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    Is productivity software necessary on a laptop if all you do is web surfing and email?

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by Stevoreno, Dec 8, 2008.

  1. Stevoreno

    Stevoreno Notebook Consultant

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    I've been trying to configure a new Dell laptop to replace a 2 year old Inspiron 1300 which I damaged earlier this year after I dropped it. Dell makes it extremely difficult when it comes to configuring a new model. My Inspiron 1300 came equipped with MS Works 8.0 which did not include MS Word.

    MS Works 9.0 is the new "free" productivity software Dell is offering on some of it's laptop configurations yet on others Dell offers no MS Works 9.0 productivity software, you have to upgrade to MS Works Extra I think it's called for an extra $79.00 if you want productivity software. Is productivity software necessary to have on a laptop if all you intend to do with it is surf the web and send and receive emails?

    Once the laptop has been purchased and it came configured with no productivity software is there something free online you could download and install? Now on my Dell Dimension 3100 desktop PC I have MS Works 8.0, no MS Word which I use quite often to type letters, print on envelopes, etc.
     
    Stevoreno, Dec 8, 2008
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  2. HerrKaputt

    HerrKaputt Elite Notebook User

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    The answer is no. Assuming it comes with Windows (XP or Vista), you will have Internet Explorer and Outlook Express included. In any case, there are free alternatives for browsing (Firefox) and email (Thunderbird), which have comparable features and performance.

    Yes, there is. You can get OpenOffice for free. It is meant as a free replacement for Microsoft Office. In my opinion it is slightly not as good, but if you rarely need productivity software it is the right choice. And it's completely free even for commercial use.
     
    HerrKaputt, Dec 8, 2008
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  3. idq000

    idq000 Notebook Deity

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    Yes, there is an excellent suite of productivity suite that rivals that of Microsoft Office and is open source too! It is known as OpenOffice and is completely compatible with Microsoft Office files.

    Find OpenOffice here:
    http://www.openoffice.org/
     
    idq000, Dec 8, 2008
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  4. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    "Re: Is productivity software necessary on a laptop if all you do is web surfing and email?"

    You just answered your own question ;)

    and like idq000 said, if you ever do need productivity software there's Open Office.
     
    Phil, Dec 8, 2008
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  5. Stevoreno

    Stevoreno Notebook Consultant

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    Thank you very much for the feedback.
     
    Stevoreno, Dec 8, 2008
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  6. Cin'

    Cin' Anathema

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    Nope..I don't use any productivity software such as MS etc.

    I use OpenOffice (as suggested above), and it works just fine for my needs!


    Cin ;) :)
     
    Cin', Dec 8, 2008
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  7. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    My productivity software is called Wordpad. It's free and loads very quickly :)
     
    Phil, Dec 8, 2008
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