Question: Trying to install openoffice on Ubuntu 13.10 64bit. The install goes with out a hitch but the application does not show up in my GUI applications window. Is this because of desktop integration? When I try to install the desktop integrator I get this...

```
jacob@jacob-desktop:~/mydebs/en-US/DEBS/desktop-integration$ sudo dpkg -i *.deb(Reading database ... 172964 files and directories currently installed.)
Unpacking openoffice-debian-menus (from openoffice4.0-debian-menus_4.0-9714_all.deb) ...
dpkg: error processing openoffice4.0-debian-menus_4.0-9714_all.deb (--install):
 trying to overwrite '/usr/bin/soffice', which is also in package libreoffice-common 1:4.1.2~rc3-0ubuntu1
/usr/bin/gtk-update-icon-cache
gtk-update-icon-cache: Cache file created successfully.
/usr/bin/gtk-update-icon-cache
gtk-update-icon-cache: Cache file created successfully.
Processing triggers for gnome-icon-theme ...
Processing triggers for hicolor-icon-theme ...
Processing triggers for shared-mime-info ...
Processing triggers for gnome-menus ...
Processing triggers for desktop-file-utils ...
Processing triggers for bamfdaemon ...
Rebuilding /usr/share/applications/bamf-2.index...
Processing triggers for mime-support ...
Errors were encountered while processing:
 openoffice4.0-debian-menus_4.0-9714_all.deb

```

Answer: 
The installation doesn't go without a hitch:

```
Errors were encountered while processing:
 openoffice4.0-debian-menus_4.0-9714_all.deb

```

This means there were error processing the packages, hence reading back:

```
dpkg: error processing openoffice4.0-debian-menus_4.0-9714_all.deb (--install):
 trying to overwrite '/usr/bin/soffice', which is also in package libreoffice-common 1:4.1.2~rc3-0ubuntu1

```

This means that you are trying to install OpenOffice.org while having LibreOffice installed. Eithe remove LibreOffice and continue the OpenOffice.org installation or forget about OpenOffice.org(**or go for `force-overwrite`**).

To do the first you must run:

```
sudo apt-get -f remove libreoffice-common

```

Then install OpenOffice.org.

### Force Overwite

One way can be telling dpkg to force overwrite the exiting file. This command can be risky as in some cases, you may end up overwriting necessary files.**So use it at your own risk**.

To enable force-overwrite mode , pass `-o Dpkg::Options::="--force-overwrite"` parameter to `apt-get`.

`sudo apt-get -o Dpkg::Options::="--force-overwrite" install <package-name>`

If you are trying to install a file using `dpkg` pass `--force-overwrite` to `dpkg` command.

`sudo dpkg -i --force-overwrite <some_file.deb>`
In order to make that error *disappear* this is what I did:

1. follow OpenOffice instruction [here](http://www.openoffice.org/download/common/instructions.html#linux), in particular remove LibreOffice symlinks to "fake" `soffice` executable
2. when it's time for installing `desktop-integration` packages, force the install: `sudo dpkg --force-all -i *.deb`. I know this is usually discouraged ...

That of course overrides the error we are experiencing, but I already deleted the symlink manually anyway.