Earlier today I wrote about InstallFree Nexus and Rndr, apps that allow you to use other apps, like LibreOffice and Java, on any device. Here's the full article: http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2012/05/installfree-nexus-us-ms-office-or.html
I've been using them all day on my CR-48 Chromebook and they work great! The biggest thing that I was not able to do on my Chromebook was accessing our Gradebook system, which runs on Java. Using Rndr, I was able to access it and use it on the Chromebook. It's not as speedy as on a Windows device, but not bad at all, and the company making Rndr tells me that there are some performance improvements coming shortly.
You can also use their apps to use LibreOffice (or MS Office) in the cloud on any device, including iOS, Android and Chrome. I was using the LibreOffice version and I was able to open up, view and edit LibreOffice and MS Office files directly from my Google Drive without needing to convert them to Google Docs formats.
All-in-all, these apps are a great resource for anyone, especially those using Chromebooks.
Check out my full review here: http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2012/05/installfree-nexus-us-ms-office-or.html
Related:
Google Chromebooks and Chrome OS revisited - great for education
iPads, Chromebooks, on-device apps, cloud apps - great discussions
