Microsoft’s New Office Faces the Web
Office 2010, the latest version of Microsoft’s hugely profitable Microsoft Office productivity suite, will begin shipping to business customers early next month. Its arrival will be an important test for the software colossus as it adapts to an increasingly Web-focused software landscape.
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That’s because at the same time, Microsoft will also offer free, ad-supported Web versions of Office applications. The Web versions are Microsoft’s attempt to fend off a growing number of free Web-based office apps, including Google Docs and Zoho. (The regular versions of Office 2010 will cost between $99 and $499, and those who buy these versions will also have access to more complete Web versions of the apps).
The threat to Microsoft from these Web-based apps has intensified as a handful of organizations, including the Los Angeles city government and Genetech, have adopted enterprise versions of Google Docs alongside Microsoft’s software. In a report released by IDC in September 2009, some 20 percent of business users said Google Docs is in widespread use at their companies–up from less than 6 percent 18 months earlier. IDC expects this figure reach 27 percent this year, which could spell trouble for Microsoft, which gets as much as 60 percent of its profits from Office, if it means users are turning away from its software.
Office 2010 brings with it Office Web Apps, which includes Web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote. Microsoft is positioning the software as a complement to the regular version of Office and focusing on compatibility with its existing software as a key selling point. Office Web Apps will let users create and save documents that look exactly the same when opened with the regular versions of those applications.
Microsoft’s Kurt DelBene, senior vice president of Office Business Productivity, says the company’s number one focus in developing Office Web Apps was making sure that files look and behave the same both offline and online in Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari browsers (DelBene says Microsoft has not seen enough demand for Google’s Chrome browser to support it), as well as on Web-enabled mobile phones.
DelBene adds that most business users don’t create documents on the Web, so when they move documents from the desktop to a cloud application, this typically results in formatting errors. This is an issue that Google is also keen to address. In March, the company acquired DocVerse, a startup whose software lets people collaboratively work on Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents in the cloud. DocVerse’s founders posted on their blog that “our first step will be to combine DocVerse with Google Apps to create a bridge between Microsoft Office and Google Apps.”
Office Web Apps will not include all of Office’s features, like the ability to create macros. Further, Office Web Apps will remain in beta after Office 2010 launches.
Microsoft clearly faces pressure from free Web apps that offer similar functions to many of its Office programs, although so far, increased use of services like Google Docs hasn’t been matched by a drop in the use of Microsoft Office, says IDC analyst Melissa Webster. In its September 2009 study, IDC found that Office is widely used in 97 percent of companies surveyed, “and the needle on that has not moved in three years,” according to Webster, who says most companies use Google Docs to complement Office. “If you’re in a large organization, you’re running this huge number of enterprise applications,” she says. “You’re stuck with selectively implementing things in the cloud.”
Organizational psychology may also help Microsoft. “What works for Microsoft is human behavior; we really don’t like change,” says Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group.
Office Web Apps will also offer Microsoft a chance to assess the logistics of offering other software over the Web. DelBene was says cloud computing is creating a “total transformation” in Microsoft’s business model.
One Microsoft rival agrees that the company is wise to take a measured approach. “It would be a mistake for Microsoft to put it all in the cloud right now,” said Raju Vegesna, who works for Zoho as an “evangelist.” Zoho has only one customer with more than 10,000 users, and that customer uses a special, client-based version of Zoho’s applications. Still, Vegesna says, Office Web Apps provides validation for cloud applications, and he says that Zoho expects to see a substantial jump in users this year.
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Categories: Office, Office 2010, Uncategorized Tags: Office 2010
Microsoft Project Server 2010 Beta – Virtual Machine
Project Server 2010 Beta ensures organizations select and deliver the right projects, while gaining greater visibility and control of resources leading to improved productivity and better business performance.
Participate in the Microsoft Project Server 2010 Beta and be the first to see how the innovative new capabilities can help organizations to:
- Capture all types of work in a centralized demand management repository
- Select the right project portfolios and maximize resource utilization
- Build and conveniently update project schedules online
- Create powerful dashboards and project reports
By adding Microsoft Project Professional 2010 Beta, enjoy powerful, visually enhanced ways to successfully manage and deliver a wide range of projects. Easier and more intuitive, Project Professional 2010 provides flexible choices to simplify planning, collaboration and resource management.
Download At Source (via activewin.com
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Introducing Office for Mac 2011: The Quintessential Teammate
Next version to deliver on top community requests: better tools to work together and improved compatibility.
You, the Mac community, have a voice — and at the Microsoft Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU), we listen. Our charter for more than two decades has been to use your feedback to build the best productivity suite on the Mac. Recently you’ve asked for better ways to work with colleagues and friends anywhere, anytime, across platforms. So today at Macworld 2010, we are answering with details on how you can create and share your ideas using Office for Mac 2011, the next version of the leading productivity suite on the Mac. The suite has new connections to Microsoft services so you can work together more effectively, an updated user interface making tasks easier, and essential compatibility to ensure your documents look the way you made them when shared.
“Together with your team — officemates, family or classmates — you are part of the community that helps shape each version of Office for Mac,” said Eric Wilfrid, MacBU general manager at Microsoft Corp. “You’ve told us that working together across platforms is a priority to you and that’s why we are making Office for Mac 2011 the best, most compatible productivity suite on the Mac.”
New Co-Authoring Tools and Office Web Apps
The new co-authoring tools in Office 2011 give you and your teammates the ability to work on a file from Word, PowerPoint or Excel1 from different locations, brainstorm ideas, and stay on the same page regardless of time, geography or platform. Co-authoring improves the processes of working together, removing the pain and frustration of multiple versions, lost edits, or even trying to set a time for the group to meet. With this new feature you can keep track of your team with the Presence Everywhere feature that gives real-time status updates on who is working on the document directly in the application.
Office 2011 also delivers a connection to Microsoft Office Web Apps from the application, giving you a simple way to access and share Office documents from any machine with an Internet connection. Similar to the experience in Microsoft Office 2010 for PC users, the Office Web Apps make it easy to get your work done virtually anywhere. These days work doesn’t stop at your desktop. You need to stay productive with access to your information no matter where you are, without worrying about whether or not you e-mailed a crucial file to yourself. Currently in beta, Office Web Apps are available to both home and business users (across platforms) and allow documents to be stored via your Windows Live ID account or on Microsoft SharePoint Technologies.
New User Interface Design: Office for Mac Ribbon
Another big addition to the Office 2011 suite is a ribbon that’s at the core of our next-generation Office for Mac user experiences. We took your feedback and haven’t completely rearranged what you know and love: the new design is an evolution of the Office 2008 Elements Gallery and uses the classic Mac menu and Standard Toolbar giving you the best of both worlds. You can even collapse the ribbon and the Toolbar for more screen space or for the more advanced users who rely on keyboard shortcuts. Together these tools make it easy to find and discover new and frequently used commands. In fact, more than 80 percent2 of the most used features live in the default view of our new user experience so you don’t have to waste time finding the tool you need. Built using the latest Mac OS X technologies, the ribbon delivers a modern and fluid experience and also gives you a more consistent experience across platforms, which is key to productivity as 75 percent of Mac users also use a PC.3
New: Outlook for Mac Supports .PST Import
Along with the updated user interface and quick access to the Office Web Apps, the MacBU announced last August that Outlook for Mac is coming to Office 2011, replacing Entourage. Outlook for Mac is a new application that leverages the Exchange Web Services protocol and is being built using Cocoa, allowing for improved integration with the Mac OS. Today we are also announcing that Outlook for Mac will import .PST files from Outlook for Windows — a top customer request. In addition, as announced last year, Outlook for Mac features a reliable, high-speed, file-based database with Spotlight search and back-up support from Time Machine. Outlook for Mac also provides Information Rights Management to help prevent sensitive information from being distributed to or read by people who do not have your permission to access the content. Outlook for Mac provides an integrated solution for managing your time and information and, when it is used in conjunction with Microsoft Exchange Server, you benefit from increased collaboration capabilities and security enhancements.
Office for Mac 2011 will be available later this year. For updates on all things Office for Mac, follow the team on Twitter (@OfficeforMac) and on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Office-For-Mac/272026096667).
Continue: Introducing Office for Mac 2011 The Quintessential Teammate Next version to deliver on top commu
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XML update for Word users in US territories
This is an update to Microsoft Office Word 2007. Generally, customers who purchase or license Word 2007 from Microsoft after January 10, 2010 for use in the United States and its territories must use updated software that does not include a particular custom XML tagging implementation.
You must install this update if you are instructed by Microsoft in a separate communication.
For technical details on the affected custom XML tagging functionality, please see KB978951.
Download details Update for Word 2007 (KB974631)
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SQL Server 2008 R2 – PowerPivot for Excel 2010 November Community Technology Preview
Microsoft PowerPivot for Microsoft Excel 2010 provides ground-breaking technology, such as fast manipulation on large data sets (often in millions of rows), streamlined integration of data, and the ability to effortlessly share your analysis through Microsoft SharePoint 2010.
Microsoft® PowerPivot for Microsoft® Excel 2010 is a data analysis tool that delivers unmatched computational power directly within the software users already know and love — Microsoft® Excel. You can transform mass quantities of data with incredible speed into meaningful information to get the answers you need in seconds. You can effortlessly share your findings with others. You can:
- Process millions of rows with about the same performance as few hundred rows using by leveraging PowerPivot in-memory engine and efficient compression algorithms
- Integrate data from a multitude of sources, including corporate databases, spreadsheets, reports, text files, and Internet data feeds.
- Go beyond standard Excel expressions and use PowerPivot’s Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) to perform powerful data manipulations. Follow relationships between tables as in a database and define sophisticated calculations using familiar and intuitive expressions.
- •Interactively explore, analyze, and create reports without depending on expert knowledge and specialty training by using native Excel 2010 functionality such as PivotTables, slicers, and other familiar analysis features.
We recommend you read the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 Release Notes and Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 Readme before installing this Community Technology Preview.
To install and use Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 – PowerPivot for Microsoft® Excel 2010, complete the following steps in this order:
1. If you are running an operating system other than Microsoft® Windows® 7, install .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.
2. Install Microsoft® Office 2010 Beta.
Important : If you choose a custom installation of the Microsoft Office 2010 Beta, you must install both Excel 2010 and Office Shared Tools in order to use PowerPivot for Excel.
3. Install PowerPivot for Microsoft® Excel
Important : If you install the 32-bit version of Excel, you must use the 32-bit version of PowerPivot. If you install the 64-bit version of Excel, you must use the 64-bit version of PowerPivot.
Note: When you start Microsoft® Office 2010 Excel for the first time, you will be prompted to complete a one-time install of SQL Server® 2008 R2 – PowerPivot for Microsoft® Excel 2010.
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