| My Review Of Office 2010 Starter Edition |
| Written by David Glick |
| Thursday, 08 July 2010 07:50 |
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I helped a customer set up her new Dell computer today while on a service call for computer repair in Phoenix. Since she wanted Microsoft Excel, I also helped her install the new Microsoft Office 2010. She only needed the basic functionality of Word and Excel so the Starter edition was perfect for her, and considering this version is now free from all major OEM manufacturers, it worked out perfectly. To install this version, the computer needs to be on the Internet. A shortcut in the All Programs menu starts the installation.
I helped a customer set up her new Dell computer today while on a service call for computer repair in Phoenix. Since she wanted Microsoft Excel, I also helped her install the new Microsoft Office 2010. She only needed the basic functionality of Word and Excel so the Starter edition was perfect for her, and considering this version is now free from all major OEM manufacturers, it worked out perfectly. To install this version, the computer needs to be on the Internet. A shortcut in the All Programs menu starts the installation. Installation was quick and easy - the setup program asks you what edition you want - you of course have to pay for any edition above the Starter package, which comes with "scaled down" versions of Word and Excel only. After I chose the Starter edition, the program downloaded and installed it all within about 5-10 minutes on a 1.5 Meg connection. I started the Excel first, after copying shortcuts onto the desktop for the customer, and it came up quickly on the Dell laptop. This version of Excel was quite feature-rich, surprisingly. I was quite pleased with it as I could do almost anything that I would normally do in Excel. The primary features unavailable in this version are the macros, VBA, and other more advanced formatting that the average person normally might not use. I was able to use my regular formulas and format my spreadsheet the way I wanted. Word, on the other hand, is much more limited in this version in that it does away with macros, headers, footers, and a few other essential features that students will miss. Thank goodness for the less expensive Home and Student edition for those using Office 2010 for school (which of course must be purchased). Overall, I liked the version of Excel and felt it had plenty going for it, but Word's missing features may be troublesome to students. It should be noted that this replaces the old MS Works and MS Works Suite, and that this version is ad-supported - meaning that a portion of the screen space is dedicated to rotating ads. There is another option if you really need the missing features and don't want to deal with the ads: the Open Office suite which is available at www.openoffice.org - this is a great suite but unfortunately is not quite 100% compatible with it's MS Office competitor. If you found that this has been helpful, please let me know :) If you need computer repair in Phoenix or the Verde Valley area of Arizona, please check out my website at http://www.mobiletechcomputerrepair.com - you will also find more helpful tips on using computers on my website. About the Author: About the author: David Glick has been repairing computers professionally for over 12 years. Check out the Mobile Tech Computer Repair website for computer repair in Phoenix and the Verde Valley areas of Arizona. |