Which Version of Microsoft Office?

MichaelNKat · 07-18-2009, 05:05 PM

I am in the process of setting up a laptop for my son to use at school. He needs to have Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Outlook. I was about to get Office 2007 Standard Edition (the cheapest 2007 version that has these programs) when I remembered that I have the Office 2003 Student/Teacher Edition that has these programs and 3 licenses.

Any major advantage to the 2007 version? Any major disadvantage to the 2003 version? I use Office 2003 at my office and have noticed that some docs emailed to me have a .docx extension that has required me to download a Word utility so that I can work with it. Is this a 2007 doc? Are there other compatibility issues if my son uses Office 2003 and the school uses Office 2007?

Thanks!

RebelCats · 07-18-2009, 05:16 PM

At my school 2007 is the only version they teacher and prefer you to have. Spacing, fonts and a some other things are different between the two. If he plans to use it for a few years (don't know the age of your son) into college 2007 is the better bet and less headaches for him.

BTW if he has an edu email account he can get 2007 pretty cheap (usually under 100.)

LongPrime · 07-18-2009, 05:17 PM

the school probably has a educational license that is nominal cost to the student.

xiggi · 07-18-2009, 05:22 PM

I would install the 2003 version and use it until the school makes it mandatory to switch to the newer version. It is also highly probable that the school will have a special academic license.

Teachers who insist that the only version should be the 2007 are insensitive. I believe that the opposite is more prevalent. I happen to think that people who send docx documents without an older .doc version are being rude.

sueinphilly · 07-18-2009, 05:35 PM

they just FORCED MSFT 2007 down our throats at work. HATE THE RIBBON. Have found 1 or 2 things that are 'better' than 2003. Take 2003 and you will be fine.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/923505

here is the compatibility thing to use documents interchangably in 2003/2007

kayf · 07-18-2009, 05:38 PM

My D uses the 2004 Microsoft for Macs -- does anyone have any advice???

RebelCats · 07-18-2009, 05:45 PM

My school may be different but the course books we used for my computer and business classes required Windows and Office 2007. I remember a few asking if the could do the work on a Mac and was told no because it was just not set to work that way.

kayf · 07-18-2009, 06:04 PM

The school said that macs were OK.

ucsd_ucla_dad · 07-18-2009, 06:08 PM

The .docx files are Word 2007 files but Word can also save them as .doc (previous Word compatible) files if you select that when saving the file.

I've used both 2007 and 2003 extensively and see little advantage to 2007 with the exception that Excel 2007 doesn't have the 64K row limitation that's in 2003. Most people will never hit this artificial limit though and lots of people don't even use excel.

If the purpose is just to use Word, Powerpoint, and Excel for < 64K rows, then 2003 is fine. If later your S discovers he really needs 2007 then he can get an upgrade.

I second checking with the school in case they have some sprecialy arrangement for a cheap install of 2007. I think it's ridiculous that any school would 'require' 2007. It doesn't make any sense.

abasket · 07-18-2009, 06:21 PM

Yep, check with the school.

My D's school just had kids pick up a download CD at the library the first week of school - no cost, no problems.

sueinphilly · 07-18-2009, 06:59 PM

ucsd_ucla_dad - I found something outlook 2007 does that 2003 doesn't. You can count the number of characters in 2007. Good to use when sending text msgs via email.

besides the excel expanded row limit, I have found NOTHING better about 2007 and I use outlook, word, excel and access. Just have to RELEARN how to do the SAME things. thanks for nothing Mr. Gates

wbow · 07-18-2009, 08:47 PM

don't buy anything without looking into microsoft office ultimate steal...google and find the correct site. with an email address with .edu, you can purchase 2007 with word, excel, powerpoint, access and a few other toys for around 60 dollars. you can buy a back up cd for about 12 dollars if you feel the need to do so!

TchaikovskyPiano · 07-18-2009, 10:23 PM

I can attest to the validity of the Microsoft Office Ultimate Steal; everything for around $60. I would say it is not a bad investment considering the relatively low cost.

I have a feeling that most people who dislike Office 2007 are simply resistant to change. The new layout has allowed me to work more efficiently. If your son types up a lot of lab reports, the equation editing feature in Word 2007 is excellent (almost as good as LaTeX). However, Office 2003 is perfectly fine. I think that Office 2007 is better than 2003, but certainly not enough to justify paying an extra $400 for it (though definitely worth the extra $60).

Office 2007 does allow you to save files in the old formats, though they take up more space. In buying 2007 you would be getting a superset of all of the features offered in 2003.

MichaelNKat · 07-19-2009, 04:33 PM

Thank you everyone for your responses and info. I think for now I will stick with the 2003 version I have unless and until the school advises that the 2007 version is necessary

toadstool · 07-19-2009, 06:05 PM

For Macs I beleive that 2004 is the most recent version, with patchs and downloads and fixes here and there. If anyone has multiple licenses (mine came with 4), use those, and just download the fixes - there is nothing newer for MACs.