Microsoft Office 2010 free to use online
Microsoft has confirmed that the next edition of its Office Suite will be available in a free online edition. Members of the free Live service will be able to use a slimmed-down version of the package through the Web in similar fashion to Google Docs.
The online software will also be free to use for all employees of businesses subscribing to Microsoft’s Software Assurance scheme. These businesses will also have the option to host the software on their own servers rather than on Microsoft’s machines.
There will also be a paid online edition which offers greater control over documents. Strangely, a Microsoft representative said the paid edition will also help firms which want added security for their documents, which isn’t exactly a great advert for the free version.
With the introduction of the free online editions, Microsoft is cutting down the variety of standalone paid versions of Office. Consumers will have three options: Home and Student (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote), Home and Business (which adds Outlook) and Professional (which adds Access and Publisher).
Large businesses have two choices: Standard (which has all the above programs except Access) and Professional Plus (which has everything from the other editions, plus InfoPath, Communicator and SharePoint Workspace).
The system won’t be released until next year (which the name kind of gives away). However, Microsoft has just released a technical preview: that’s effectively a beta edition designed more for showing off the concept of a program than a fully working model. The online edition will be unveiled for public testing later this year.
By the way, for those who missed Dave Parrack’s story at the weekend, there is one change to Office 2010 which most people will miss even less than the price tag: the “helpful” paper clip assistant has, literally, been killed off.
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July 13th, 2009
Great article! Make sure to check out the new Office 2010 videos made available today on the Office Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/s.php?q=microsoft+office&init=q&sid=0#/microsoftoffice?v=app_17037175766&viewas=7300773
If you have any questions about Office 2010 or current Office applications, feel free to post them on the Wall!
For more details and conversation, become a fan on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@Office).
Cheers,
Kate
MSFT Office Outreach Team
July 14th, 2009
@Kate,
I am intrigued to see that there is an “Outreach Team” for MS Office. Are you perhaps an “Evangelist”? More importantly, do you have anyone with a gift of healing on the team, so that you can easily deal with those nasty bugs and security issues that always seem to be cropping up in Redmond’s offerings? Is Steve Ballmer the messiah, or should we expect someone else? As a Linux user / zealot / communist / enemy of innovation, do I need to repent, put my faith in your company, and believe with all my heart that Windows 7 is the one inspired OS? Is it true that if you speak against Bill Gates, that you can *never* be forgiven?
Cheers,
Hugh
The Real World
P.S. Love the sense of unbridled enthusiasm conveyed by exclamation marks!!!
July 14th, 2009
Hugh=Run from Linux in case it’s contagious.
I bet you went through a lot of rattles as an infant.