Module 5 · Doing Your Job on Linux
Big question: can you actually do your work on Linux? Open Word documents, send email, print, join the 10 a.m. Zoom call, look at your OneDrive? Yes. Every single one. The apps have slightly different names, but they all work and they all read the same files.
By the end of this module, you will:
- Know which Linux app does the same job as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook
- Know that you can still open and save
.docxand.xlsxfiles (your colleagues won't notice) - Know what works for printing, Zoom calls, Slack, and Teams
- Know how to get to your OneDrive or Google Drive files
- Know how to pair Bluetooth headphones
The Monday-morning test
Forget Linux for a second. Imagine your normal Monday morning at work: your boss has emailed you a spreadsheet, you have a 10 a.m. Zoom call, your notes are on OneDrive, and someone needs you to print a contract before lunch. Can your new Linux laptop do all that?
Yes — every one of those things. Slightly different app names, but the same job. Here's the cheat sheet.
The translation table
| What you need | The Windows app | The Linux app |
|---|---|---|
| Word documents | Microsoft Word | LibreOffice Writer — opens and saves .docx |
| Spreadsheets | Microsoft Excel | LibreOffice Calc — opens and saves .xlsx |
| Slideshows | Microsoft PowerPoint | LibreOffice Impress — opens and saves .pptx |
| Email + Calendar | Microsoft Outlook | Thunderbird — by the same people who make Firefox |
| Web browser | Edge / Chrome | Firefox (or install Chrome — exactly the same as Windows) |
| Video calls | Zoom | Zoom — there's a real Linux app, free download |
| Team chat | Slack | Slack — also a real Linux app |
| Microsoft Teams | Teams desktop app | The web version at teams.microsoft.com — full features |
| OneDrive cloud files | OneDrive desktop sync | Browser at onedrive.live.com, or a free community sync app |
| Google Drive | Google Drive sync | Settings → Online Accounts → Google — appears in your file manager |
The big one: Office documents
If there's only one thing you take from this module, take this: LibreOffice opens Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files exactly. You can:
- Open a
.docxsomeone emailed you. Edit it. Save it back as.docx. They won't know it touched Linux. - Open a
.xlsxspreadsheet with formulas. They keep working. - Open a
.pptxslideshow. The slides look the same.
It's not a copy of Microsoft Office — it's a different program that happens to read and write the same files. Like how Apple Pages can open Word documents.
The 5% that doesn't translate perfectly: super-fancy Excel macros (rare), some PowerPoint animations, and a few Microsoft fonts. For 95% of work — invoices, reports, school essays, presentations — there's no difference at all. Most people use it for years and never hit the rough edges.
One little tip when you save
When you save a document in LibreOffice, it'll ask: "save as .odt or .docx?". If you'll send it to a Windows-using colleague, pick .docx. If you're only opening it yourself, either is fine. (.odt is LibreOffice's own format. Both work — .docx is just safer for sharing.)
Email — Thunderbird does the job of Outlook
Thunderbird is the email program Linux gives you. It's free, made by the same people who make Firefox, and it does exactly what Outlook does: inbox, calendar, contacts, meeting invites, the lot.
First time you open it, it asks for your email address and password. Paste them in. It works out the rest by itself. Works with corporate Microsoft 365 accounts, Gmail, your old ISP email — anything Outlook would connect to.
Same shortcuts you already know: Ctrl+R to reply, Ctrl+N for a new message. Calendar invites work. If you're not sure, just use the webmail at outlook.com or gmail.com in Firefox — that's always an option too.
Printing — most printers just work
Plug in a USB printer and Linux nearly always sorts itself out. The printer shows up; you click Print; the paper comes out. The bad old days of hunting for a driver CD in a drawer are basically over for HP, Canon, Brother, Epson, and most office printers.
For a network printer at the office: Settings → Printers → Add. Linux finds the printer on the network, you click it, you're set up.
From any program, Ctrl+P opens the print dialog — same as Windows.
Video calls and team chat
All the meeting and chat apps you use for work are available on Linux. Some have a proper desktop app; one of them you'll just use in your web browser. Either way works.
| Tool | How it works on Linux |
|---|---|
| Zoom | Download the Linux app from zoom.us — works exactly like the Windows one. Mic, camera, screen share, all there. |
| Slack | Real Linux app. Install it from the Ubuntu Software store, sign in, you're done. |
| Microsoft Teams | No Linux desktop app any more, but the web version at teams.microsoft.com works fully — chat, calls, screen share. Open it in Firefox and pin the tab. |
| Google Meet | Browser-only on every platform — works exactly the same on Linux. |
| Discord | Real Linux app, easy install. |
Microphone, camera, and screen share work in all of them. The first time a website needs your mic or camera, your browser asks for permission — same as Windows. Click Allow once and that site is set up forever.
Cloud files — OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox
Quick-and-easy answer: just open them in a web browser. onedrive.live.com, drive.google.com, dropbox.com. Sign in. Drag files in and out. That's it.
If you want them to appear like a folder on your Linux machine (so you can drag-and-drop without opening a browser), here's how:
| Service | How to make it appear in your file manager |
|---|---|
| Google Drive | Open Settings → Online Accounts → Google. Sign in once. Your Google Drive shows up in the sidebar of your Files app. |
| Dropbox | Download the official Dropbox Linux app from dropbox.com. Same as Windows. |
| OneDrive | Microsoft hasn't built a Linux app, but a free community one exists. Easier path on day one: just use onedrive.live.com in your browser. Plenty of people stick with that forever. |
Bluetooth headphones, mice, keyboards
Top-right corner of the screen → Bluetooth → toggle on → put your headphones in pairing mode → click to pair. Same as Windows. Once they're paired the first time, they reconnect automatically every time after.
One famous Bluetooth gotcha (so you know if you ever hit it)
Sometimes headphones pair successfully but no sound comes out. This catches almost everyone once. The fix is just to turn Bluetooth off and back on in the menu (or restart the laptop). Sound starts working. It's not a sign anything is broken — it's a known little bug that's been around for years.
The honest answer: what does NOT work?
Being straight with you: not absolutely everything from the Windows world is on Linux. The short list of what isn't:
- The Microsoft Office desktop apps (Word, Excel, etc. — but as we said, LibreOffice opens the same files; or use office.com in your browser, free for personal use).
- Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro — but free Linux alternatives exist: GIMP for photo editing, Inkscape for graphics, DaVinci Resolve for video.
- Some PC games — though Steam now runs most Windows games on Linux. Check protondb.com if your favourite game is a worry.
- Some specialist work software (industry-specific tools like AutoCAD, certain accounting packages). If your job needs one of these, check before you switch.
For most office workers, students, and home users — none of those are showstoppers. For everyone else, the best plan is to try Linux on a USB stick first (Module 3) and check that the apps you depend on are available before you commit.