Microsoft Office 2010 vs 2007 vs 2003 - Question regarding updating

I've ordered a new computer but due to a mix-up during my telephone call with the agent during configuration it is not coming with Microsoft Office 2007 like I orginally thought it was.

So my options are to install Office 2003 (which I currently own), buy the update to Office 2007, which would then allow me to update to Office 2010 for free when it becomes available.

Or I could buy a complete version of Office 2007 (which is more expensive than the update version) and update to Office 2010.

Or I could wait for Office 2010 to release in June/July.

Is there any technical benefit to one of the options over the others? The new computer has an SSD so I'm looking to optimize solutions and don't want to gunk up the works if the recommendation is not to go through multiple updates (if for instance the multiple updates will leave a lot of unnecessary files behind, etc). Thanks!

 

Isn't there any way for you to call back the place and have it ship with office 2007? If you paid for it I see no reason why you shouldn't get it.

If you can't get it though I suppose your 1st option would be the cheapest.

The gains from one version to the next aren't very noticeable for the average user(i.e. non power bureaucrat), but Office 2003 sometimes spiked in its resource eating so maybe avoid that.

One thing that's nice is that Office 2010 has a native x64 version although idk if you get that from your "free upgrade" from 2007.

As for your updates, it shouldn't do matter really.

 

Getaklue,

Have you considered using the OpenOffice.org suite until the June release of Microsoft Office 2010? OpenOffice.org can read and write Microsoft Office files, including the newer 2007 XML formats. The feature sets are very similar; unless you require a very esoteric feature of Microsoft Office, OpenOffice.org should have an equivalent function. And you can't beat the price of free.

Otherwise ... I wouldn't recommend option #1. Upgrading through two products to arrive at your final version is not exactly best practice.

If your needs are truly basic, you could use Google Docs. Be aware that the feature set is far smaller than either Microsoft Office or OpenOffice.org.

--L.

 

Thanks for the advice! The only way I could get the company to add Office 2007 was to cancel my current order and to re-order - which would have delayed the computer for at least a week. But at least I wasn't charged for it. I was concerned that loading Office 2003 and then updating to 2007, followed by another update to 2010, might be something to avoid - and it sounds like that just may be the case. Thanks for some options!

 

Yeah, I would just install a copy of 2007 is you really need it now, but if you didn't need Office at the moment, just wait for 2010 to drop.

 

What about downloading the beta version that is currently available?

 

That is also a very good option as well. Note you will need to purchase a retail copy of Office 2010 (full or upgrade) by October 31st, 2010 as the beta expires on that day. You will have to uninstall the beta to install the retail version because Microsoft does not support upgrading from beta products. (It's also not a great idea, in general.)

--L.

 

Are you a student? MS has a nice offer for students at their Ultimate Steal website on 2007, with a free upgrade to 2010 when come out.
http://www.microsoft.com/student/discounts/theultimatesteal-us/default.aspx

 

:shrug: really doesn't matter what you do. It is kind of silly to go from 2003 to 2007 to 2010 in the space of 6 months (assuming that office 2010 is on time in October), but what the hell.....

upgrading/updating between office versions isn't quite the chore you are making it out to be. takes all of 20 minutes assuming that you deinstall the old office version before installing the new one (not absolutely required but usually a good idea).

Your 'angst' seems to come from an unwillingness to invest any time at all in upgrading/updating. It's not a problem, really.

So, take whatever path your heart and wallet wants.

If you want to avoid all of the upgrade/update 'work' (of which there is almost none), just load up openoffice 3.2 now and run that until MS Office 2010 comes out in final form this fall. who knows, you might like openoffice enough to stay with it and avoid all of the upgrade/update and pricing issues that seem to frighten you.

 

You seem to be making a lot of assumptions about my question - without apparently actually reading the original post. I didn't say anything about being concerned with the "chore" time it would take to undate or being "frightened" about cost. I wanted to know if multiple updates would affect performance - quite a different question in my opinion. I know that it can be hard to completely remove all traces of certain programs (for less computer literate people than you apparently are) - especially if the multiple update route would possibly lead to more errors / irregularities / crashes. I wouldn't expect anyone to be concerned about my time or my expenses. And I don't want to have to wipe the hard drive and reinstall from scratch if I don't have to in a couple of months - that's why I asked. I apologize if you didn't intend the condescending language.

 

You chose the path that I would've taken, by cancelling your original order and reordering the system exactly as you wanted it. I did the same thing last year when I ordered an HP Pavillion dv5t that had some problems when it arrived -- and additionally, I found that I too, had made an error in which MS Office software I had selected. I made a really hard choice to exchange it for a new one, because I thought if I kept it, I might be able to work through the problems with HP's tech support --- and returning the laptop meant I'd have to be without a computer for the time it took to reorder and get the 2nd one delivered. But AFTER it was all over, I was so glad I had bitten the bullet and made the decision to get the new computer exactly as I wanted it. At the time it was a really tough decision, but now, looking back, those few weeks I suffered without a computer were SOOOO worth it!

 

One thing I would like to mention. I have win 7 and installed ms office pro 2003. It installed ok. Had to install a patch to get the office assistant to work. Also, it would NOT import the contacts from my exported Outlook contacts that i made on my other pc with the identical MS Outlook. The reason is that win 7 will not permit Outlook (office 3003 pro) to install any converters to do this operation. I tried several times and in different ways. I could have imported each one as a vcard but that would be too time consuming. I ended up having to buy Outlook 07 and got office 07 home and student. If you have never used Word and Excel 07 be prepared for a shock. Totally unnecessary features for the average person. Back to the Outlook importing issue. It is Microsofts way of gouging the comsumer yet again.

 

Skye2,

I use Office 2003 on Windows 7 without issue. I imported my PST containing contacts, calendar and email as I've done many times before. I've used the same Office 2003 suite on Windows XP SP2, Windows Vista RC1, RC2, RTM & SP1 and Windows 7 beta, RC & RTM. I even made the jump from x86 to x64 when I installed Windows 7 RTM.

Furthermore the PST file originated in Office 2000, later moving to Office XP before arriving in Office 2003. That I can recall, it's lived on 4 laptops, 1 desktop (which migrated from 2000 to XP to Vista) and synced with a PocketPC, a Windows Mobile phone and an iPhone.

It's very easy to import contacts (and calendar, emails) into Office 2003 without being "forced" into an upgrade.

-----------------------------------------------------
How to manage .pst files in Outlook 2007, in Outlook 2003, and in Outlook 2002
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/287070

How to export .pst file data
If you want to back up only some of your Outlook data, you can create a new backup .pst file of only the data that you want to save. This is also known as exporting .pst file data. For example, you might want to use this section if you have important information in only some folders and you have other, less important items in much larger folders. You can export only the important folders or contacts and omit folders like Sent Mail.

Follow these steps to export a specific folder:

1. Open Outlook.
2. On the File menu, click Import And Export. If the menu item is not available, hover your pointer over the chevrons at the bottom of the menu, and then click Import and Export.
3. Click Export To File, and then click Next.
4. Click Personal Folder File (.pst) , and then click Next.
5. Click the folder that you want to export the .pst file to, and then click Next.
6. Click Browse, and then select the location where you want the new .pst file to be saved.
7. In the File Name box, , type the name that you want to use for the new .pst file, and then click OK.
8. Click Finish.
​

Note Folder design properties include permissions, filters, description, forms, and views. If you export items from one .pst file to another, no folder design properties are maintained.

How to import .pst file data into Outlook
You can use the backup copy of your .pst file to restore your Outlook data if the original .pst file is damaged or lost. Everything that is saved in the .pst file is returned to Outlook.

Follow these steps to restore, or import, your data into Outlook:

1. If the .pst file that you want to import is stored on a removable device, such as a floppy disk, a portable hard disk drive, a CD-ROM, a magnetic tape cassette, or any other storage medium, insert or connect the storage device, and then copy the .pst file to the hard disk drive of the computer.

When you copy the .pst file, make sure that the Read-Only attribute is not selected. If this attribute is selected, you might receive the following error message:
The specified device, file, or path could not be accessed. It may have been deleted, it may be in use, you may be experiencing network problems, or you may not have sufficient permission to access it. Close any application using this file and try again.
If you receive this error message, clear the Read-Only attribute, and then copy the file again.​

2. Open Outlook.
3. On the File menu, click Import And Export. If the command is not available, rest the pointer over the chevrons at the bottom of the menu, and then click Import and Export.
4. Click Import from another program or file, and then click Next.
5. Click Personal Folder File (.pst), and then click Next.
6. Type the path and the name of the .pst file that you want to import, and then click Next.
7. Select the folder that you want to import. To import everything in the .pst file, select the top of the hierarchy.
8. Click Finish.​

-----------------------------------------------------

--L.

 

How much faster is the 64-bit Office 2010 compared with the 32-bit Office 2007? Thanks.

 

I'd just wait and get Office 2010. I'm using the Beta and it feels just SOOO much better than 2007. Kinda like Vista ---> Win7. Use the Beta for 2010 and then just buy it when it comes out. You'll really enjoy it.

 

It's not any "faster" really. It adds more features and has a native 64bit version which would help with extremely large documents, but for general use you wouldn't notice anything different except the tweaked interface on Outlook and stuff.

 

If you use Outlook, be aware that all add-ins will need to be 64-bit native, not x64 compatible. Here are few common add-ins which are currently 32-bit only and do not work in Outlook 2010: iTunes, Xobni, LinkedIn toolbar, Yammer, SpamBayes, Outlook Social Connector. Until 64-bit versions are released, you will not be able to use these add-ins in a 64-bit version of Outlook.

Unless you are working with enormously large and complex spreadsheets, you likely wouldn't see any benefits of the 64-bit version and are probably better off using the 32-bit version of Office, especially if you make use of Outlook add-ins.

--L.

 

I see. Thanks a lot.

 

Seconded. I've been running OpenOffice on both of my computers since I found out about it back in March, and I haven't missed the M$ version once. I won't be going back to it any time soon.

The wife specifically needs (or rather, wants) Publisher, so she's still using Office 2003 for that. It's pretty much the one thing OpenOffice doesn't have an equivalent for.

 

OpenOffice is a nice alternative to MS Office although the older version I used lacked a lot of features MS Office had for enterprises notably a communicator(with added phone meetings), an an email client that could link with workflows.

Did OpenOffice acquire these yet?

 

I have no idea, I just use it for taking notes in class and doing homework. Although for those uses, a pen and paper would even work.

 

Alternatives to Microsoft Communicator are OfficeSIP Messenger and SIPE for Pidgin. Though F/OSS, neither are part of the O suite. I don't use Communicator, so I can't speak to how well either alternative works with OCS.

As for email, Thunderbird is a popular choice though I don't believe TB provides any Workflow / Routing management. To my understanding many workflow solutions are actually handled by SPS.

--L.

 

Oh alright, sounds decent. I don;t think Thunderbird has that many workflow addons last I checked, but then again the only things we use at the office are sharepoints and CRMs

Oh I forgot to ask about Project and Visio >.>

 

O was developing a Project alternative - development more or less drifted off ~2005. GanttProject appears to be actively developed, though it is a fairly new project.

O Draw has some overlap with Visio and Publisher, though it is not a direct replacement for either. ArgoUML may be the best current alternative, though you will need use Visio's XMI add-on to collaborate with AgroUML.

--L.

 

i use the 2010 beta and suggest so for anyone currently on the edge. O is a joke if you do real work (but one can life with it, and it's nice to see competition).