Microsoft Office

Support for Microsoft Office 2000 finally ended on Tuesday, 10 years after the productivity suite was launched.

Office 2000 had mainstream support until mid-2004, when its extended support period began. It is that extended support period that has now ended, according to Microsoft's road map for the product.

At its launch in 1999, Microsoft's then-president Steve Ballmer said Office 2000, which retailed at a recommended price of $799, "unleashes the power of the Web work style, the most efficient way to work with business information and collaborate with others."

Later that year, Microsoft announced Office Online, … Read more

It stands to reason that one of the most common tasks users do in Office is copy and paste something into a document. In fact, Microsoft says about 20 percent of Office command clicks are either copy or paste.

But, it also turns out that one of the most common things users do after pasting something is to hit the "undo" button after finding out that they didn't get what they were looking for.

"You shouldn't have to do that," said Microsoft group product manager Chris Bryant. "We should give you better tools.&… Read more

The next version of Office moved a step closer to reality on Monday as Microsoft released an invitation-only technical preview of Office 2010.

However, the release of the software will be limited. Attendees of this week's Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans, as well as the recent TechEd show, will gain access to the desktop versions of Office 2010. Microsoft has also been taking sign-ups via its Office 2010: The Movie teaser Web site.

Also, it won't show off the program's biggest change--the addition of browser-based versions of Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and OneNote.

Those so-called Office Web … Read more

Stephen Elop is convinced that even in a world of free, browser-based productivity software, consumers and businesses will continue to pay for Office.

Microsoft will bow to reality with Office 2010, adding browser-based versions of Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and OneNote. But, in an interview this week, the head of Microsoft's Business Division says that there is still plenty of life in the full version.

"At the highest level, what we're able to put forward to our customers is not just the best productivity experience, but one that spans the PC, the browser environment, the Web environment, services, … Read more

I'm not sure "spell check this" has the same ring as "I'll be back," but I have enjoyed the series of promo videos for Office 2010 that try to cast the software as the plot of an action movie.

The latest installment shows the grave of Clippy, the oft-mocked help tool that has been absent from recent versions of the productivity software.

It also features an interrogation to find the missing font. However, the female captive will give up only that it is somewhere between "Arial" and "Wingdings." (I guess … Read more

Dave Greiner was distressed in 2007 when Microsoft decided to use Microsoft Word's relatively rudimentary technology to display HTML-encoded e-mail in Outlook. Now, facing the extension of that choice into the forthcoming Office 2010, he's agitating more loudly for change.

Greiner, a member of the informal E-mail Standards Project group, set up a Web site called FixOutlook.org and urged everybody who agrees with his position to publicize their dismay on Twitter; more than 19,000 did so by Wednesday afternoon.

Microsoft, while encouraging feedback on the matter, stood by its decision in a response published on the Microsoft Office Team blog. … Read more

It's been quite a while since Paul Allen worked to make Microsoft's products better, but he's doing just that.

While he hasn't rejoined the software maker he left more than 25 years ago, Allen is backing an effort to improve Microsoft Outlook. Allen's Vulcan Ventures announced on Monday the launch of its Xiant subsidiary and a beta of its first product, Xiant Filer. It is available as a free, 60-day trial, and Vulcan plans to eventually sell downloads of the product directly as well as through other Web sites.

"It's a return of … Read more

Much like studios do with movies that are still months from hitting the theaters, Microsoft is looking to generate some advance buzz for the next version of Office.

The company has posted a movie trailer that teases Office 2010 and last week added a "behind the scenes" video that pokes fun at recent leaks of the product onto the Internet (and the fact that some leaked versions also came with a virus).

The "actor" being interviewed on camera likens the leaked preview to him being seen without his make-up and with a virus all over his … Read more

Update at 2:00pm PDT: Comment about Microsoft selling own products at retail price has been added.

You no longer have to drive to your local Staples or Best Buy to grab the latest copy of Microsoft Office.

Dell has become the first non-Microsoft company allowed to sell downloadable Microsoft products at its Dell Download Store. The agreement, announced Thursday, gives Dell the right to sell Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Expression Web and similar Microsoft programs directly to online customers.

"With everyday savings plus on-demand access, the Dell Download Store addresses our customers' two main concerns: price and immediacy,&… Read more