]

If you want, you can change the default save file type for Writer (Open Office) in the options section. I think it's in the general saving settings at the bottom.

[nichewriter]

If you want, you can change the default save file type for Writer (Open Office) in the options section. I think it's in the general saving settings at the bottom.

Tools --> Options --> +Load/Save --> General --> Always save as --> Microsoft Word 97/2000/XP

[Elizabeth Ann West]

Yeah I was going to give the steps, but I use a Mac, so my options are different.

[Polly]

Thank you,

I went in and changed the default setting. One less step to worry about.

Polly