How do I cite LibreOffice as a software package in scientific papers?
I couldn’t find a official statement of the Document Foundation about it.
I am not interested in “ideas”. I need official statement about it. The best would be if you would offer a Biblatex entry here. And later implement this in the about box of LibreOffice.
Then approach the official body with your request, not peer-t-o-peer help portal, if you “not interested in “ideas”” and “need official statement about it”. You could use mailing list.
BTW and FYI, there are multiple citation rules, different across countries and bodies; I’m afraid that would be not possible to make official statements for each possible case. E.g., Russian GOST system citation requirements differ greatly from those used in US or EU.
How to cite LibreOffice depends upon where, and why you are citing it.
As a general rule of thumb, there is no need to list LibreOffice, but, if you are covering all your bases, the following usually is acceptable. Your journal editor will request any needed changes:
LibreOffice 7.0
[Computer Software]
Berlin Germany: The Document Foundation: 2020
For those who stick to official Style Manuals, the simplest approach is to install Zotero, manually add the data for LibreOffice, and let it figure out what the appropriate format is.
Zotero requests the following:
Item Type: Software
Title: This is the name of the program: LibreOffice
Programmer: This is who wrote the code. I use The Document Foundation, because it is community developed. (The last time I looked, there were more than 1,500 contributors to the LibO code base.)
Abstract: This is a description of what the program does: «LibreOffice is a powerful and free office suite, a successor to OpenOffice(.org), used by millions of people around the world. Its clean interface and feature-rich tools help you unleash your creativity and enhance your productivity.»
Series Title: N/A: LibreOffice is not a series.
Version: This is the version of LibO that is used. I usually use 6.x, or 7.x, because I use alpha, beta, development, RC, and released candidates. In a paper submitted for publication, if a citation more specific than the one I list above is required, then I’d use whatever is in “>Help >About LibreOffice” and copy the version line.
Date: This is the date that the software was released. I default to the year. In day, month, year are required, go look at the tarballs.
System: This is the operating system that is used.
Place: This is where the product was created. I use Berlin, Germany.
Company: This is the company that developed the program: The Document Foundation
Programming Language: This is the programming that is used. LibreOffice uses a plethora of programming Languages. I restricted my list to Java, C++, and Python. Note: Java is depreciated.
ISBN: This is the International Standard Book Number. Not relevant to software. (Zotero includes this, because it is inconceivable to the Zotero developers that there are things that lack either a DOI or ISBN.)
Short Title: This is the short name of the program.
URL: This is where the program can be found: Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice - Compatible with Microsoft
Rights: This is the license that the program is distributed under: MPLv2.0. Secondary licenses: GPL, LGPLv3+ or Apache License 2.0.
The following are only relevant to archivists, librarians, and historians. I leave them blank.
Archive: This is where the item is located.
Loc. In Archive: This is where within the Archive, the item is physically located.
Library Catalog: This is the library catalog that it is found in.
Call Number: This is the number that tells you where to find the item in the physical library/archive.
Accessed: This is when the item was last looked at.
Extra: Other comments, etc. that might be useful, in differentiating the item from other, similar items.
By way of example, Zotero generated the following:
GOST R 7.0.5-2008
APA 6th Edition
The Document Foundation. (2020). LibreOffice 7.0 (Version 7) [Java, Python, C++, Linux]. Retrieved from Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice - Compatible with Microsoft
APA 7th Edition
The Document Foundation. (2020). LibreOffice 7.0 (Version 7) [Java, Python, C++; Linux]. The Document Foundation. Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice - Compatible with Microsoft
Chicago: 17th Edition
The Document Foundation. LibreOffice 7.0 (version 7). Linux, Java, Python, C++. Berlin Germany: The Document Foundation, 2020. Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice - Compatible with Microsoft.
MLA 8th Edition
The Document Foundation. LibreOffice 7.0. 7, The Document Foundation, 2020, Download LibreOffice | LibreOffice - Free Office Suite - Based on OpenOffice - Compatible with Microsoft.