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TWO MORE REASONS TO LOVE OFFICE 2010

Believe it or not, I am unbiased! But, as I’ve said before, I love Office 2010. Microsoft has listened and made improvements on Office 2007, making this the business tool you’ll want to get. If you found 2007 too much of a change, try 2010. You’ll find it easier to digest and use.

 

This article, last in a series of three, deals with Outlook and One Note 2010.

 

Outlook 2010

 

Jump out of being enslaved to your email into mobile freedom with Outlook 2010. New for 2010:

 

• Backstage View. This view provides a single location for all account management tasks. You can manage account settings, import and export files, open Outlook data files, save Outlook data items in other formats, see a full page print preview alongside print options, customize the ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar.
• Quick Steps. Now you can manage and quickly respond to information. Just create and define common tasks that can be executed in one step. You’ll reduce the number of clicks needed and quickly forward emails, deleting the original flag.
• MailTips. This feature allows you to be alerted when you are about to send a large distribution list, avoiding spamming, and to someone who is out of their office. It also helps to avoid bounced notices by determining if a recipient will receive your message immediately.
• Paste With Live Preview. Preview pasted content visually before actually pasting it.
• Picture Editing Tools. Not entirely new, but wonderfully improved, this tool lets you crop, edit and add effects right in your email. You can also grab and incorporate screenshots into your work without leaving Outlook.
• Schedule View. Look at and stay up to date with this shared calendar feature. You can now view multiple calendars (family, co-workers, etc.). Also, you can schedule meetings through the shared calendar tool.
• Room Finder. Talk about easy, you can now schedule a conference room, if you are an Exchange user, with this tool.
• Calendar View. You don’t have to leave your mail box to make sure a requested date is available.
• Contact Card. When connecting to friends and colleagues, you can save switching from one application, to another if you use Microsoft Office Communicator or instant messaging application.
• Outlook Social Connector. No more switching from your mail program to your social network with this tool.

 

And that’s just what’s new. Most other tools in Office 2010 are improved. For example:

 

• Conversation View. This feature condenses multiple emails in a discussion and displays them as a single line item, lets you view only relevant information unless you expand it and eliminate redundant emails.
• Search Tools. Want words instead of icons? Contextual Search Tools helps you locate information.
• Office Themes. This tool gives you formatting options so you can create personally and professionally formatted emails.
• SmartArt Graphics. Office 2010 has added a lot of additional layouts that will help you display information with your personal touch.
• People Search. Find contacts without leaving your email inbox.

 

So are you as excited about Outlook 2010 as I am? Remember, if you have any questions, just call the office and we’ll be happy to help you find the answers.

 

OneNote 2010

 

Remember the little black and white composition books we used for note taking? OneNote lets you store and share information in a single location. Think of OneNote as your complete composition resource. By sharing your notebooks, you can simultaneously take and edit notes with other people in other locations and keep everyone up to date. And no need to lug around your composition books. OneNote is portable, working from any computer with an internet connection or your Windows phone.

 

Features:

 

• Linked Notes. Using this feature you can take notes while working in Word or PowerPoint 2010 or Internet Explorer.
• Quick Filing. You can send content from documents, Web pages, email or almost any program to the exact location in your OneNote notebooks.
• OneNote Web App. An online companion to Microsoft OneNote, this feature enables you to extend your OneNote experience to your browser.
• OneNote Mobile 2010. You’ve got to have a Windows phone to use this application that gives you lightweight viewing and editing.

 

Update On Syncing Your Droid Phone With Outlook 2010

 

There is one ray of hope for syncing your Droid phone with Outlook 2010. CompanionLink has a product that provides a sync via USB connection. You can download DejaOffice for free on the Android Market, or direct from http://www.companionlink.com. They say it will sync with Outlook 97 and higher, including the new Outlook 2010, 64-bit.

WHAT’S IN A WORD? A LOT FOR WORD 2010! AND MORE FOR POWERPOINT AND EXCEL.

Yes, there’s a lot of power in Word 2010. Last month we talked generally about the good and the bad about Office 2010. In this article we will cover Word, PowerPoint and Excel 2010—the powerhouse Suites.

 

Word

 

The average user has never made the most from Word, using only portions of the program. Now, there’s even more to ignore or love! Great for small businesses, Word 2010 brings:

• Impact to documents through SmartArt which transforms basic, bullet-point text into compelling visuals and special picture effects with built-in picture editing tools.
• Special picture effects without additional photo-editing software, making it easy to do powerful proposals, etc.
• Writing, editing, and organizing documents more efficiently with improved document-formatting tools.
• Easy document editing through co-authoring, share ideas with others at the same time by posting your documents online and then accessing, viewing, and editing them from almost any computer or your Windows phone, if you have one.
• Document recovery, even when you think you’ve lost the file or never saved it. Wow, we can all use that!
• Working and communicating effectively across different languages, allowing for new and improved global communications.
• Browsing, sorting, and finding what you need quickly with the new and improved Find command, eliminating the frustration of wondering where you saved the file.

You can also browse, sort quickly.

 

PowerPoint

 

Microsoft put the power in PowerPoint 2010. If you use PowerPoint for presentations, you will totally enjoy the increased versatility of this product. This version allows you to:

• Deliver a presentation to anyone, anywhere and at anytime by sending them a link via the internet. Again making it easier to do business globally.
• Have viewers in many different places watch the presentation at the same time through their web browser.
• Create professional presentations with help from the Photo editing tools in Office 2010. With these tools you can add versatile artistic effects, correct color, and crop pictures. This will help you look like the professional.
• Use 3-D when you transition through slides.
• Put video directly into your presentation and edit it without any additional programs. This will help the average user with little or no video editing background.
• Share files and increase playback performance easily by compressing video and audio in your presentation. You’ll need to use the Microsoft Office Backstage™ view which replaces Microsoft’s traditional File menu in all Office 2010 applications.
• Share your presentation with others even though they don’t have PowerPoint installed on their computers. And, once you’ve broadcasted your presentation, you can create a video of your presentation to share with whomever you want.
• Co-author and edit the same presentation, at the same time, with people in different locations. You can even communicate as you work, directly from PowerPoint. However, this feature requires Windows Live. And, an instant messenger account is required to view presence of authors and start an instant messaging conversation.

Excel

 

If you’re an analyst, number cruncher or just like to make graphs to prove your theories, you’ll enjoy the changes in Excel 2010. It may take special add-ins to complete your tasks, but you’ll find it worth it.   

 

Some add-ins are:

• PowerPoint Pivot which pulls data from multiple sources into Excel so it can be analyzed. This works great if you are dealing with a very large dataset that does not fit in one Excel spreadsheet.
• Sparklines allows you to add miniature visualizations into a table, showing trends, etc.
• Slicer functionality enhances your PivotTable and PivotChart visual analysis. 
• Search Filter quickly narrows down the available filter options in your tables, PivotTable, and PivotChart views. Find exactly what you are looking for from up to a million or more items, instantly.

If you work with massive amounts of information ― more than 2 gigabytes you’ll want to purchase the 64-bit version of Office 2010. You can also:

• Work with other people simultaneously on the same workbook in almost any Web browser when you use the Excel Web App.
• Co-author workbooks simultaneously by using Windows Live ID.
• Share your workbooks in a browser through SharePoint Excel Services.
• Recover data even though you haven’t saved it.

Many of the new features in these applications require Microsoft’s Web Apps. Office Web Apps are free web-based version of Microsoft's Office productivity suite. It includes the web-based versions of Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Microsoft OneNote. The web apps allow users to access their documents directly from anywhere within a web browser as well as share files and collaborate with other users online. (From Wikipedia)

So, are you excited about the power in Word, PowerPoint and Excel? The new ribbon also allows for customization of your most used commands. You know that I am totally enjoying Office 2010 and can’t say enough wonderful things about it, but then I am an IT geek. But, the average person, with a little patience, will learn to love it too.

An update on Office 2010

After last month’s article on Office 2010, a friend purchased it, installed it and found out that Google Calendar Sync does not work with Office 2010. She has an Android phone. Google is working on the challenge, and she found that may other Droid users have found a way around the problem. In this case, patience should win out. But, if you need Google Calendar Sync, you might want to wait before you buy Office 2010.

Next month we will talk about Outlook and One Note.

THE LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIP OF OFFICE 2010

As you may have noticed I have not published anything in the last few months. I have been relying on other sources to bring you up-to-date information. The last few months, I and all of the Aperio staffers have been busy transforming our business by finding, testing and certifying in new products and solutions.  We are committed to bringing our clients the best and most cost-effective solutions in the industry. Look for more changes to the website that will bring you more information on the new offerings as well as some support. Aperio is better than we were before.  Better. Stronger. Faster.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and as always I hope to personally bring you the most useful information on technology and how it affects your organization.

Part one of a three-part series

By Cary Warner

It’s a love/hate relationship. When Office 2007 came out, you either loved it or hated it. With Office 2010 out now, your hate may soften to accepting the product, and your love will just deepen.

The dismay in Office 2007 centered on the look and feel of the product. The introduction of a new Ribbon which replaced the standard toolbar in Office 2003 had users grumbling. One was the familiar look that prior Office products held. You could upgrade and the transition was easy.

With Office 2007, Microsoft made a giant leap into the new and unknown, leaving many PC users baffled. The new Ribbon housed a fixed arrangement of command buttons and icons, organized commands as a set of tabs, each grouping relevant commands. The look and feel of the old standby was gone.

Designed to make the features of the application more discoverable and accessible, the Ribbon was either loved or hated. Many gave it a short term shot and went back to using Office 2003.

With Office 2010, Microsoft designed a superior product. Microsoft listened to all the challenges and complaints of users and created a perfect blend. Office 2010 is the best of Office 2003 and Office 2007.

New Features

Those who endured will enjoy a new customizable Ribbon (Users could not customize the Office 2007 Ribbon) so you can organize it according to your needs. A modified Ribbon is now available in all Office applications, and it now includes the "File" option and a new feature called "Backstage View,” giving easy access to task-centered functions such as printing and sharing.

Get excited!  Backstage view incorporates the most commonly used actions in one place (no more dialog boxes with tabs). And there’s more! You get the usual open, save and print, and you also get several templates for new documents, print layouts and ways to share your work, all without dialog boxes and tabs, everything is much more easily accessible.

Additional features include:

• A Paste preview which lets you switch between paste options so you can make sure that your work will be formatted correctly

• Role orientation tailored to employees in "roles” such as research and development professionals, sales persons, and human resources

• A built-in screen capture tool for easy internet copy and paste

• A background removal tool for editing photos and clip art within a document

• SmartArt templates and author permissions so you can create wonderful documents even though you’re not an artist

• New text and image editing effects; making it easy to be the pro

• Live collaboration functions; great for the office

• New animations in PowerPoint 2010; insert videos directly into PowerPoint

• A Social Connector that allows users to write emails while keeping track of their family, friends, and colleagues by viewing status updates and past communication history with the individual

Web Apps

For those who are just buying into the idea of “Cloud Computing,” Microsoft now offers a free web-based version of its Office productivity suite, known as Office Web Apps, which started shortly before Office 2010 was released. Office Web Apps include online versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote. This allows sharing and collaboration of documents and files. It also features user interfaces similar to the desktop version. Office Web Apps were released to Windows Live Skydrive for consumers and SharePoint Workspace for corporations last month. If you are without Office, you may have to download a Trial version or buy Office before using Web Apps.

Which Edition Is Right For You

The home editions:

Home and Student 2010 include Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.

Office Home and Business 2010 adds Outlook to the core apps.

The business editions:

Standard 2010 adds Outlook and Publisher to the core apps.

Professional 2010 adds Outlook, Publisher, and Access.

Professional Plus 2010 includes Outlook, Publisher, Access, SharePoint Workspace, Communicate, and InfoPath.

What are the system requirements?

Office 2010 runs on Windows XP (SP3 required), Windows Vista with SP1 or later (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit) with MSXML 6.0 installed, Windows Server 2008 (32-bit or 64-bit), and Windows Server 2008 R2. You’ll need at least 3 GB of hard disk space.

So there you have it—the love/hate relationship with Microsoft Office 2010. My opinion, I love it. I’ve been using Office 2007 for three years and found the move to Office 2010 easy. If you hated Office 2007 and went back to Office 2003, give Office 2010 a chance. If you loved Office 2007 you’ll be totally infatuated with Office 2010.

Next month I will delve into the Office suite applications.

Cary Warner is VP of Marketing for Aperio, Information Technology Administrators. He can be reached at 916-568-6830 or cwarner@aperio.cc

Download Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 empowers your people to do their best work from more places – whether they’re using a PC, phone or web browser. It can maximize existing investments and help people accomplish more by bringing server capabilities to everyone through familiar and intuitive applications. Office Professional Plus 2010 provides smart, simple, time-saving tools to help everyone do more with less. 

See Microsoft Office 2010 for yourself

We are inviting IT professionals around the world to work with the Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta in your lab environments, with your secondary PCs, and with your Microsoft Office enthusiasts, in order to help ensure smooth adoption when the final product is available and to gather feedback from real-world settings.

Here’s what you need to know:

This is pre-release software, so please read the following to get an idea of the risks and key things you need to know before you try the Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta.

• Protect your PC and data. Be sure to back up your data and please don’t test Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta on your primary home or business PC.
• Uninstall any previous versions of Microsoft Office. We highly recommend that previous versions of Microsoft Office be removed from your test machine before installing Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta.
• Technical details/updates. Before installing the Beta please read the Release Notes.
• Keep up with the news. You can keep up with general technical information and news by participating in the Microsoft Office 2010 Forum (on TechNet) and reading the Microsoft Office 2010 Team Blog.
• Keep your PC updated. Be sure to turn on automatic updates in Windows Update in case we publish updates for the Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta.
• Microsoft Partners. Learn more about Office Professional Plus 2010 on the Microsoft Partner Portal.

Here’s what you need to have*:

• Internet access (to download Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta and get updates)
• A PC with these minimum recommended specifications:
• • 500 MHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor or higher
  • 256 MB of system memory or more
  • 3 GB of available disk space
  • 1024x768 or higher resolution monitor
  • DVD-R/W Drive
• Supported Operating Systems:
• • Windows XP with Service Pack (SP) 3 (32-bit)
  • Windows Vista with SP1 (32-bit or 64-bit)
  • Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit)
  • Windows Server 2008 with SP2 (32-bit or 64-bit)
  • Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit)

*Please note these specifications could change.

Get the download

After registering, you will be able to select the version (we recommend 32-bit which runs great on both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows) and your software language. Downloading the Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta could take an hour or more. The exact time will depend on your provider, bandwidth, and traffic. The good news is that once you start the download, you won't have to answer any more questions – you can walk away while it finishes. If your download gets interrupted, it will restart where it left off.

Once the download is complete, launch the downloaded file and follow the set up instructions.

Important changes in product activation

We’ve made some important changes to how Microsoft Office products are activated.  The new activation method is based on the Software Protection Platform first introduced in Windows Vista and currently used in Windows 7. Please take note of the information provided on the Product Key page that displays during the download process. Follow the instructions on that page for activating your beta software immediately after the setup procedure completes. For more information please see the Release Notes.

Register to download

The Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta software is available in the following languages: Chinese (Simplified), English, French, German, Japanese, Russian and Spanish

Microsoft to put free Office Starter 2010 on new PCs

Bare bones, ad-supported Office 2010 includes Word and Excel

Gregg Keizer (Computerworld (US))  09 October, 2009 07:08

 

Microsoft announced today that it will abandon its decades-old Works entry-level suite, and will instead offer a stripped-down, advertising-supported version of Office 2010 on new PCs next year.

Dubbed Office Starter 2010, the new edition will include only Word 2010 and Excel 2010, dropping PowerPoint 2010 and OneNote 2010 -- the other applications that will be bundled with the lowest-priced package, Home & Student -- as well as Outlook 2010, which is part of the next-level-up Home & Business edition.

Office Starter 2010 will not be a trial edition that times out, said a Microsoft manager today. "Office Starter is different than a trial, in the sense that there's no expiration," said Scott Kahler, the test manager for the new suite, in a video posted on a company blog. "You can continue using it until your needs exceed what Starter can give you."

At that point, Microsoft hopes that users will pay for a more substantial version. "We insure that when you've upgraded, all your documents come across," added Brian Albrecht, Office's group program manager, in the same video clip. "There's no conversion or anything that needs to happen, and everything's there for you."

According to Takeshi Numoto, the corporate vice president for Office, users who want to upgrade to the Home & Student, Home & Business or Professional editions from Starter will be able to do so within Microsoft's software by purchasing a product activation key online or on a card that will be available at major electronics retailers.

All the bits for those three editions will be installed on new PCs that offer Officer Starter; a purchased key will simply "unlock" the appropriate version, so that no additional software need be downloaded.

Starter 2010's two applications will be "reduced-functionality" editions, said Numoto. But with one exception, he declined to get specific about what would be included in Word Starter 2010 and Excel Starter 2010, or what features within the for-money versions would be omitted.

"They'll suit the basic productivity needs for consumers," he argued, adding that their functionality would be on par with Microsoft Works, which has been criticized for not offering full file compatibility with Office itself. "Word Starter 2010 users won't be able to create SmartArt, for example," said Numoto, citing the single example of a missing feature in the free version. "But they'll be able to edit [other content] in documents that include SmartArt, then return them to the original user without losing any formatting."

Office Starter will include on-screen advertisements, acknowledged Numoto, making it the first edition of Microsoft's long-standing desktop suite to do so. "There will be a tile in the lower-right-hand side of the window," he said, where an ad will be displayed.

Microsoft will also use a new technology, called Click-To-Run, to deliver Office 2010 trial editions to owners of older PCs. The technology, which the company debuted in the Technical Preview of Office 2010 that went out to an invitation-only group of testers in July, "streams" pieces of the suite to users who begin a download, letting them start using the suite within minutes. While users work with the trial, the remainder of the code is downloaded in the background by Click-To-Run.

"It's almost like you're 'playing' the application," Numoto said.

Numoto declined to say whether users upgrading from Office Starter will pay a lower price than the list price of retail boxed copies. "We're not getting into price points at this time," he said.

Microsoft has launched invite-only previews of the desktop version of Office 2010 , as well as the online edition, pegged as Office Web Apps . The latter, which include lightweight versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, will be made available to millions free of charge in the first half of next year, the suite's current ship window.

"This is a way for us to reach a lot of customers that we haven't reached before," Numoto said, explaining Microsoft's strategy behind Office Starter, Click-To-Run and the new card-based licenses to be sold at retail. "This will get people a taste for Office, people who may not have been exposed to Office before."

Working remotely will be revolutionized with the introduction of these Office 2010 applications.

Microsoft SharePoint Workspace 2010

Groove 2007 has a new name: Microsoft® SharePoint Workspace 2010. More than a new name, SharePoint Workspace 2010 expands the boundaries of collaboration by offering fast access, online and off, to all SharePoint content. Synchronize SharePoint libraries and lists to your computer with just a few clicks, and then easily update documents and forms offline. When you’re done, you can be confident that everything will automatically synchronize to the server when you’re back online. Usher in an entirely new way of working with SharePoint Workspace 2010.

 

Office Web Apps

Office Web Apps, the online companion to Word, Excel®, PowerPoint® and OneNote® applications, allow you to access documents from anywhere. You can even simultaneously share and work on documents with others online. View documents across PCs, mobile phones, and the Web without compromising document fidelity. Create new documents and do basic editing using the familiar Office interface. By offering more ways to access files from almost anywhere, Office Web Apps enable you to get things done according to your schedule.

 

Office Mobile

Sometimes you’ve got to work, even when you’re moving between point A and point B. That’s why Office Mobile brings the powerful Office 2010 tools you use every day right to your mobile device. View documents, charts, and presentations in a rich interface designed for small screens with Word, Excel®, and PowerPoint® Mobile. Enjoy a familiar e-mail experience Outlook® Mobile. Connect with colleagues on the go using Office Communicator. Don’t waste any more time – take action wherever you go.

 

PowerPoint 2010, Publisher 2010 and Access 2010 are next up in the Office 2010 introduction.

Microsoft PowerPoint 2010

Microsoft® PowerPoint® 2010 delivers more new and exciting ways to create and share dynamic presentations with any audience. Improved audio and visual capabilities help you tell a crisp, cinematic story that’s as easy to create as it is powerful to watch. New, easy-to-use tools help you polish your presentations to help you keep your audience’s attention even longer. Almost-anywhere access to PowerPoint 2010 from your smartphone or the Web allows you to simultaneously work on presentations with other people. Simply put, it’s never been easier to express your ideas with PowerPoint 2010.

 

Microsoft Publisher 2010

Microsoft® Publisher 2010 helps you create, personalize, and share a wide range of great-looking publications and marketing materials with the world. Save time and money while communicating your brand’s message loud and clear. Deliver professional-quality results without having a background in graphic design, whether you’re creating brochures, newsletters, e-mails, postcards, or greeting cards. Using Publisher 2010, you’ll get the job done right the first time around.

 

Microsoft Access 2010

Microsoft® Access® 2010 is all about simplicity, with ready-to-go templates and powerful tools that stay relevant as your data changes and grows. Amplify the power of your data by making it easier to track, report, and share with others – either through your computer or on the Web. Access 2010 empowers you to make the most of your information, with fewer barriers and at a lower cost.

The preview of Office 2010 continues with Word, Excel and Outlook.

Microsoft Word 2010

Microsoft® Word 2010 gives you the best of all worlds: enhanced features to create professional-quality documents, more ways to work together with multiple people, and almost anywhere access to your files. Create and organize documents in less time, with less effort. Store your documents online, then access and edit Word 2010 from practically any Web browser. Word 2010 gives you tools that let you capture your best ideas whenever and wherever they occur.

 

Microsoft Excel 2010

Microsoft® Excel® 2010 makes it possible to analyze, manage, and share information in more ways than ever before. Track and highlight important data trends with new data analysis and visualization tools. Work more effectively with multiple people by simultaneously editing Excel files over the Web. Access important data on the go using Office Excel Mobile or the Office Excel Web Application. Whether you’re producing financial reports or managing personal expenses, Excel 2010 gives you the proficiency and flexibility to accomplish your goals.

 

Microsoft Outlook 2010

It’s all too common to drown in e-mail every day. Luckily, Microsoft® Outlook® 2010 gives you tools you need to stay on top of practically everything. Save valuable inbox space with improved e-mail conversation tracking and management. Compress long e-mail threads into a few conversations that can be categorized, filed, ignored, or cleaned up with a few clicks. From advanced e-mail organization and search to a completely redesigned look, Outlook 2010 provides you with a world-class experience to stay productive and stay in touch with all of your networks.

 

Office 2010 will be better than expected.

Just as we had previewed Windows 7 we are going to preview Office 2010. Over the next 5 to 6 weeks I am going to post the videos that introduce the new version of Office and its individual components. I will also be posting the independent reviews as well. I want to start it off with the funny movie trailer that Microsoft produced about Office 2010.

 

Introduction to Microsoft Office 2010

Microsoft® Office 2010 gives you rich and powerful new ways to deliver your best work - whether you’re at work, home, or school - on a computer, Web browser, or Smartphone. Grab your audience’s attention and inspire them with your ideas using enhanced tools, customizable templates, and photo editing capabilities. Work with multiple people from different locations at the exact same time using new co-authoring capabilities. By offering more ways to access your files from virtually anywhere, Office 2010 puts you in control.

 

Microsoft Word 2010

Microsoft® Word 2010 gives you the best of all worlds: enhanced features to create professional-quality documents, more ways to work together with multiple people, and almost anywhere access to your files. Create and organize documents in less time, with less effort. Store your documents online, then access and edit Word 2010 from practically any Web browser. Word 2010 gives you tools that let you capture your best ideas whenever and wherever they occur.