Due to C portability, OpenOffice.org's usual middleware, Universal Network Objects (UNO), could not be designed object oriented. With NOA-libre you can still access UNO, but also the NOA-libre object oriented layer atop UNO. Being based on UNO, NOA-libre is network aware, meaning that you can use it to have your local office installation execute some commands, or an OpenOffice.org installation anywhere on the world, provided you have a appropriate network connection and privileges.
With NOA-libre, you can: embed OpenOffice.org windows in your Java applications or applets; remote control OpenOffice.org windows on your desktop, over the network, or "headless", i.e. only functional without visible output; and/or extend OpenOffice.org by writing Java plugins. NOA-libre is compatible with OpenOffice.org and LibreOffice, easier to deploy than the usual UNO-only Java applications, and allows you to interact with various OpenOffice.org components (but is by far most commonly used with Writer and Calc).
