Neo/OpenOffice and word count

[BetsyLou]

Hello
I'm using a version of OpenOffice.org (NeoOffice - OOo for Macintosh), and have noticed that the word count for a document is different to that in Microsoft Word. I am writing a document where word count is absolutely critical; Word (used by me at work and by some others who have reveiwed the document for me) says i've got fewer words than NeoOffice's word count.

Who do i beleive? What are the differences in criteria between how the two count words? And should i just believe MS Word because a) then i can get more words in, which i need, and b) let's face it, that's probably what the person assessing my work will be using...? I've tried googling but the discussions on specialist boards all get really technical really quickly and then i'm lost, so in plainish english if you don't mind! :)

Thanks for your help, B x

[BetsyLou]

Hmm. I think i'm going to count them manually. It's too important to trust dumb software!
I'd still be interested to know the difference in criteria between the two, though.

:)