For those of you who have used, or actively use, Microsoft Project, you know how awesome it is.  Sure, it’s not as sexy as the other programs out there, but it is by far one of the best solutions available for work planning a major project with various dependencies.  Watching someone who is good with this program is a site to see… hundreds upon hundreds of tasks all aligned perfectly and shooting out automatic notifications, ensuring everyone is on time and on budget.

However, Microsoft Project is pricey, and only comes with some editions of Microsoft Office – so how can you manage that big training development program? Easy: use the free alternative to Microsoft Project – OpenProj!

OpenProj is an open-source software solution that mimics the interface of Microsoft Project.  If you have used MS Project in the past, you will surely recognize the layout and most of the visuals.  Even the menu items are similar.  The downside is it does kind of have that “Windows 2003” feel at times, but it’s effective and completes the task at hand.  Besides, since when did MS Office ever really have a sleek user interface?  Exactly.

You can download OpenProj for free and play around. If you are a small instructional design firm, this might be the solution for you when detailing your course development.  No bells and whistles here, just 100% pure work planning. With so many SaaS offering out there today, it’s nice to see a solid option available without having to pay the endless monthly fees for eternity (I’m looking at you BaseCamp).