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- NeoRicen, on 10/12/2007, -10/+52I have downloaded the Beta and I love it, the new interface is genius, an amazing improvement.
- Grimdotdotdot, on 10/12/2007, -8/+46That's right - and the more it's dumbed down, the less the user is going to have to call you.
- blanski, on 10/12/2007, -6/+31I think he meant its harder to find in the beta...
Another episode in "When smartassness strikes back". - mtmal, on 10/12/2007, -6/+30um... doesn't it make sense that the basic features are easier to find and the advanced features are buried?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -11/+33OpenOffice ripping this off in 3... 2... 1...
- blanski, on 10/12/2007, -2/+24You don't have to buy the OS to get the productivity suite.
- IcyStorm, on 10/12/2007, -5/+24I love the ribbon... makes the interface very organized and clean.
- MugatuOT, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15It takes some time to get used to but I like the ribbon as well - nice to see MS doing some innovating.
- saska, on 10/12/2007, -2/+12Get the beta. Try doing the same tasks involving formatting and document restructuring in the old program and with the ribbon. Calculate what you get paid an hour. Figure out how long it would take you to pay for the new functionality in paid time. There you go.
Sorry, but "is it worth $xxx?" isn't much of a contribution to the discussion.
For my part, the increased functionality in Excel is the biggest reason Office 2007 will be worth it. If you don't use the features that are improved in Office 2007, you probably don't really need Office in the first place. - chris9902, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10I agree. I hope to see other programs use something like it.
It would be perfect in something like Maya or Photoshop. - magus_melchior, on 10/12/2007, -4/+12@echoic
That tirade was even less contributive than the OO.o comment. - dclowd9901, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I was about to say, "Innovative and Microsoft in the same sentence? Where're the Four Horsemen?" But, after toying around with Vista a little bit, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that they seem to finally be taking strides in the right direction. Perhaps they're finally understanding the value of a brilliant core of employees who need less bureaucracy from their overlord managers.
- angelp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I am a Mac user and it's very different.
- saska, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I question whether it was intuitive or whether you were used to it.
For the average user, as other folks point out, this is simplicity. In the past I've worked with Word configurations where in order to have all of the necessary options at hand, thus reducing the amount of time with hands off the keyboard and mousing through menus, those buttons and toolbars would take up 1/3 of my window real estate. Often it was because what I needed didn't *need* that much real estate but was couched in a toolbar.
With that said: when you write for a living, your best friend is a document editing program that doesn't need a mouse. - angelp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7It will probably overwhelm them(as most news things do), but they'll get used to it after a while and probably recognize that it is easier to use.
- Linkage155, on 10/12/2007, -11/+18Very true, and great for beginners.
- azurechen, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7This is my review for Office 2007 beta:
For Computers with 1G CPU, 512MB RAM, Office 2007 is good enough to use. So upgrade your computer if you want to try Office 2007 beta. (You will change the way you thought about Office in minutes!)
I believe this version is a awesome edition for beginners, and people would use features they never thought of on the fly.
However, if you take advance features for granted, you really need to spend some time to know where to find where the features relocated to.
(EX: In order to make a "Table of contents", you need to tap "Reference" instead of "Insert". Even though the change makes sense for regular Joe, but not for me...)
Special: Office 2007 integrate lots of their Online features, including templates and addons into the software. Which is also a gem most Office users never used. Try it and you will like/appreciate it.
Bugs:
a.The Notes section on PowerPoint is a little bit... strange, somehow it can't hold/edit more words when you put more than four lines of comments.
b.Some features might block the screen if you only have 1024*768 resolution setting... (How can you see the changes before you apply if you can't see the screen?)
c.Some minor crashes, might be related to the Asia IME issue. (For now, there's' NO Taiwanese version of Office 2007 Beta, yet.)
c.Equations in Word is a bit sluggish... Sometimes you need to get into Equation editor and close it once you select an equation, or you might got stuck and can't edit other things.
After Thought: MS score big on this one. I know I might be labeled as a fan-boy with following comment, but "Office 2007 beta actually make you feel enjoyable when editing documents, unlike previous versions".
I have a legit copy of Office 2003 and when I use Office 2007 beta, and I don't want to switch back. - camix, on 10/12/2007, -6/+12The whole purpose behind the ribbon interface is that M$ figured out that most people, they surveyed, asked for features that already existed but they had no idea how to find them/never knew they existed. Office has become a ginormous app/bloatware with toolbars and menubars that popup everywhere. From the demos I've seen this whole ribbon interface is pretty tight and seems to simplify things a lot. So, thumbs up to M$. Hopefully other software companies out there follow suite with simpler interfaces. You hear me Adobe!?!?!?
- angelp, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8As someone who uses the Office Suite daily, the ribbon is an excellent addition. I'm also pleased with the improvements made to the Outlook calendar and to-do functions. I dual-boot into Windows on my Macbook just to use the beta Outlook.
- joshwehatetech, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7It is contextual (if I am working on a chart it gives me chart options, an image, image options). I am sure it has been done somewhere before (as much as any feature in any program or OS), but it is a major change in the Office product that is for the better for MOST users. It will probably be copied a lot in other programs and replace typical menus if it is a success.
- angelp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Actually that "dumbed down" design, may actually make workers more productive once they spend less time looking for functions.
- Rosewood, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10It was not intuitive. It was easy to dig through. This is intuitive. Also, for support, you want it dumbed down.
How can you tell me that putting Letters and Mailings under Tools made any sense at all? - petard, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Why must people say M$? It is not even funny anymore and just annoys people. Also, office is not bloatware, it just has a lot of unorganized features. You can not say this new version has less bloat, because it has more features with a new UI.
- WalkerBurgin, on 10/12/2007, -6/+11Haha, An "innovative feature" from Microsoft! That's a good one... Wait, they're serious. Wow. I'm impressed.
- blanski, on 10/12/2007, -5/+10Too bad they're not billionaires.
- KentDiego, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6My wife sat down with the Office 2007 Beta and immediatly noticed the ribbon. Within seconds she figured it out and was amazed how much easier it was than the previous formatting method. She was so impressed that she wanted Office 2007 on her computer but I had to explain the whole "Beta" thing and that she would have to wait. Simplicity was what switched me from Word Perfect to Word for Windows 2.0. No instructions needed, everything made sense. It is good to MS getting back to what made them an initial success.
- MikeSD34, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6I'd love to see the ribbon in use in Microsoft Visual Studio, that would make my day.
- UnderWurlde, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7I'm a Mac user, and I find MS's ribbon interface to be very user-oriented - I'd love to see this on Mac software. I'm quite impressed actually to see something NEW coming from Microsoft, and not just a reheated version of Linux or Mac ingenuity. This will revolutionize the way software is made from now on. Can't wait to see what other companies are going to come up with to a) copy and b) improve on this ribbon. Two thumbs up!
- PhatBoyG, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Laugh all you want. In 2008, all applications will have ribbons since it will probably become part of .NET and easy for application developers to use. When I saw it at PDC05, myself and everyone in the audience applauded loudly. It's a major improvement to application interaction.
Realize that most of you Diggers are smarter than the average user.
Wait, is it okay to use the word Diggers? - babbling, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5I haven't used this ribbon interface, but I have seen pictures of it. I understand that many techies think it's actually a pretty good interface, but what I'm wondering is how easy it will be to use for non-techies who are accustomed to the current Office interface? Is it so intuitive that they, too, will find it easy to use, or is it only going to be a good interface for people who are comfortable with using computers?
In other words, how well is this new interface going to fit into office environments where many of the people using MS Office are usually not happy about changes to their applications, and are generally reluctant to learn anything new? Opinions, please... - Rosewood, on 10/12/2007, -6/+10No, it really doesn't. Everything is right out in front of your face.
http://rosewood.shackspace.com/RosewoodOffice2007Review.pdf - I wrote that review because I wanted to get more familiar with Office 2007. That should give everyone a better idea of what the ribbon is (along with the ars article that is a bit johny come lately).
(Also, in that review I link to Microsoft's video review of the ribbon. Check that out) - PicklePower, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5The new UI takes up just as much or less space than the old UI.
http://blogs.msdn.com/jensenh/archive/2006/04/17/577485.aspx - shmatt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5echo-
no need, there are already about 10 losers daily who beat you it. - kshoaf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Ive played with the beta at work. I dont like the major change to the ribbon. Its confusing to make such a major switch from what I am used to using.
- PicklePower, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Mobile Intel Celeron CPU 1.80GHz with 256 MB ram, and it works fine.
- AssultMonkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I watched the infomovie, and for the first time ever since I heard of OpenOffice, I'm kind of excied about trying a new non-game program. Mostly because I use office programs every day, all day and even a small improvment will mean a lot to me - and a lot of other people. Vista on the other hand...
- saska, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4People who are used to the old interface like the new interface because it puts the things they use most often right in front of them without taking up a horrendous amount of real estate. If they'd changed the structures of the tiered menus but left them as traditional File/Edit/View etc menus, it would be painful to transition. Usability responses say this has a very short learning curve and results in an increase in productivity.
- bugsy187, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." -Albert Einstein
- helix400, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5The ribbon is definitely great.
Unfortunately, it isn't for every application. Many coders still have to code for 800x600. If you try to include a ribbon on application window that small, it can steal 100 or more of the 600 height pixels you have to work with. The nature of Microsoft Word makes a ribbon a perfect fit. For other applications, the menubar/toolbar will be the way to go. - aeroplanedigger, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I love how the nice priase gets downed, that comment above was well worded, and wel explained. But saying anyhtign but MICRO$OFT WINDOZE SUXX is bad here?
I really like the ribbon, it has mad it alot easier to use Office, and i find mysefl actually using Word instead of notepad these days. - chris9902, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5you assume they have only changed the UI.
Just because you don't use all the features doesn't mean there not there. Try writing a book and then tell me how useful the new tools are. - pt4117, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4@funpucker
"In previous versions of Office, developers used the CommandBars object model to build the Visual Basic code that modified the UI. In the 2007 release, this legacy code continues to work in most cases without modification. However, changes made to toolbars in Microsoft Office 2003 now appear on an Add-Ins tab. The type of customization that appears depends on the original design of the add-in. For example, Office creates a Menu Commands group that contains items added to the previous menu structure (File menu, Insert menu, Tools menu, and so on). It also creates a Toolbar Commands group that contains items added to the previous built-in toolbars (Standard toolbar, Formatting toolbar, Picture toolbar, and so forth). In addition, custom toolbars added by an add-in document show up in the Custom Toolbars group on the Add-Ins tab." - furtwan1, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4did you use it? cause its very different.
- trogdoor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4"I think your Mac's overheating, should go check that."
Come on, the new digg anti-microsoft is linux, get with the times. His Ubuntu machine is overheating because the thermal module does't support his temp sensors. - chris9902, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I know, I use Maya. The Ribbon is a lot more polished than Maya's toolbar.
- saska, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@Xalorus - I cut my teeth on WordPerfect and Microsoft Word 4.0, both keyboard-based. These days I prefer to write in a very simple text editor like vim or Crimson Editor and format the final in Word.
There are also still keyboard shortcuts in Word, of course. - washley, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2There will not be a way to switch back.
- Whitey04, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5Oooooh, look at the pretty colors........
- hackwrench, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Fidelity National Financial ( http://www.fnf.com ) is a software company? That's not what I usually think of as a software company. I don't think of IBM as a software company either. Both produce software as part of their offerings, but that isn't the defining product of either company.
- saska, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Here's a suggestion: don't use it.
P.S. If my word processing software required VR goggles and a glove to "interface it," as you say, I would shoot myself. -
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