Microsoft Word RIP...

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The wife jumped from MS word to openoffice, and she is loving it!

The key was to set it up to save in native MS formats.
 
I use Google Docs for collaborative editing or for always having the document available. But to print it out, I always export to Word and format it to look professional. OpenOffice would probably do the trick but since I have Office 2007, I don't bother with it.
 
Originally Posted By: GROUCHO MARX
Evolutionary change. Adapt or disappear.


Yes. I find it interesting that the company that got its big start from making computing easy and convenenient lost track of the big picture of usability, over time.
 
I'm not much a fan of office 07 because they hid everything. I've used OpenOffice, and it's just fine. Some users I've talked to don't like it much, but they're the ones who always want to complain about something.
 
Good article. This is funny:

Quote:
People keep doing this [emailing documents to co-workers], but it is an astoundingly awful way to work. Here are just a few of the problems:

* People sometimes forget to attach the document to their email.
* The document can be too large—especially long documents with lots of images—and can clog up the email server.
* Nobody knows what edits were made and by whom. Sure, you can turn "Track Changes" on, but as it transforms your document into a horrible illegible mess, most people very quickly turn it off again.
* Nobody has any idea which is the most recent version of the document. This leads to amusing email flame wars where people insist that you adopt version control for your file names, which nobody ever does because they are too busy arguing about what the syntax should be. Even if you do manage to get version control, you are still never sure if you have the most recent version.
* People save the document in some directory on their hard drive and then forget where it is. The usual solution to this is to email the author again and ask them to resend it.
* People miss the email (usually because there are far too many emails in a day) and claim to have never received the document in the first place.
 
OpenOffice has been installed on every computer in my company since MS decided to do their little fix in 07. I will never buy a copy of office again. I hate it when people send me the new XLS formats...they are clunky files. Thanks Sun and other fans of open source!
 
I can't stand the new version. All of us Operations guys at work that use word/excel on a daily basis uninstalled the '07 version and put on our own XP/2003 versions.
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Talk about a way to screw up productivity!
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It makes you wonder who Microsoft uses for focus groups and CLT's when they decide to make these broad changes to their platforms?? I have yet to find anyone who sings praises for the products yet we are all expected to continue to open the coffers- not a good business strategy.
 
You need to put that in bigger font in case someone with half a brain at MS reads it!

They can also lower the price too IMO, it's way over priced...
 
I'm going to change from Win XP to Win 7 in October, but have no plans to move from Orifice 2000/2003 to Orifice 2007 or 2010. I'm using OpenOffice exclusively on my computers now and my wife will unknowingly switch when we go to Win 7. It's an easier user change than going from Office 2003 to Office 2007. A big mistake on the Vole's part.

The author does make a lot of sense about using collaboration software. Unfortunately that doesn't work to well unless you are working in a group that agrees to uses one collaboration software.
 
IMO the sole reason MS chose to implement a new file type and the ribbon GUI on the same release was because of one reason: OpenOffice. By making a new file type and UI this puts OO about 2-4 years behind as the OO group will need to make these features in subsequent versions.

Now that the distance between OO and Office 2007 has been widened by these new 'features', that keeps the coffers at MS filled with cash. Remember, Office is their bread & butter. It MUST remain a product that people use otherwise it's bye-bye MS.

And the vendor lock-in gets much deeper with Sharepoint Server which REQUIRES Office 2007 and Windows Server. And MS SQL server. Gee! They get to sell you 4 products if you choose Sharepoint!

I'm in the wrong business. LOL
 
I will be returning all emails with unneeded new types of files with a note requesting they avoid shoving MS down my throat.
 
Originally Posted By: ToyotaNSaturn
IMO the sole reason MS chose to implement a new file type and the ribbon GUI on the same release was because of one reason: OpenOffice. By making a new file type and UI this puts OO about 2-4 years behind as the OO group will need to make these features in subsequent versions.

Now that the distance between OO and Office 2007 has been widened by these new 'features', that keeps the coffers at MS filled with cash.



I do my small part. I run a website for a sports car club. I won't accept anything in office 2007 exclusive format such as docx.

So far no one has given my a hard time about having to resubmit their work in .doc format or some other more universal format. A few people have thanked me for making me aware of the problem.

I generally convert any written document I get to .pdf before it goes on the website. Other people in the club have taken to sending email to club members in only .doc or .pdf formats.

I'm not in love with .pdf for a few reasons, but it's as close to universal as you get.

I have also gotten several other people to try OpenOffice and they usually like it.
 
Originally Posted By: labman
I will be returning all emails with unneeded new types of files with a note requesting they avoid shoving MS down my throat.


You probably should accept the old MS formats like .doc. But send docx users a response explaining why .docx benefits no-one except MS.
 
Quote:
XS650: But send docx users a response explaining why .docx benefits no-one except MS.


I'm an Office 2003 user and see no need to change to 2007. But please enlighten me (and a few others, in all likelihood) as to why .docx benefits only MS.
 
I actually like 2007 and find it easier to use. At work I've had to switch back to 2003 and often scratch my head "where's that hidden at". You do have to lean all new keystokes for 2007 which I could see as a hassle for someone who uses them a lot.
I also like how much more integrated the programs are to each other. i.e. Excel in a Word document is an actual functioning spread sheet, not just a table.
 
Originally Posted By: labman
I will be returning all emails with unneeded new types of files with a note requesting they avoid shoving MS down my throat.


I do that with most proprietary formats. I will also go so far as to send emails to web sites that use proprietary formats, encouraging them to consider open formats.

In summary: I have very few friends, and way too much time on my hands.
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