Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Australian Students Can Get Office at 95% Off Retail

Posted by samzenpus on from the almost-free dept.

tora201 writes "Microsoft Australia is offering university students in that country Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate Edition for just $75 Australian dollars, a 95% discount off the usual retail price. Alternatively students can buy a one year renewable license at just $25, or download a trial version that can be later activated. Eligibility is determined through a valid Australian university e-mail address with payment made via credit card."

246 comments

  1. Dupe! by Whiney+Mac+Fanboy · · Score: 5, Informative

    Dupe - and the original story was much funnier - it covered MS's promotional site being flagged as a phishing site by MS's own IE7.

    --
    There are shills on slashdot. Apparently, I'm one of them.
    1. Re:Dupe! by jez9999 · · Score: 1

      I don't know why parent was modded down. This article is indeed very much a dupe.

      --
      == Jez ==
      Do you miss Firefox? Try Pale Moon.
    2. Re:Dupe! by kestasjk · · Score: 1

      I didn't see the first posting, and I'm definitely going to go for this offer. Could this be the first useful dupe in /. history?

      --
      // MD_Update(&m,buf,j);
    3. Re:Dupe! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Anything that makes you pony up some more greenbacks to Microsoft-san is useful.

    4. Re:Dupe! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I thought your title meant they were duped.

    5. Re:Dupe! by Nimloth · · Score: 5, Funny

      Eligibility is determined through a valid Australian university e-mail address with payment made via credit card
      On a totally unrelated matter, does anyone here have any tips on spoofing email addresses?
    6. Re:Dupe! by senatorpjt · · Score: 1

      If you're going to do that, why not just get the warez version?

    7. Re:Dupe! by definate · · Score: 1

      Actually, there was no confirmation email (from memory). So you could potentially fake it, and hope your details don't actually get sent to someone.

      --
      This is my footer. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
    8. Re:Dupe! by Xaer0cool · · Score: 1

      Be carefool, in Australian schoolboy slang 'spoofing' means something else. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=spo of

    9. Re:Dupe! by Sj0 · · Score: 1

      Microsoft-sama

      Fix'd.

      --
      It's been a long time.
  2. But the sad thing is... by Max+Romantschuk · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Dupe or not, the sad thing is there are lots of students clueless enough to think that they need MS Office when 99% of them can do all they need with OpenOffice.org.

    --
    .: Max Romantschuk :: http://max.romantschuk.fi/
    1. Re:But the sad thing is... by W2k · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But the interface of Office 2007 is vastly different from that of OpenOffice. Those students may eventually be employed by someone who uses Office 2007 internally within their organization, and wants new employees to be familiar with it without any training, mandating prior experience. In this sense, the students being allowed to buy Office 2007 for cheap is a Good Thing for them.

      Now, perhaps most companies running Office 2003/2007 could also have managed with OpenOffice, but that argument is not going to help a job-seeking student...

      --
      Quality, performance, value; you get only two, and you don't always get to pick.
    2. Re:But the sad thing is... by onco_p53 · · Score: 1

      Serious question. Can Open Office do track changes?

    3. Re:But the sad thing is... by Max+Romantschuk · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But the interface of Office 2007 is vastly different from that of OpenOffice. Those students may eventually be employed by someone who uses Office 2007 internally within their organization, and wants new employees to be familiar with it without any training, mandating prior experience.

      The vast majority of Office users never really use more than a very limited subset of the available features. A univeristy level student should be able to pick those up in a span of a few days, if familiar with Office applications in general.

      If you're aiming for a job which requires serious Office involvement it's a good thing to learn MS Office. But for writing papers, etc. buying it makes little sense. Spend a few hours every now and then in the uni computer lab and practice with MS Office instead.
      --
      .: Max Romantschuk :: http://max.romantschuk.fi/
    4. Re:But the sad thing is... by RiskyChris · · Score: 0

      How is it sad that the students are so clueless? That reads like an attack on their intelligence or awareness. They think they need MS Office because it is far and away the #1 suite for writing papers, organizing data, etc.

      Rather the attacks should be at the general problem that OO hasn't gained enough public attention.

    5. Re:But the sad thing is... by pandrijeczko · · Score: 4, Insightful
      It could be argued that if your CV (or resume) is that difficult to fill with interesting information about yourself that you have to mention "MS Office experience", then you probably need to go and spend some time getting some better skills.

      I accept that more complex skills in MS Office like Excel programming, data merges, etc. are probably in demand by many employers - but for someone who just creates simple documents in MS Office, OpenOffice would probably take no more than a couple of hours to adjust to.

      --
      Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
    6. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      If you, your employer or someone else you know is employing people so dense that they can not handle a simple transition from one application to another, it's time to rethink the hiring policy.

      Oh and you know it's funny, but I don't recall anyone wailing and gnashing their teeth because people who are already employed and using Microsoft Office 2003 will have to "learn" the new Microsoft Office 2007 user interface. Your argument seems to be that it is O.K for Microsoft Office 2007 not to look like Microsoft Office 2003, but it is not O.K for OpenOffice.org 2.1 not to look like Microsoft Office 2007. Que?

    7. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Serious question. Can Open Office do track changes?

      Serious answer. I think what you want is Tools->Options->OpenOffice.org Writer->Changes. I don't know how well it works, though, as I haven't used it.

    8. Re:But the sad thing is... by Verte · · Score: 0

      Or no office. Unless you're doing accounting or something, who needs word, powerpoint or excel? And who would pay $75 for stuff like that anyway? LaTeX doesn't do spreadsheets, but it makes powerpoint look oh-so 1995.

      --
      We at slashdot are scientists, specialists and kernel hackers. Your FUD will be found out.
    9. Re:But the sad thing is... by EvanED · · Score: 1

      It works okay. It's at least 5 years out of date; the track changes feature in Word 2002 is vastly superior to OO.org's, and it's very possible that even earlier versions were the same. There is an open enhancement request for OO.org to support one of the main differences if you want to vote for it.

      (Actually the issue is the ability to display comments in a Word-like manner. This is essentially a prerequisite to the improved track changes handling, because deleted text "should" be displayed in a similar manner. Currently OO.org strikes out deleted text, which both is busier to the eye and totally messes with line, paragraph, and page breaks.)

    10. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Now, perhaps most companies running Office 2003/2007 could also have managed with OpenOffice, but that argument is not going to help a job-seeking student...


      The students training cheaply with MS Office is not good for the students, it's good for MS. They get a few bucks as opposed to none at well, in the case that Office would be pirated. And they tie in users for the future. It's a bit like a guy pushing crack on the streets right?
    11. Re:But the sad thing is... by Tony+Hoyle · · Score: 1

      The interface to Office 2007 is vastly different (and vastly more difficult - what were MS thinking?) to every other version of office.

      Openoffice is actually far more similar to the mainstream versions of office - Business won't be considering moving for 2-3 years, probably in line with vista movement (get all the retraining costs done at once). For large companies make that 5 years. The students will have graduated by then.

      If they have to have MS Office on their CV (and I agree with others that if you have to go that low that what the hell are you doing at university?) then Office 97 or 2000 is perfectly fine.

    12. Re:But the sad thing is... by Slashamatic · · Score: 1

      I know someone studying languages at a university, i.e. not a technical department.

      The presentations are made from a university PC with PowerPoint. Unfortunately OO's equivalent, Impress, is mostly compatible but some bugs remain with the special effects when written in PP format. Ok, maybe this person shouldn't use so many transition effects, but that is unfortunately the norm in that class.

      They have to use a translation tool which they are given a free license to. It doesn't seem much better than OmegaT but unlike OmegaT it insists on plugging into Word (and won't play with Writer).

      The end result is that this person is being forced into using MS when for the functionality, OO would be fine.

    13. Re:But the sad thing is... by Tim_UWA · · Score: 1

      Unfortunately Openoffice.org doesn't have the data analysis capabilities that Excel has in the data analysis pack, so I had to install Crossover for Excel XP.

    14. Re:But the sad thing is... by EvanED · · Score: 2, Funny

      so its gotsa to beee good

      Jar-Jar?!

    15. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've used OpenOffice for a while, and while it's good enough for some things, I wouldn't like to use it as my permanent office suite. It seems slow, unresponsive and bloated in many ways. It's the best of the free bunch, but certainly not the best. Can come in useful at times though (DOC->PDF creation, converting between long dead MS formats). And I prefer Abiword to OO.org Writer anyhow.

    16. Re:But the sad thing is... by EvanED · · Score: 1

      Unless you're doing accounting or something, who needs word, powerpoint or excel?

      Excel is fine for making graphs. There are other tools, but spreadsheets are the easiest to use, give you interactivity, etc.

      LaTeX doesn't do spreadsheets, but it makes powerpoint look oh-so 1995.

      LaTeX won't do animations (judiciously used, they CAN rather enhance a presentation even if 95% of the time IRL it's completely gratuitous), and it takes longer to make presentations look *good*. Don't get me wrong; I used LaTeX+Beamer for my last big presentation, and it looks pretty good because of it, but it took quite some time to do.

    17. Re:But the sad thing is... by mpe · · Score: 1

      But the interface of Office 2007 is vastly different from that of OpenOffice.

      It is also very different from previous versions of MS Office

      Those students may eventually be employed by someone who uses Office 2007 internally within their organization, and wants new employees to be familiar with it without any training, mandating prior experience.

      With the emphesis of "eventually" commercial orgainisations are very reluctant to spend money simply to make a "fashion statement".

    18. Re:But the sad thing is... by Octorian · · Score: 1

      This is the first feature I point to when people claim "OpenOffice can replace MS Office". Even if OO can do track changes, it doesn't do it as well as MS Office. People who want to switch in the workplace *need* damn-near-perfect file compatibility, and this is a perfect example of a place where OO can't properly handle MS Word files.

      Features like this are totally meaningless and invisible to "home users" and "vocal OO advocates", but are a day-to-day "ABSOLUTELY MUST HAVE" to many workplace users.

    19. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I really, really cannot understand you at all.

      I have never ever gotten a second of any training in any word processor, spread sheet or presentation graphics program whatsoever.

      Do you really, honestly, think knowing around in one particular word processors menus gives real advantage in employment situation?

      If I were employing I expect the person can use more than one program without huge "training". If not, I would terminate the contract ("fire") during the three month "test period" (or whatever it is called in English).

    20. Re:But the sad thing is... by W2k · · Score: 1

      Business won't be considering moving for 2-3 years

      That's a generalization. The company where I am currently employed has already moved to Vista and Office 2007. Rather painlessly too, from my point of view, though we have yet to move every last desk over.

      --
      Quality, performance, value; you get only two, and you don't always get to pick.
    21. Re:But the sad thing is... by mspohr · · Score: 1
      Yes, OO.org supports track changes nicely. I regularly exchange documents working with others using track changes and never a problem.

      OTOH, good old MS Word often has problems sharing files from one version to another (particularly backwards compatibility). I've used OO.org to straighten out these problems more than once.

      --
      I don't read your sig. Why are you reading mine?
    22. Re:But the sad thing is... by W2k · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Lots of people have responded to my post same as you, "if you have to mention Office experience to fill your CV you suck", or "if your employer thinks you need retraining to switch Office versions they're daft", etc. That's beside the point. The point is that HR people will use "office 2007" as a search term when looking through the stack of digitized CV's they got in response for their latest job offering. HR people really are that clueless. And if you don't want to lie on your CV, it will serve you to be able to put "Office 2007" in there.

      Remember that I am talking about jobs that a student, in his last couple of years or just post graduation, might consider. NOT the most technically advanced positions, more like entry-level. In those, I've found, they only care about past positions.

      --
      Quality, performance, value; you get only two, and you don't always get to pick.
    23. Re:But the sad thing is... by zoney_ie · · Score: 1

      Microsoft Office is not worth the normal retail price, but OpenOffice is just a (pretty good) imitation that isn't as convenient when dealing with documents authored in MS Office. If both were free, I see no reason other than ideology for ordinary users to choose OpenOffice.

      There's a similar offer for students in Ireland. €98 for full version of MS Office Pro 2007 is worth it.

      75 AUS$ is even more of a pittance - that's like what, €10? ;)

      P.S. WHEN WILL SLASHDOT ALLOW DIRECT INPUT OF EURO SYMBOL INTO POSTS?! This is 2007!

      --
      -- *~()____) This message will self-destruct in 5 seconds...
    24. Re:But the sad thing is... by jedimark · · Score: 1

      damn.. where are my mod points :) Well said.

      The underlying principles of this office related stuff is taught (now anyway) as a standard subject in Australian (and most other countries) schools.

      Anyone who after 12 or more years of modern education, can't easily adapt to using any computer software to write letters and other business documents, should not be regarded as employable (in their current state) in an office position. There are plenty of other jobs available for them.. I guess computers weren't a strong enough interest. (I'm not knocking people with learning disabilities here btw, but thats a separate issue.)

      I'm glad there are plenty of smart people out there who can fix my car, fix broken limbs, and do other cool stuff, but not operate computers well. I'd have no job if it wasn't for them.

      It will be interesting to see if Microsoft can compete for future students loyalty by being only a "little more expensive" then the nearest major competitor.

    25. Re:But the sad thing is... by Poorcku · · Score: 1

      Almost true. But when you need to submit your paper to your supervisor... bang! some tables are not compatible some formatting will not be transfered and you wind up with an ugly a** paper, looking as if you don't know the basics of document formatting. Then of course you risk angering the supervisor, and we all know about evaluation biases. No thanx. As long the university will be using .doc as the de facto standard... students will use that too.

      --
      I take my children to see Madonna(..), but I never for once ever thought I was in the same business.Chris Rea.
    26. Re:But the sad thing is... by cyclop · · Score: 1

      I could not agree more. I work in a university lab, so maybe it's different, but I never had any "training". They just tell me "That's the software you need; use it". That is for Office as for Illustrator as for IGOR or MatLab (programming IGOR, brrr, what a nightmare). Of course I can choose any other software I like if it costs zero and does the same things -that's why I have a Kubuntu desktop in my lab.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    27. Re:But the sad thing is... by nwbvt · · Score: 1

      Unless of course they are one of the many students out there who has a professor that uses Office and requires its use. I'm sure that ends up being much more than 1% of the student population. Yes, you can convert an OO document to an Office document, but there are often glitches and formatting problems, which professors are often not that tolerant of.

      --
      Mathematics is made of 50 percent formulas, 50 percent proofs, and 50 percent imagination.
    28. Re:But the sad thing is... by cyclop · · Score: 1

      Less-serious question: Does an office package *need* track changes?

      Serious question: I've not seen Office 2007, but until Office XP track changes were utter crap. After two passes, they become simply unusable -I don't know who invented the "balloons" visualization but that individual should be tortured. Track changes would be wonderful if (1)works between *selected versions* and not instead *tracking every single stupid change* (maybe there is an option for this, let me know) and (2)has a diff-like side-by-side view instead of the ballon visualization.

      I may be wrong, of course, I'll be glad if you prove me to.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    29. Re:But the sad thing is... by cyclop · · Score: 1

      I actually use office software only at work, and in my lab we have a "NEVER EVER USE THAT DAMNED TRACK CHANGES FEATURE" unwritten (but enforced) policy. Really. It does more harm than good.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    30. Re:But the sad thing is... by cyclop · · Score: 1

      Sorry to sound trollish, but: time to use a real data analysis software?

      Spreadsheets are good for quick-and-dirty graphs and statistics, but I wouldn't ever do something serious with them.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    31. Re:But the sad thing is... by DrXym · · Score: 1
      But the interface of Office 2007 is vastly different from that of OpenOffice. Those students may eventually be employed by someone who uses Office 2007 internally within their organization, and wants new employees to be familiar with it without any training, mandating prior experience. In this sense, the students being allowed to buy Office 2007 for cheap is a Good Thing for them.


      I think that's a pretty tenuous justification for using Office over some other product. If these people are students then presumably it is because they're obtaining a higher education, not some office typists job.


      Anyway as students, I wonder if even $75 is too much. I have a well paid job and I don't feel motivated to use MS Office for my day to day home use. I actually have a properly licenced copy of Word that I got with my last PC but I haven't been inclined to install it on my current PC because OpenOffice really does the job quite well. It's not perfect and some parts frankly suck balls, but overall the experience is fine and things like built-in PDF support are great.


      Having said that, if a student told me they had to write long papers I would probably advise them to use MSO. OO has some outlining abilities but its pretty poor compared to Microsoft's. Otherwise I don't see much justification, even for cheap.

    32. Re:But the sad thing is... by kestasjk · · Score: 1

      I used to use Ubuntu, but then I started Uni; IE required, Word required, Excel required, Powerpoint required. No exaggerations. I had to switch back to Windows because I went to uni.

      This was a pain in the ass, but kind of understandable. What really got on my nerves was hearing moron CS lecturers' tiresome anti-MS pro-Linux routines, all while forcing you to use Windows.


      Anyway, my copy just finished downloading; having already seen the 2007 features and all that comes in Ultimate I can't imagine it not being well worth the AU$75, though of course I'd never pay anywhere near AU$1500 for it..

      --
      // MD_Update(&m,buf,j);
    33. Re:But the sad thing is... by GreatDrok · · Score: 4, Informative

      A few years back I was between proper jobs and had to do some temping work. The temping agency asked if I could use Office. I didn't know as I had only used OpenOffice as I had been a Linux user since 1994 and before that I was on SunOS. Anyway, I knew OpenOffice pretty well at the time so I figured it would be interesting to see how well I did in their Office proficiency test. They set it up for Office XP and away I went. The funny thing was that they tested my ability to find things in the menu within a couple of tries and didn't let me use keyboard shortcuts. Despite this, the interface of Word was so similar to what I knew from OpenOffice 1.x that I was able to pass the test easily with what they said was a very high score. Some of the really specific functions in Office versus OpenOffice differ in their placement or what they are called but most are close enough that a user of one will be perfectly able to use the other. This is why schools should encourage the use of OpenOffice. This massive discount is a cyncical attempt by MS to get students so used to Office that they won't consider anything else.

      On a similar note, I recently bought my Mum a MacBook and just gave it to her. She has never used anything other than Windows but even without training she was able to find her way around but recently she was struggling to get Word to format some pictures properly on the page so I suggested she use the trial copy of Pages. She was amazingly difficult to convince to try and use anything other than Office, even though she happily used OpenOffice on her Windows box but eventually she tried it and a few minutes in she was suddenly very enthusiastic about it. In the end, what MS wants to do is get people scared of trying anything else. Ever. Teaching people only to use Windows and MS applications from an early age is key to this strategy and it is a cycle that needs to be broken if we are ever to have people who can really function in the face of alternative software. MS has been so successful that people often struggle when moving from one Windows machine to another simply because an icon is in a different place. That just sucks.

      --
      "I have the attention span of a strobe lit goldfish, please get to the point quickly!"
    34. Re:But the sad thing is... by a.ameri · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Am I the only one around here who actually likes the ribbon interface?

      First of all, I am a student in Australia, and right now I am downloading Office 2007 Ultimate after shelving out $75 of my hard earned cash. This I think, is the first time I am directly paying for software in my life, and I guess it's mainly because of how impressed I have become of Office 2007's interface. I had been using a pirated copy of Enterprise Edition for the past couple of weeks, but after seeing this offer, I realised that having a legitimate copy which can easily be validated and updated is worth $75.

      I have used every version of Office since Office 97, and I have also used every version of OOo since it was Staroffice 5.x. Even after all these years, I always found myself looking for a specific option, and jumping from menu to the other menu. Let's face it, there is absolutely no logic why many of these items are where they are. It's just that we have become so accustomed with the interface that we have memorised where they are, and hence are able to use the product. Have you ever looked at a person who has never used any office product, trying to make sense out of Office? I have (my mother), and let me tell you that it is hugely frustrating, to say the least.

      Ribbons just make the whole problem disappear. The whole functionality is now right in your face, and they have designed it in a way which takes less screen real space than all those menus and toolbars did. The whole interface is now more intuitive, and everything seems in its place. Now, I hate Microsoft as much as the next guy here, but realistically, ribbons are a UI improvement over menus and toolbars. It took me perhaps 2-3 days to get accustomed to it, but after that I never looked back.

      I agree that for 90% of the time, OOo is fine feature-wise, and does the job. However in the Real World (TM), people ask that you hand in your CV in "word format", and they don't even accept PDFs (don't ask me why). I am afraid I simply can't trust OOo's "save as MS Word" feature, for files which are critical to me. Not to mention that there are those of us who really need the extra functionality MS Office provides. It's not just Office's own functionality either, there are various 3rd party products that only integrate with MS Office, e.g., here in the University of Melbourne, we use a program called End Note X to manage our bibliographies and references when writing articles. Guess what word processing program it integrated with? (hint: not OOo). Now I myself probably won't trust Word (or any WYSIWYG program for that matter) for writing 100+ pages (I used LaTex for writing my Master's thesis), but LaTex is simply not an option for 99% of the population who have been brought up in a WYSIWYG world.

      To say that all those paying for MS Office are ignorants who are not aware of alternatives is stupid. Ribbon is a very fine UI evolution, and I strongly suspect that in a couple of years time, all document generating programs will use the same interface. Not withstanding the technical superiority of MS Office over all other office suits at this time, it should also be noted that many of us have to use Office to ensure document compatibility with everyone else, as well as compatibility with a large number of 3rd party products which we rely on for our day to day life.

      Now, I should probably get back to my thesis again, in LaTex...

      --
      -- /* Those who don't underestand Unix, are condemned to reinvent it poorly */
    35. Re:But the sad thing is... by Dr_Barnowl · · Score: 1

      The major two reasons for the presence of the track changes feature :

      People don't use a version control system for their documents.
      The MSO format, as a binary format, is not as easy to diff as a text based format.

      You can work around these to a degree - you can script the export of text from MSO documents and do comparisons on it. You can even merge documents if you use the Save As XML features and don't mind poking around in XML documents.

      The parent comment about awful visualization should not be the case in an open market ; because if the format was open enough a competing software company could write a document comparator that used any damn visualization you liked.

      Version control systems for more general use are still a bit immature though.

    36. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you're rigth.
      I have a mac iBook G4, I refused to install word and I used openoffice.
      But on a mac it's a real pain, all the options aren't mac compatible: ctrl-c ctrl-v ctrl-x ctrl-q are used to copy,paste,cut,quit (and there's undo, insert table, etc..), but on mac apple key is used instead of ctrl.
      Not to mention the problems when copying something outside OOo and hen coying into it, or vice versa: the copy buffers aren't always the same, so when i paste on another mac app, anything else but what i copied inside OOo is shown.
      And yes, there's a good porting to OOo for mac, NeoOffice, but their dev time is way less than OOo team, so their release schedule is late respect to OOo. And the OOo team decided to cut off any link to NeoOffice on OOo.org website. Good recognition of the NO teams' sacrifices.
      Max respect to the NeoOffice team for their job.

      I bought a mac word version using my (european) university's agreement with MS, and now I'm writing everything on it.
      When i decided that, the latest NeoOffice version was a 1.x, now there's a paid subscription to get the new 2.1; if I had read this earlier, i might have chosen to pay them instead Microsoft.

    37. Re:But the sad thing is... by Fozzyuw · · Score: 1

      Dupe or not, the sad thing is there are lots of students clueless enough to think that they need MS Office when 99% of them can do all they need with OpenOffice.org.

      Yes and part of this reason might be the fact that companies (like my own) are putting a temporary ban on Vista, Office 2007 and IE7 upgrade. IE7 being more technical than cost efficient since some of our applications won't run on IE7 (I don't know which, I have IE7 installed along with IE6 and less for web development purposes and I have no problems yet).

      There's also an information week piece that my company is using to value it's decisions on. It talks about how the U.S. Department of Transportation are putting a temporary ban on Vista and Office 2007 since they have usability issues and show no real productivity use for the cost, or as they say, there's no ROI. I did submit this as a story, but I think the story submit is a bit flooded or I used the wrong one since my last two stories are still pending, from several weeks ago. =P

      Cheers,
      Fozzy

      --
      "The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became truth." ~1984 George Orwell
    38. Re:But the sad thing is... by ThosLives · · Score: 1

      True with all the features and such, but my experience (granted, possibly with an early version) with OpenOffice was that it took forever to open (ok, about 5 times as long as Word) and didn't really do much other than change all the paradigms I was used to.

      Also, I just can't keep a straight face when I think about using a product called "OO.o" which looks like what Galahad said when trying to say Ni.

      I bet you could increase adoption by a couple orders of magnitude if you fixed the name (why the heck would you put "dot anything" in the name of a product?)

      By the way, other "professional" software around which I can't keep a straight face is being used by my company: Whizible (heh).

      --
      "There are a dozen opinions on a matter until you know the truth. Then there is only one." - CS Lewis (paraprhase)
    39. Re:But the sad thing is... by arclyte · · Score: 1

      Hmm. I don't know what school you went to, but at the ones I've been to you'd be lucky to find students who can _spell_ Microsoft Office 2007, nevermind figure out how to use its basic functions in a couple of days.

    40. Re:But the sad thing is... by shark72 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "It works okay. It's at least 5 years out of date; the track changes feature in Word 2002 is vastly superior to OO.org's, and it's very possible that even earlier versions were the same. There is an open enhancement request [openoffice.org] for OO.org to support one of the main differences if you want to vote for it."

      ... and that's the problem with a lot of FOSS in a nutshell. Another option is to do the damn coding myself, but if I can't or won't contribute back to OSS, then I must wait, because the fellow responsible for such a feature has a day job of his own, and that's what I should expect for free.

      If my time is worth $25AUS an hour, and it will take me three hours to modify OO to make it do what I want, or to spend time cajoling somebody in Finland to work on the feature that I need, then Office 07's $75 price starts looking good. I'll pick up and wave the holy sword of FOSS when it relates to something that's not so mission-critical.

      --
      Sitting in my day care, the art is decopainted.
    41. Re:But the sad thing is... by joto · · Score: 1

      That's because you haven't graduated from kindergarten yet. Once you do, you will see that people around you are learning to spell, as well as use a computer.

    42. Re:But the sad thing is... by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      So... you're either new here, or don't read many comments, right?

      --
      My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
    43. Re:But the sad thing is... by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      So what you're saying is that it costs you $0.07AUS to masturbate, plus materials? You're losing $200 every night you have a full night's sleep? Your time isn't always worth money directly, no matter what your mommy says.

      --
      My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
    44. Re:But the sad thing is... by joto · · Score: 1

      No, wrong.

    45. Re:But the sad thing is... by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      Man, when will OO.o ever have the feature that allows it to save a file and then be unable to read it the next day and think it needs repaired? Excel is great at that.

      Sorry, I'm bitter. I just lost a 50MB file to that bullshit.

      --
      My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
    46. Re:But the sad thing is... by nick.ian.k · · Score: 1

      The funny thing was that they tested my ability to find things in the menu within a couple of tries and didn't let me use keyboard shortcuts.

      ...which is a completely stupid policy. Even if part of what's being evaluated is something along the lines of general software skills aptitude, it's downright foolish not to allow them. Even in learning how to do something for the first time, the damned shortcuts are listed right on the pull-down menus. What are they suggesting, that they don't want their prospective employees to be quick-thinking and efficient when it comes to menial and repetitive tasks?

    47. Re:But the sad thing is... by enmane · · Score: 1

      Am I the only one around here who actually likes the ribbon interface?

      Nope, it looks pretty nice to me also but it seems to run a little slow on a new system.

      First of all, I am a student in Australia, and right now I am downloading Office 2007 Ul
      Can't argue there either -$75 for a piece of software that you use often seems worth it for 3-4 yrs of use

      I have used every version of Office since Office 97, and I have also used every version of OOo since it was Staroffice 5.x. Even after all these years, I always found myself looking for a specific option, and jumping from menu to the other menu. Let's face it, there is absolutely no logic why many of these items are where they are. It's just that we have become so accustomed with the interface that we have memorised where they are, and hence are able to use the product. Have you ever looked at a person who has never used any office product, trying to make sense out of Office? I have (my mother), and let me tell you that it is hugely frustrating, to say the least.

      Same here - used StarDivisions version of StarOffice and Office from before '97. I can't disagree with anything said here. I'd like to add that the old 5.2 worked faster as an integrated desktop app than it does in parts and copying/pasting was seamless - they've regressed in terms of speed and package size.

      Ribbons just make the whole problem disappear. The whole functionality is now right in your face, and they have designed it in a way which takes less screen real space than all those menus and toolbars did. The whole interface is now more intuitive, and everything seems in its place. Now, I hate Microsoft as much as the next guy here, but realistically, ribbons are a UI improvement over menus and toolbars. It took me perhaps 2-3 days to get accustomed to it, but after that I never looked back.

      Yup, I haven't goofed with it much but it just seems more intuitive and for the FIRST time, I've seen MS do something innovative without directly ripping off someone else - or _have_ they?

      I agree that for 90% of the time, OOo is fine feature-wise, and does the job. However in the Real World (TM), people ask that you hand in your CV in "word format", and they don't even accept PDFs (don't ask me why). I am afraid I simply can't trust OOo's "save as MS Word" feature, for files which are critical to me. Not to mention that there are those of us who really need the extra functionality MS Office provides. It's not just Office's own functionality either, there are various 3rd party products that only integrate with MS Office, e.g., here in the University of Melbourne, we use a program called End Note X to manage our bibliographies and references when writing articles. Guess what word processing program it integrated with? (hint: not OOo). Now I myself probably won't trust Word (or any WYSIWYG program for that matter) for writing 100+ pages (I used LaTex for writing my Master's thesis), but LaTex is simply not an option for 99% of the population who have been brought up in a WYSIWYG world.

      THis is where we start to disagree. As you should know, the default format for Office 2007 is their own version of XML so this means that everyone will be switching formats one way or another and they will be forced to make it openly available so format issues _should_ disappear.

      We also use Endnote here at Purdue but I haven't messed with it at all because OpenOffice has the Bibliography database for free and it works just fine for me - you should try it. I prefer OO because it is right in the middle of Word and LaTeX for me - type in equations, bibliography database, AND WYSIWYG. I haven't tried writing my thesis on it but will very shortly. I tried with MS Word XP and vowed NEVER to use that Steaming Pile Of Dung again - I wasted more time on crashes than it was worth. I haven't invested the time to use LaT

    48. Re:But the sad thing is... by shark72 · · Score: 1

      "So what you're saying is that it costs you $0.07AUS to masturbate, plus materials? You're losing $200 every night you have a full night's sleep? Your time isn't always worth money directly, no matter what your mommy says."

      My leisure time is not worth money. Everything else is. Getting some OSS to do what I want, or tracking down and cajoling somebody else to do it, is not a leisure activity for me.

      I'm guessing that for you and a lot of other people reading this, contributing to the OSS movement is a good idea of a leisure activity, so I can see how you were boggled by my statements -- it didn't even occur to you that it's not something I'd consider to be as rewarding as sleeping or masturbating. This is very telling, and it's why it's essential for OSS advocates to understand that there are many people out there who do not feel the same. When I code, I do it for money. And there are more people still who don't code at all.

      --
      Sitting in my day care, the art is decopainted.
    49. Re:But the sad thing is... by AK+Marc · · Score: 1

      If you're aiming for a job which requires serious Office involvement it's a good thing to learn MS Office.

      If you are aiming to be employable, you should learn MS Office. Most companies use it. Many ask for (if not require) exposure to it in the past. No company wants to hire someone for any job, then have to watch as productivity suffers as people try to figure out how to do things in a new software packages. Two identical applicants, except one is an expert in OO and the other in MS Office and the company uses MS Office, which candidate do you think they will select?

      --
      Learn to love Alaska
    50. Re:But the sad thing is... by Bearhouse · · Score: 1

      Even the very latest and best Office program does not spell-check /. sigs.

    51. Re:But the sad thing is... by Danga · · Score: 1

      The students training cheaply with MS Office is not good for the students, it's good for MS. They get a few bucks as opposed to none at well, in the case that Office would be pirated. And they tie in users for the future. It's a bit like a guy pushing crack on the streets right?

      No, it is not like a pusher on the streets at all. It is mutually beneficial because the student gets to legally use the latest software that businesses use (might come in handy for some) for a cheap price as opposed to pirating it and like you said MS gets a few bucks instead of none since the normal price is way out of the range for most college students. It also does somewhat tie in a user for the future but only if it is a good product and the student prefers it to the alternatives (which nowadays I do find MS Office more functional and useful than OO myself, OO is SLOW). I was lucky at the university I went to to get all MS products for free (although I only used MS Word and Excel and Windows XP Pro) and while I don't believe getting that stuff free will ever help me in the job market it was cool to be able to get a free upgrade to the latest MS OS to tinker with the new OS and play games on (not to mention the HUGE boost in reliability compared to Windows 98SE). Did this experience "lock me in for the future"? Not really, I use what I like and at my house I have one Windows box for games and some development and then a few linux boxes for various other things.

      MS is also not pushing MS Office on anyone, the students have 100% of the choice to buy it or not as opposed to a crackhead who is addicted to crack and usually can't make the decision to quit. Crack is also only bad for one party and there is no way to "pirate" crack so your analogy is flawed. Nice try.

      I wish people would stop getting pissed off at MS for doing nice things like price breaks for college students. Sure, MS hopes that by doing that it results in future sales to said students but that doesn't make doing so evil, a lot of businesses do similar things and will give big price breaks to educational institutions.

      Come back with a real argument next time.

      --
      Hey, there is only one Return and it's not of the King, it's of the Jedi.
    52. Re:But the sad thing is... by Danga · · Score: 1

      Your time isn't always worth money directly, no matter what your mommy says.

      Umm in this case the poster mentioned it would probably take about 3 hours of his time to edit OO while he could get something that already works and works well for $75. I am guessing this person is a programmer and most people I know who are programmers (myself included) only like to program things they find fun when they are not at work. So in essence the time spent getting OO changed into something useful for them would cost them $25AU an hour since it is not something they WANT to do. That would make the $75 for office 2007 look damn appealing to me

      --
      Hey, there is only one Return and it's not of the King, it's of the Jedi.
    53. Re:But the sad thing is... by Danga · · Score: 1

      I also forgot to ask if you have ever taken a look at the source for a large open source project because I have and most of the time it has looked like a nightmare to work on. You couldn't pay me enough money to work on most of the spaghetti code I have seen out there. Paying the $75 instead of pulling my hair out for hours sounds like a dirt cheap bargain to me.

      --
      Hey, there is only one Return and it's not of the King, it's of the Jedi.
    54. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anthony · · Score: 1

      A proper education will teach you to adapt to the latest ephemeral piece of software your latest employer happens to use. Skilling up on the latest piece of software only gets you so far. If you are a University grad and all they want you for are your word processing skills with a particular piece of software then you may be in the wrong job.

      --
      Slashdot: Where nerds gather to pool their ignorance
    55. Re:But the sad thing is... by MrShaggy · · Score: 1

      I was thinking more southern-fried, but thats a good one too. A little bit of sarcasm, vs. a troll.. I guess some don't appreicate the humor.

      --
      I have mod points and I am not afraid to use them.
    56. Re:But the sad thing is... by GreatDrok · · Score: 1

      "What are they suggesting, that they don't want their prospective employees to be quick-thinking and efficient when it comes to menial and repetitive tasks?"

      Unfortunately I think that is exactly the situation. The sort of people who need to do these tests have such an amazingly low capacity to actually function with software like Office that anyone who can use it in the way that is intended is probably far too high up the evolutionary tree to actually want to work in a job where they have to use Office all day long. To many of these people, Office *IS* the computer. The people doing the training also have such a low ability that they can't cope with people who know more about it than they do and this even goes for the teachers in schools too. What is holding computing and computer use back is the way people are trained (poorly) to use (poor) software (poorly) to do their jobs (poorly). I have been in several jobs where I was able to complete the entire days work in the first hour simply because I can use a computer efficiently. The training industry doesn't want people who can sit at a computer they have never used before and function quickly. And the support industry doesn't want a computer that doesn't break constantly. And the managers are too deluded to know that the training and support that people are getting is so second rate that they could actually afford to hire 1/8th of the people if they actually had a reasonable level of training and skill.

      --
      "I have the attention span of a strobe lit goldfish, please get to the point quickly!"
    57. Re:But the sad thing is... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I agree that for 90% of the time, OOo is fine feature-wise, and does the job. However in the Real World (TM), people ask that you hand in your CV in "word format", and they don't even accept PDFs (don't ask me why). I am afraid I simply can't trust OOo's "save as MS Word" feature, for files which are critical to me. Not to mention that there are those of us who really need the extra functionality MS Office provides. It's not just Office's own functionality either, there are various 3rd party products that only integrate with MS Office, e.g., here in the University of Melbourne, we use a program called End Note X to manage our bibliographies and references when writing articles. Guess what word processing program it integrated with? (hint: not OOo). Now I myself probably won't trust Word (or any WYSIWYG program for that matter) for writing 100+ pages (I used LaTex for writing my Master's thesis), but LaTex is simply not an option for 99% of the population who have been brought up in a WYSIWYG world.

      I'd say 100% of the time OO is fine feature-wise, and Office fine maybe 95% of the time. It all depends on what you use and expect.

      For my CV, well, hopefully I'm only ready to make an MS-i-fied copy of that once every few years. In that single, lone case, I'll just export it, hop over to the library, and edit it as necessary. Or, if I ran windows, I'd export it, and check it in the free Word viewer to see if it's ok (almost always it is for something that simple).

      >Not to mention that there are those of us who really need the extra functionality MS Office provides.

      What's that? I can't find anything in Office I can't do in OO, but I can find things I can do with OO that I can't do with Office (PDF would be #1).

      >It's not just Office's own functionality either, there are various 3rd party products that only integrate with MS Office, e.g., here in the University of Melbourne, we use a program called End Note X to manage our bibliographies and references when writing articles.

      If you're writing something like that, use LyX. Seriously. Either that or figure out how to do it in your office software (OO offers bibliography and reference functionality -- is this seriously something you have to buy 3rd party software for in Office? UGH!)

      >Now I myself probably won't trust Word (or any WYSIWYG program for that matter) for writing 100+ pages (I used LaTex for writing my Master's thesis), but LaTex is simply not an option for 99% of the population who have been brought up in a WYSIWYG world.

      Agreed. They need to use LyX.

      >Ribbon is a very fine UI evolution, and I strongly suspect that in a couple of years time, all document generating programs will use the same interface.

      God I hope not. How the hell can I use the ribbon with my keyboard? If I can't memorize all the shortcuts, I can always hit Alt+Underlined_Letter and I'm good to go. Using the mouse is just so damn CLUNKY and SLOW.

      >Have you ever looked at a person who has never used any office product, trying to make sense out of Office? I have (my mother), and let me tell you that it is hugely frustrating, to say the least.

      To use a tool properly you have to learn how to use the tool (duh). Have you ever seen someone wiring a home fumble with a DMM? I have, hell, I've seen them melt the things. They use their two-wire neon-lamp instead because it's easy. Too bad they also do dumb things like put 240 Volts to your 120 Volt outlets because, hey, the dumbed down tool doesn't let you know about your mistake.

      Either learn to use the tool properly, or find a simpler tool and do a poorer job. This is how it's been since people made the first tools, this is how it will always be, IMHO.

      >Let's face it, there is absolutely no logic why many of these items are where they are.

      You're certainly right about MS-Office. Adjusting the margins is a FILE operation? WTF? Makes no sense at all. It belongs under, I dunno, the Page Options, perhaps? Open Office has far more sensible menus.

      If any company wants to keep my productivity high, they'd better give me an interface that doesn't require mousing around to find things (pun so very intended).

    58. Re:But the sad thing is... by rtb61 · · Score: 1
      Oddly enough, speaking about open office, apparently a lot of universities in Australia are going to start handing out CDs to students with open office on them amongst other software.

      The focus is on the students and not creating profits for a US corporation. There are of course sections of Universities that are still a little behind the times but most areas are catching up.

      When it comes to business use, the shift to a free office suite only makes common business sense, no more forced upgrades when your documents are out of date and you can't read new documents from other companies. As for a supplier telling how you will use there product and paying ludicrous price for patches and continually having to apply for permission to use software you have paid for, let alone all the bugs and down time that they create. It is a really weird thing to continually reward a supplier in the pursuit of product from that supplier that actually works.

      Seriously if your staff can not swap over office suites in a week, get new staff. I mean think of all those tens of millions of people who went through university with out an office suite, none of them ever learned how to use one and they are all now unemployed, what, that's not true, people with a university education can actually learn, what will they think of next.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    59. Re:But the sad thing is... by drsquare · · Score: 1

      The vast majority of Office users never really use more than a very limited subset of the available features.
      But everyone uses a different subset...
    60. Re:But the sad thing is... by rtb61 · · Score: 1
      Not to put a too fine point on it but you have to be an Australian university student to buy it for $75 dollars with a perpetual licence (what ever that means in M$ speak). So if you want cheap M$ Office in the US, you had better start complaining to the University Administrators and get them to start handing out, Open Office, Firefox, Thunderbird, Ubuntu cds to every student upon admission.

      I looked all over the M$ site to find out what that is, I got as far as you have a licence to use the product for as long as you own it, does that mean when M$ says you no longer own it, you no longer have a licence to use the product.

      They apparently only let you look at the actual licence after you have bought the product and attempt to install it and in M$ speak 'evaluate' it. So in new M$ speak when you buy a product, you have not actually bought it, you have only paid for the opportunity to 'evaluate' the product and only after you have agreed to the 'this product actually sucks' (you know, this product contains viruses, has poor workmanship and is not fit for any purpose) EULA and registered for permission, do you sort of, somewhat, sometimes have limited 'ownership' of a 'perpetual' licence.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    61. Re:But the sad thing is... by Tim_UWA · · Score: 1

      Yeah, well I only need it for quick-and-dirty graphs and statistics.

    62. Re:But the sad thing is... by mcpkaaos · · Score: 1

      Two identical applicants, except one is an expert in OO and the other in MS Office and the company uses MS Office, which candidate do you think they will select?

      I'd take the object oriented candidate over a MS Office user any day.

      --
      It goes from God, to Jerry, to me.
    63. Re:But the sad thing is... by Alphax.au · · Score: 1

      First of all, I am a student in Australia, and right now I am downloading Office 2007 Ultimate after shelving out $75 of my hard earned cash. This I think, is the first time I am directly paying for software in my life
      ... and you bought your own domain name?

      I agree that for 90% of the time, OOo is fine feature-wise, and does the job. However in the Real World (TM), people ask that you hand in your CV in "word format", and they don't even accept PDFs (don't ask me why).
      Don't accept PDFs, the ubiquitous "portable document format"? I don't want to work for them.
    64. Re:But the sad thing is... by Alphax.au · · Score: 1

      This was a pain in the ass, but kind of understandable. What really got on my nerves was hearing moron CS lecturers' tiresome anti-MS pro-Linux routines, all while forcing you to use Windows. We don't have a single Windows machine in our CS department. At the moment we've got Macs and Linux PCs, and prior to that (5 years ago?) we had Suns.
    65. Re:But the sad thing is... by mrchaotica · · Score: 1

      Having said that, if a student told me they had to write long papers I would probably advise them to use MSO. OO has some outlining abilities but its pretty poor compared to Microsoft's. Otherwise I don't see much justification, even for cheap.

      For that, students ought to be using LaTeX, not OpenOffice or MS Office!

      --

      "[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz

    66. Re:But the sad thing is... by Lemmy+Caution · · Score: 1

      The integration of EndNote with Word, and the instant-import ability of references into EndNote from my university's library system, the Library of Congress, Google Scholar, and various other online sources, clinch it for me. Yes, I back up frequently (since running Word 2003, I've actually had no data-destroying crashes, but I've been around Word long enough to not trust it that much) but the time I save and the flexibility of EndNote more than makes up for that.

      EndNote's library of templates is incredibly helpful (I'm interdisciplinary, and submit publications in a variety of formats.)

    67. Re:But the sad thing is... by middle-aged-man · · Score: 1

      I concur. Last semester I decided to teach my high school students basic numerical analysis skills using 3 different products, Google Spreadsheets, MS-Excel, and OO-Calc. I made this decision one week before the start of the semester. It was logistically difficult, but enlightening. As a result of this experiment, I've started to redefine my measure of success. I'll consider my job well done when, for a final exam for a software applications class, I can sit a student down in front of a computer with a piece of software that they've never seen before in a chosen category, show them a hardcopy or PDF version of the finished product, and tell them they've got an hour, after which time they nonchalantly inform me that they think they figured out most of it and that it's in their directory on the lab server. Otherwise, what am I really doing as a teacher? I might as well just go back to industry where I spent 20 years and make a heck of a lot more money. When you learn how to use a second spreadsheet application, a second foreign language or second programming language, you can now distill the common elements and understand the differences. (I've heard this also applies to second wives and girlfriends)

      If I haven't given my students basic conceptual models of common categories of software and taught them how to leverage online help and web resources to learn how to use a particular application's user interface to achieve a given task, then in some ways I've fallen short of my ultimate goal as a teacher. Word processors implement a set of functions across a variety of object types (e.g. characters, words, lines, paragraphs, pages, sections/chapters, documents, headers and footers, foot notes and end notes, table of contents, images, embedded objects, etc.) Some of these functions are orthogonal and can applied to almost, if not all, types of objects (e.g. cut, copy, paste, delete, insert, format) while others are specific to smaller sets of object types. The same goes for all categories of software whether it's for spreadsheets, presentations, bitmap graphics, CAD, music composition, or programming environments.

      Teaching rote memorization of menus, tabbed dialog boxes and toolbars can develop practical and marketable skills, but doesn't that flattened approach, in of itself, unwittingly undermine the development of a young person who will be able to readily adapt to a wide variety of challenges and opportunities in the workplace? It's true that if you're trying to crank out a thesis or produce a marketing proposal with a looming deadline, you should focus your creativity on your subject matter instead of your word processor. This is a valuable lesson on its own.

      Teaching is a fundamentally different activity in that you're nurturing the development of higher-level skills that can be applied to a wide variety of settings in the future, rather than the immediate present. It's also useful to teach a student to know that when time is of the essence, use the most efficient tool that meets your needs amongst the alternatives at your disposal, and sometimes it's your intellect, a pencil and a piece of paper.

      - John

      p.s. Please excuse the rambling run-on sentences.

  3. hmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Slashdot makes me feel like I'm playing Diablo online again.

  4. You idiot! by Whiney+Mac+Fanboy · · Score: 2, Informative

    I linked to the article I was commenting on.

    Dupe article is here.

    --
    There are shills on slashdot. Apparently, I'm one of them.
  5. The first one is free... by apodyopsis · · Score: 2, Funny

    ..or massively discounted.

    But you pay the full whack for the rest, sonny boy.

    Is is just me or have I seem the same tactic used to get people hooked on recreational pharmaceuticals?

    --------------
    Dirty pool, old man. Never again!

    1. Re:The first one is free... by Morsleyg · · Score: 1

      But you pay the full whack for the rest, sonny boy.

      Is is just me or have I seem the same tactic used to get people hooked on recreational pharmaceuticals? What do you mean?

      $75 covers the entire Office 2007 suite, an unlimited licence.
      I bought mine yesterday, and the only thing different from the Office 2007 Ultimate retail package (which retails for around $1050AU) is that you dont get a fancy retail box or any install media (its a digital download from either Microsoft themselves, or Australia's highspeed university network).

      Microsoft are giving us poor university students a bit of a break on software that is normally completely unaffordable for us, and i say more companies should take a leaf for their book.
    2. Re:The first one is free... by bmo · · Score: 1

      "Is is just me or have I seem the same tactic used to get people hooked on recreational pharmaceuticals?"

      It's not a coincidence that the consumers of such stuff are called "users."

      From the freakin' promo site:

      "ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS MENTION THE WORD 'OFFICE' AND THE LINK 'WWW.ITSNOTCHEATING.COM.AU' IN YOUR BLOG. WINNER IS JUDGED ON CREATIVITY OF THE STORY."

      *head asplodes* Yeah, "astroturf for us, not even for pay, please, and you _might_ get a cheap prize." The whole promo site is mentally insulting.

      --
      BMO

    3. Re:The first one is free... by MichaelSmith · · Score: 1

      Microsoft are giving us poor university students a bit of a break on software that is normally completely unaffordable for us, and i say more companies should take a leaf for their book.

      A guy I worked with last year enrolled at a part time course at Swinburne, bought Academic Office, and dropped out after one week. He got most of his fee back.

      --
      http://michaelsmith.id.au
    4. Re:The first one is free... by jez9999 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      and i say more companies should take a leaf for their book. ... and put a 2000% markup on their products? That's assuming it actually cost MS around $50/sale to develop, which I highly doubt. Seriously, how can anyone contemplate paying over $1000 for an OFFICE SUITE that's not even that much better than numerous other ones out there (Office 2003 included)?

      No, sorry, you're wrong. More companies should NOT take a leaf out of MS's ultra-profiteering monopolistic exploitative book. Just because they're selling it to you for a less ridiculous profit doesn't make them heroes.

      --
      == Jez ==
      Do you miss Firefox? Try Pale Moon.
    5. Re:The first one is free... by Tim+C · · Score: 1

      A cheap prize? The offer of Office for $75AU is good to all Australian Uni students. The blog thing is essentially a free prize draw, to win a scooter, laptop, etc. I don't see that it's any different to the competitions where you mail in a card, finishing off a sentence (e.g. "Microsoft Office is great because...") in X words or less. The only difference is it's longer and public.

      Seriously, I don't really see what your problem is; sure the site sucks to my eyes, but I'm not an Aussie student, maybe it's appropriate for the target demographic. Apart from that, what is the problem?

      --
      It's official. Most of you are morons.
    6. Re:The first one is free... by tomstdenis · · Score: 2, Insightful

      us poor university students...

      Use OSS tools. They're free, cost you poor poor students nothing.

      Besides academic papers should be done in TeX unless you're one of them polysci wannabe students, then just muddle your way through with notepad because you don't have anything useful to say anyways :-)

      Honestly, I hate comments like yours. OMG what can we do as poor students, oh thank you MSFT for saving us ... bullshit. Fedora Core + OpenOffice == free. Or Gentoo + whatever or *BSD + whatever or ...There are ways of getting most [if not all] the tools you'll need for free and libre from an OSS distribution. Just takes effort.

      Tom

      --
      Someday, I'll have a real sig.
    7. Re:The first one is free... by bmo · · Score: 1

      "The blog thing is essentially a free prize draw, to win a scooter, laptop, etc. I don't see that it's any different to the competitions where you mail in a card, finishing off a sentence (e.g. "Microsoft Office is great because...") in X words or less."

      Because they encourage you to not just write an essay about how Microsoft Office is so great, but they want you to do their marketing for them. For free. If you generate a long thread that got started with the magic words, you MIGHT win a chance at a scooter.

      Yeah, that's what we need, more advertising, this time by suckered students.

      "The only difference is it's longer and public."

      You forgot: "And annoys everyone around"

      --
      BMO

    8. Re:The first one is free... by bmo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      "Honestly, I hate comments like yours. "

      The comments that are worse than that come from students pirating software saying that they're "sticking it to The Man." No, they're not sticking it to The Man. They're doing exactly what The Man wants, because....

      "As long as they are going to steal it, we want them to steal ours. They'll get sort of addicted, and then we'll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade." - Bill Gates, about Chinese software piracy. Thing is, that quote is also applicable to students, just end the sentence with "and then we will collect after they graduate"

      This "we're letting you license Office Ultimate for $25AU/year" is a price just slightly above outright software piracy, and maybe even cheaper than buying a burned set of disks from the "dorm software dealer." Hook 'em while they're young.

      --
      BMO

    9. Re:The first one is free... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Every student who want[s|ed] office will have a copy by now.
      University LANs are legendary. Ask any college student.

    10. Re:The first one is free... by cyclop · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Besides academic papers should be done in TeX

      As a molecular biologist working in biophysics, this is sometimes slightly difficult. I know that Nature at least doesn't like to receive LaTeX written papers, and a significant number of molecular biology journals want .doc output. Not nice.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    11. Re:The first one is free... by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      pdf?

      --
      My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.
    12. Re:The first one is free... by cyclop · · Score: 1

      Sometimes it works, sometimes not. Expecially journals that want you to practically do the formatting work by yourself. Most provide LaTeX templates, but others not.

      --
      -- Patent no.123456: A way to personalize /. comments with a sig attached to the end.
    13. Re:The first one is free... by Achromatic1978 · · Score: 1
      Christ, if I had a dollar for every competition I'd seen that is of the format, "Describe what you like about [product] in 25 words or less", when [product] is the product of any one of a number of multinationals, I could pay for several copies of Office retail.

      But nooo. It's Microsoft, so how dare they, those assholes, asking you to market for them?!? Bah.

    14. Re:The first one is free... by Morsleyg · · Score: 1

      Use OSS tools. They're free, cost you poor poor students nothing. Fair enough, except there isnt an Australian university I know of that teaches using Open Source tools, at least, in the fields that require Office tools.

      We've all been taught using Microsoft Office, I'm comfortable with it, I know how to use it, and when you're writing research papers that require extremely specific formatting, I'm not going to waste my time trying to produce the same result on Open Office, when I've already been shown dozens of times how to do it in MS Office.

      OSS software Is useless for a student unless the educational institution is teaching it, and they're definitely not teaching it to me. Until they do, I'll gladly shell out $75 for a $1050 software suite.
      It's funny how all the OSS advocates get bitter about things like this, "Microsoft is still leveraging It's monopoly!" Well guess what, if there was an OSS app that was better than the Microsoft alternative, then It'd be used as standard within a university environment.

      Ive yet to see that happen, outside of OSS programming tools.
    15. Re:The first one is free... by bmo · · Score: 1

      This is a late reply, but...

      No, it's not like "describe our product in 25 words or less" It's about polluting blogs from here to the nether-regions to get people to stump for Microsoft, basically for free.

      That's what's wrong with it. It's not about whether it's mickeysoft, it's whether mickeysoft is encourging people to act like assholes and spam the world. People who encourgage people to act like assholes are known as....assholes.

      --
      BMO

  6. $1500 ? by Zork+the+Almighty · · Score: 4, Insightful

    95% off ? Does Microsoft actually sell any single license for Office to anyone at ~$1500 US ?

    --

    In Soviet America the banks rob you!
    1. Re:$1500 ? by zakeria · · Score: 0

      yes to americans

    2. Re:$1500 ? by Gumph · · Score: 0, Redundant

      RTFS - it's 75 Australian dollars!

      --
      'By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes'
    3. Re:$1500 ? by zakeria · · Score: 0

      ? thats obvious ? did I miss your point?

    4. Re:$1500 ? by jimicus · · Score: 1

      It's Australian dollars, but even so, the short answer is almost certainly "no".

      By the time business becomes large enough to warrant the attention of the BSA, it's large enough to qualify for "volume discounts" - which are generally some absurd percentage. I'm paying about UK£120/annum for Office and I'm only buying 50 licenses. The "official" UK retail price is about UK£400 - that's if you go down the store and buy a boxed copy.

      I think the logic is "we don't expect to sell a single copy at the full price, but it means that we can make it look like a bargain with generous discounts and if we take them to court, we demand full price for every copy".

    5. Re:$1500 ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      That's the price for Steve Jobs. Everyone else gets it for $399.

    6. Re:$1500 ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, probably, for the Ultimate edition of Office. Vista Ultimate is quite expensive too and even so, Office has always been more expensive than the Windows OS

    7. Re:$1500 ? by jrhgnjbl · · Score: 1

      Yes. I too would like to see a bit more on this bit of mathematical magic. What is the retail price the author used as a base? I thought Office listed for about $400. so, (400 -75)/400 = an 81.25% discount. Which is considerable but not 95%. I believe the reasoning behind the steep discount is similar to why they didn't complain about illegal copies, until they actually had competition.

    8. Re:$1500 ? by deniable · · Score: 1

      Try A$690 for Office 2007 Standard and A$850 for Professional. So it's more like 90% off.

    9. Re:$1500 ? by deniable · · Score: 3, Informative

      Yeah, I missed one. Ultimate is A$1175. And for extra sticker shock Vista Ultimate is A$750.

  7. Why is this news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    MS and other commercial software vendors have always heavily discounted their products at college stores. My school sold Visual Studio Pro for $99 when it was retailing for $500+. So they increased the discount... so what? They want college students to use their software so the students will get used to it and continue using it (and paying the much higher price) after they graduate. This is their most fruitful target demographic in the long run. They would be stupid *not* to give a huge discount.

    This is not only a dup, but a DUH.

  8. That's what it should cost. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    $75 sounds like a very reasonable price. That's what it should have cost in the first place!

  9. Actually not the best deal... by F-3582 · · Score: 1, Informative

    ...you know, there is a computer education program for school teachers by Intel which certainly exists in other countries, too. Participating nets you a free copy of Microsoft Office (a few years ago this was Office 2000 Premium) under some special license. Actually it is no license at all, because the package says "Non-licensed software! Don't use without separate license by Microsoft!"

    1. Re:Actually not the best deal... by deadphoenix · · Score: 1

      Thanks to the MSDN Academic Alliance, I am enjoying a free copy of Vista Business through my university. I can also get free licenses for other Microsoft software titles, including office. Where's the article on that? UK Student gets 100% off!

    2. Re:Actually not the best deal... by z0idberg · · Score: 1

      I know where you could get an unlicensed copy of Office as well. And you dont even have to be a teacher!

  10. Perceived value by wall0159 · · Score: 2, Interesting


    I guess it's all about how people think about that cost. Many people would say "$75! And every one else has to pay hundreds! It's a bargain!"

    Whereas I'd say, "it's $75 more than OO, and it doesn't even run natively on my OS - what a piece of crap!!"

    1. Re:Perceived value by Adrian+Galley · · Score: 1

      Or most would say, "It's $75 more than the copy my friend's Dad got from his work or what I could download it for - what a rip off!"

    2. Re:Perceived value by drooling-dog · · Score: 1

      Yes, but with OO you don't get Clippy, who is easily worth many times that amount.

  11. If the ultimate edition... by dragonquest · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If the Ultimate Edition is being given away so cheap to students, why the hell did they ever came up with the Student Edition minus the frills? Which notably, costs more than the discounted Ultimate Edition for students.

    --
    "Never try to tell everything you know. It may take too short a time."
    1. Re:If the ultimate edition... by mikkelm · · Score: 1

      "VERY LIMITED OFFER"

    2. Re:If the ultimate edition... by will_die · · Score: 1

      Because most of the time your university has to do a special deal with microsoft to all the students to get this version.
      The company I work for has a similar deal with microsoft were we get microsoft 2007 enterprise for home use for $20US.
      Most of the time theses deals require that you have a licensed copy at work/school machines and you are only authorized to use them during the time you goto that school or work for that company.

    3. Re:If the ultimate edition... by T-Bone-T · · Score: 1

      Sounds like my university, except I only had to pay $10 when I bought Office 2003. I'm still waiting on them to start selling Vista and Office 2007 for cheap. It'll be nice to upgrade everything for only another $15-$20.

  12. Ethics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    M$FT: The same ethics as a heroine dealer at a school yard: just get them hooked young and let them suffer later!

    1. Re:Ethics by Skrynesaver · · Score: 5, Funny
      The same ethics as a heroine dealer at a school yard:

      Psst wanna buy a bit of Jane Eyre, into something a bit harder, I've got Ripley here, try her and tell me what you think

      --
      "Linux is for noobs"-The new MS fud strategy
    2. Re:Ethics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you saying that microsoft software is as addictive as heroine?
      If so, is linux and open office the naltrexone and methadone?

    3. Re:Ethics by ImaLamer · · Score: 1

      That's not fair, drug dealers really don't hang out around schools like you see on TV.

      Software & hardware companies on the other hand....

      --
      Get your Unix fortune now!
    4. Re:Ethics by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The same ethics as a heroine dealer

      Wonder Woman being sold on the street? I think we've hit a new low.

    5. Re:Ethics by argStyopa · · Score: 1, Troll

      You mean, pretty much the same strategy Apple has used for decades?

      To whit: supply systems at ridiculous discounts to schools and students, so that their life-experience with computers when they start buying their own is entirely mac-based?*

      * now with the added bonus of 'social cachet' - if you buy Apple products you "think different"! (just like EVERYONE ELSE who buys into the market-cred of being a cool, elite Mac user, not one of those tawdy, workaday galley slaves, ^H^H^H office clerks that have to slave away on "PeeCees", the poor helpless bastards)

      --
      -Styopa
    6. Re:Ethics by alienmole · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't Wonder Woman be a superheroine?

  13. NIGGA PLEASE by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Again?

    Awesome... at 190% off, Microsoft is now paying me to use their software.

  14. Wow by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I've read stories covered months or even years earlier, but this one takes the cake.
    It took a total of 2 days for this story to get re-posted. Astonishing.

    http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/03/06/174023 4

    1. Re:Wow by Skater · · Score: 1

      You must be new here - there've been dupes of articles that were still on the front page. The whining of Slashdotters when that happens is something to behold...

  15. What about us? by AlphaLop · · Score: 2, Interesting
    And where is the discounted version for American students?

    I had to pay full price for a copy recently for my wife as it was a requirement of the last class she needs for her first degree.... We are far from rich and the fact that we are trying to get her through college without racking up student loan debt means that this was our "Major" purchase for this half of the year ;)

    We use open office at home so it actually caused me physical pain to have to purchase another Microsoft product :)

    --
    It's only paranoia if your wrong...
    1. Re:What about us? by MichaelSmith · · Score: 2, Insightful

      And where is the discounted version for American students?

      I have to say I am surprised. Here in AU the uni bookshops and normal software shops have always been loaded with cheap "Academic" versions of major software. You just need a student ID to buy it, even off campus.

      I always assumed it was a way for the publisher to lock people in early. I am surprised they don't do it in the states.

      --
      http://michaelsmith.id.au
    2. Re:What about us? by Fred+Ferrigno · · Score: 1

      I think it may have ended, but when I was at college, I got full copies of Windows, Visual Studio, and Office for less than $15 each. The fees were for the CDs and shipping from Microsoft. If you didn't care about having the media, you could borrow the CDs from the library, get a product key from Microsoft's website and pay nothing.

      The retarded thing is that the school bookstore still sold the stuff at full price (actually, at a small "academic" discount price). They really didn't advertise the program at all. I only found out about in my senior year if I remember correctly.

    3. Re:What about us? by lmcplatte · · Score: 1

      Yeah, I went to a large state school recently, and we had full downloads of lots of software, including Office, for free. I believe I bought the CD of Windows XP Professional for $5 from the bookstore. They make you sign an agreement to delete the software after you're no longer a student. I'm sure that's common.

    4. Re:What about us? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am suprised too since I can't imagine someone foolish enough to not know the same academic versions are available in the US to uni students at a fraction of retail cost lol.

    5. Re:What about us? by NeoSkandranon · · Score: 1

      Student discount software IS available in most US campus bookstores for anyone with a valid ID.

      For Microsoft gear though, lots of (public ones at least) universities have a deal through the comp sci department where you can get MS software either free or for a song as long as you've taken a comp sci class or two. I don't recall if they were available to the general student population along with the student versions of Photoshop and so on, but if they were, it definitely wasn't as such a steep discount.

      --
      If you can't see the value in jet powered ants you should turn in your nerd card. - Dunbal (464142)
    6. Re:What about us? by Zonk+(troll) · · Score: 1

      I think it may have ended, but when I was at college, I got full copies of Windows, Visual Studio, and Office for less than $15 each. The fees were for the CDs and shipping from Microsoft. If you didn't care about having the media, you could borrow the CDs from the library, get a product key from Microsoft's website and pay nothing. Well, at least until last year I was able to get free copies of anything. You just had to go to a website and request the license (it was emailed instantly) and then the school would burn you a copy of the cd. I got Office 2003, XP Pro, Visual Studio 2003 and 2005, Visio, Project, Frontpage, SQL Server, etc for free.

      Just as a note, I use Linux, but when I was getting a degree in programing (finished now) nearly every computer class had "Microsoft" in the title or exclusively used Microsoft products (ie, database classes required SQL Server). The only class that didn't was Java. During this time I grew to love VMWare Workstation...
      --
      "The Federal Reserve is a fraudulent system."--Lew Rockwell
      End The FED. -
    7. Re:What about us? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sorry to have to tell you this so late in the game... Office Home and Student 2007 edition, which includes word, excel, powerpoint, costs $149. http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-Office-Home-Studen t-2007/dp/B000HCZ8EO/ref=pd_lpo_af_txt/103-7288175 -1908633

      A far cry from the $430 it can cost to buy the full version outright.

      Also, many universities have deals that allow you to buy several full-version Microsoft products (Windows, Office) for dirt cheap ($5.95, $10.95, respectively).

    8. Re:What about us? by CXI · · Score: 1

      If you paid full price it is because your university doesn't know how to properly handle software contracts. Any large group can get significant discounts from Microsoft through distributors if purchases go through a central office. We've been paying only $73 a copy at the university where I work for years. The same goes for any of a number of pieces of software. The most I pay for anything is about $150, including Adobe suites, mathematical software, CAD, etc. Heck, we pay TEN DOLLARS for Autodesk AuthCAD 2007. That's $3,995 retail!

    9. Re:What about us? by arachnoid · · Score: 1

      Is this really true? ... "it [ e.g. MS Office ] was a requirement of the last class she needs for her first degree"

      I find it hard to believe that a university would require students to own MS Office. Maybe they actually require word processing submissions in Word format, and spreadsheets in Excel format, in which case (Open Office components) oowriter can export Word documents and oocalc can export Excel documents.

    10. Re:What about us? by Nyeerrmm · · Score: 1

      I'm also a student at a large state university, and they actually advertised the program to us as freshman, and I got my $5 windows, $15 office, and $25 visual studio over the summer before I even started school here. I think another response said that you had to delete it when you stopped being a student, but I think that the deal is you can keep it as long as you graduate.

      Anyway, right now we can't actually get Vista or office 2007 from the school at discounted rates, or even know what version we'd get. They say the earliest it will happen is April. I mostly stick with linux and OOo/LaTeX, but it would be nice to be able to pick those up for cheap before I graduate.

    11. Re:What about us? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Academic Superstore has Pro discounted to $169.95 http://www.academicsuperstore.com/market/marketdis p.html?PartNo=784349

    12. Re:What about us? by bkr1_2k · · Score: 1

      They do do it in the States. We have copies of Office X at University of Maryland for about $70. I believe the Windows price for 2003 was about $85 or something. I don't know if we've gotten Office 2007 yet, but I know they were going to sell it for similar prices when it comes in.

      --
      "Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional."
    13. Re:What about us? by pafrusurewa · · Score: 1

      We've been paying only $73 a copy at the university where I work for years.
      Huh? MS Office 2007 Enterprise Edition costs you 8 (eight) Euros at my university's bookstores (but you need a student ID for that). I've always assumed that all universities get pretty much the same deal.
  16. ebay by freedom_india · · Score: 1

    OK, now we should see Australian university email IDs going on sale in eBay just for this purpose. Just like the original GMail IDs went...
    Am willing to pay $50 (AUD).

    --
    "Doing what i can, with what i have." ~ Burt Gummer
    1. Re:ebay by kingturkey · · Score: 1

      Who in their right mind would sell their University email address and password on eBay? When you purchase it from their website they email you the download link along with a CD Key. I'd imagine at most universities, and at least at The University of Queensland, your email address/student number and password are the same for a whole host of pages, including the service that you would use to enroll, unenroll and change courses. Who would give someone else control over their enrollment for a mere $50?

    2. Re:ebay by freedom_india · · Score: 1

      No, you don't get me. Am not asking for access to the ID. Am saying we make an agreement, where the student buys the office on the actual buyer's behalf and forwards the mail to the buyer when he recieves it.
      Of course it requires some trust too on both guys behalf. Either the student can run away with the copy and refuse to forward the License, or the buyer may refuse to pay the student $50 (negotiable)...

      --
      "Doing what i can, with what i have." ~ Burt Gummer
  17. Australians! Don't do it! by martin-boundary · · Score: 1

    It's a trap! For $75, you can buy enough beer to drink while you install Linux (actually if you choose Debian, the minimum total beer cost of install is merely $34.68, other distros may vary), then after that you have an equivalent computer system _and_ you'll be in a good mood for days.

    1. Re:Australians! Don't do it! by kiddygrinder · · Score: 1

      That breaks a very important rule i've set for myself though, never install an os/ rebuild a pc with more than 3 beers under your belt or after 12:30 at night... Something always goes horribly wrong.

      --
      This is a joke. I am joking. Joke joke joke.
    2. Re:Australians! Don't do it! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you can buy enough beer to drink while you install Linux

      $75 won't cut it. I'm a Gentoo user, you insensitive clod!

  18. Do I smell a rat? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I am sensing funding from Micro$oft to repost the story...

  19. News? by Splab · · Score: 1

    Why is this news? You can get most software cheep when you are a student, after all they want you to familiarize yourself with their product before you start on your career.

    Here at DIKU (Denmark), we got MSDNAA so I can grab everything sans office for free. And if you like me happen to be employed at the university they got campus license for employees which means office is free.

    1. Re:News? by the_womble · · Score: 1

      we got MSDNAA

      Whats that? The Danish equivalent of the GNAA?

      Yes, I did google and find out what it really stood for.

    2. Re:News? by zakeria · · Score: 0

      indeed but no student could possibly fork out $75 of their drug money to buy this!

    3. Re:News? by Gabest · · Score: 1

      Same here in Hungary, you can get windows, office and visual studio for about $25 if you are a student or teacher. The catch is the govement has pre-payed it to MS...

    4. Re:News? by danjonwig · · Score: 1

      And in Canada: http://www.utoronto.ca/ic/software/detail/msselect .html Don't American students get deals on software?

    5. Re:News? by Splab · · Score: 1

      Think this was for Australia :)

    6. Re:News? by danjonwig · · Score: 1

      Right - but now we're discussing other countries (see thread to which I am replying). Are we to take from the fact that this made it to the front page of slashdot that American students don't get discounts offered just about everywhere else?

  20. Limited installations by om3ga · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I thought I'd point out a few things that were mentioned on the article from a few days ago:

    - This ultimate edition thats available through this offer is limited to installation on one PC, vs installation on three PCs available to those who buy the student edition (around $249AU)
    - You don't get the CDs with the offer, but can download it, or get a disc from a participating university (I didn't check if it was just a burnt copy or a nicely labeled pressed disc). I'd pay $75 if OpenOffice came in such a fancy box!

    I was one button away from purchasing it, until I realized how unnecessary it is for me. I use OpenOffice for my university studies, it opens every word document and PowerPoint presentation thats given to us from the Lecturers. I'm not sure how it is for other things. But for those of you who think this is a good deal, please consider, or atleast try OpenOffice first!

    1. Re:Limited installations by lioncoeur · · Score: 1

      This ultimate edition thats available through this offer is limited to installation on one PC, vs installation on three PCs available to those who buy the student edition (around $249AU)
      Wait a minute... When did they start dictating how many computers you can install software on? Oh, right. It's the 21st Century. I'll go back to my Boulderdash now and pretend all this is just a nightmare.
    2. Re:Limited installations by pipatron · · Score: 1

      +1 Sad :/

      --
      c++; /* this makes c bigger but returns the old value */
    3. Re:Limited installations by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      Wait a minute... When did they start dictating how many computers you can install software on? Oh, right. It's the 21st Century. I'll go back to my Boulderdash now and pretend all this is just a nightmare.

      You think that's bad? They not only tell you how many computers you can install it on, but what computer. "Oh dear, this PC has a different MAC and CPU serial number from the PC you installed it on the first time; sorry old chap, can't let you install here."

      Stupid software. Makes the over-the-top copy-protection of the late '80s look reasonable.

      I wonder how long before MS Windows requires you to do a lookup on a code-wheel before it lets you log-in?

    4. Re:Limited installations by maelkann · · Score: 1

      It actually allows you to install it on two computers (laptop and PC). So not too bad if you have one of each and want a copy of Office.

  21. 5% of the retail price is better than nothing... by m487396 · · Score: 1

    ... which is what Microsoft earns from a pirated copy. At least this way at least some students will actually pay something for their copy.

  22. what about free beer? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...so what's with all the 'free as in beer' talk?

  23. Ethics? more like same old business tactics. by Spaceball_3000 · · Score: 1

    Companies been doing this for years, I remember back in 1993 Apple giving away complete systems with applications suite to the whole elementary school back in my home town (one for every class and a computer lab), yet Apple would charge the high school $ for the same hardware/software. So do you think Apple would fall into this same Ethics as MSFT?

    1. Re:Ethics? more like same old business tactics. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So do you think Apple would fall into this same Ethics as MSFT?

      Why are you assuming the parent to your post is a mac fanboy? Personally, probably like the parent, I think both companies have no morals.

      In fact I don't believe any companies have morals, which is why we should have governments that watch them like hawks, instead of pandering to their every whim.

  24. Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate Edition by BillGatesLoveChild · · Score: 4, Funny

    If it is "Ultimate" does that mean there will be no further releases?

    1. Re: Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate Edition by EnsilZah · · Score: 1

      I think it's more along the lines of 'Final' as in Final Fantasy.

    2. Re: Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate Edition by Geoffreyerffoeg · · Score: 1

      Well, if the battles going poorly, there will also be MS Office Mega Edition.

      And if perchance none of those install successfully, there's also the Armor-Digivolved Edition.

    3. Re: Microsoft Office 2007 Ultimate Edition by Nimloth · · Score: 1

      I hear they just plan on calling the next one "Ultimate SP1".

  25. Always Been Cheap by Slashdotgirl · · Score: 1

    Microsoft Office has been massively discounting Microsoft Office for University students for years in Australia. I should know, I brought a student version of Microsoft Office 97 for around A$100 and the retail cost was anywhere from A$600 to A$800 dollars at the time. I still have the program and its still going strong.

    --
    The more I know, the less I know
  26. Discounted software by edwardpickman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Funny how often the US gets to bear the brunt of development costs while the rest of the world gets deep discounts. It's not just software but drugs as well. Even Canada gets radically cheaper drug prices than the US. Part of it is government policies but the bulk is corporate america bleeding the US dry then discounting the rest of the world. Interesting that some drugs can be sold for a few dollars a dose at a profit overseas and yet sell for tens of dollars here. Microsoft can count on the US to pay for the development costs so the rest of the world is gravy. Europe doesn't see the software discounts generally but a lot of the world does. I'm sure Microsoft is claiming hundreds of millions to perhaps billions in developing Vista but we pay for that development in higher software prices. In this case we aren't getting much for our money. The added security seems to come with a high anoyance factor and the eye candie we can live without. Direct X10 sounds impressive but do we really need a whole new OS to run it? There are some definate improvements in memory limits and such but we pay for it in radically greater system requirements. The low end computer manufactures are likely going to be stuck with Linux since the system requirements are so high. Ironically that will come back to bite Microsoft because more and more entry level users will become in exposed to Linux. They may be trying to avoid that with the foreign markets because people are going to be less inclined to pay both the high OS and hardware costs. Give the students cheap OSs then hopefully they stay branded to Microsoft.

    1. Re:Discounted software by EvanED · · Score: 2, Informative

      Funny how often the US gets to bear the brunt of development costs while the rest of the world gets deep discounts

      I can download, free of charge, any of the following products:
      MapPoint 2004
      OneNote 2003
      Project 2002 and 2003
      Virtual PC 2004
      Vision 2002 and 2003
      Visual Studio 6, .NET 2003, and .NET 2005 (and the MSDN library)
      Windows Vista Business, XP Professional, and Server 2003 Enterprise

      For free, legally. Other university departments have SQL Server, Exchange Server 2003 Enterprise, Access 2007, and others.

      It's not just other countries getting the discounts. The *student* part is much more important.

    2. Re:Discounted software by and235100 · · Score: 1

      "the rest of the world gets deep discounts" Try living in Europe then - we never get "deep discounts" - we in the UK pay the same in £££ as people in the US pay in $$$ for the majority of Microsoft software...

    3. Re:Discounted software by xtracto · · Score: 2, Informative

      Funny how often the US gets to bear the brunt of development costs while the rest of the world gets deep discounts.
      Ha! You should live in the UK a bit my friend. They are so used to get raped on the ass by the prices that they lost the repulsion long ago.

      The added security seems to come with a high anoyance factor
      I have not tried Windows Vista, but for what I have read and saw, it seems to me the guys at Redmond chose the less-work way to add security. So, at the end they chose to leave security as a chose to the user (with the infamous accept or cancel hundreds of screens). I really hope this is what they only mean by improved security because it is exactly the same as it was in XP. Just with more questions to the users.

      It seems to me that Microsoft made with Windows Vista what I did as a kid for my homework, they assign you a homework on Monday for the next Monday, and you do not do nothing until Sunday afternoon when you read about the assignment and realize you *need* more time to do some research on the subject (lets say that the homework was to ask several people what do they think about Coke) and you just try to write something that seems to be OK just to pass the mark.

      But then again, looking back at the previous Windows releases, I remember when the Windows Millennium Edition was going to be released how it was supposed to have the NT kernel and to be more stable than anything else but oh fiasco, it was Win98 with a new desktop background. And then Win2000 came out for the servers without any further and after that WindowsXP which again was Win2000 with Internet Explorer and pretty themes.

      Fucking hardware manufacturers PROVIDE LINUX DRIVERS!!!! we do not care if they are closed!

      --
      Ubuntu is an African word meaning 'I can't configure Debian'
    4. Re:Discounted software by GaryPatterson · · Score: 1

      This is a short term special, not the permanent price.

      Rest assured, the rest of the world pays through the nose for US-developed software and hardware. You're absolutely not subsidising us.

    5. Re:Discounted software by adolf · · Score: 1, Funny

      Hello. I read your comment.

      Twice.

      I still don't get your point.

      Are you trying to add to the conversation in some fashion?

      If so, please clarify.

      Thanks!

      --
      Kid-proof tablet..
    6. Re:Discounted software by xtracto · · Score: 1

      Well, I wont clarify my comment (you wont understand from what I have read from your other posts), but I will help you with your little volume problem.

      See, In Ubuntu Linux (dont know if on other distros is the same) you can use more than one sound card without problems. Your problem seems to be that you have your Sound Blaster card AND your motherboard's integrated card. When you are turning up and down the volume in the tool tool bar (after clicking the small speaker icon) you are turning the volume of your integrated sound card. What you need to do is tell linux that you want to control the SB volume when you do that.

      To do that you must right click on the little speaker icon and then select properties and then on the mixer screen, in the menu you can select which soundcard do you want to use.

      HTH.

      --
      Ubuntu is an African word meaning 'I can't configure Debian'
    7. Re:Discounted software by Trelane · · Score: 1

      For free, legally.
      It's not free. It comes out of your taxes, tuition, and campus privilege fees.
      --

      --
      Given enough personal experience, all stereotypes are shallow.
    8. Re:Discounted software by EvanED · · Score: 1

      True enough, but at the same time I can't avoid paying those except by dropping out. So between the choices "go here and not download it" and "go here and download it" there is no difference in cost, so I think I'm justified in calling it free.

    9. Re:Discounted software by Trelane · · Score: 1

      at the same time I can't avoid paying those except by dropping out.
      Sure, but that doesn't mean you're not paying for it.

      So between the choices "go here and not download it" and "go here and download it" there is no difference in cost, so I think I'm justified in calling it free.
      I humbly disagree with your assessment. By your same argument, taxes are free because you have little to no choice in paying them. I have met very very few people who think their taxes are free.
      --

      --
      Given enough personal experience, all stereotypes are shallow.
    10. Re:Discounted software by EvanED · · Score: 1

      By your same argument, taxes are free because you have little to no choice in paying them. I have met very very few people who think their taxes are free.

      I think it would be more like saying that having the police or fire dept respond to your call is free, or that trash pickup is free. (In other words, what the taxes pay for instead of the taxes themselves, in the same way that I was referring to what my fees pay for instead of the fees themselves.)

      That said, point taken. Maybe describing it as free is not the best idea.

    11. Re:Discounted software by Trelane · · Score: 1

      I think it would be more like saying that having the police or fire dept respond to your call is free, or that trash pickup is free. (In other words, what the taxes pay for instead of the taxes themselves, in the same way that I was referring to what my fees pay for instead of the fees themselves.)
      I've given this further thought, and we're both partially right. Your argument, when taken to the logical conclusion, would indicate that taxes themselves are free. However, the application to police or fire dept. is more apt, as you pointed out, as it's more parallel. :) I would totally agree that things that are rolled into one payment system which is not very transparent (e.g. taxes, tuition & fees) tends to get perceived as free (for instance, in my small town, even fire truck purchases and police hires get scrutiny, so they're definitely not perceived as free!). However, the majority of the citizens and students do not perceive where the costs come from, and hence much complacency as well as the perception that Microsoft has given the school such a great deal--they can get Windows XP Pro for just $5 at the bookstore!! (This is further bolstered by innacurate statements from the tour guides at the university, as well as being ignorant of the fact that $15-70 (range of prices I've heard) per semester goes straight into Microsoft's pocket, as well as the fact that the Windows licenses are upgrade licenses!) Unfortunately, it is the complacency that causes tuition and fees to increase faster than inflation for the last decade or more.
      --

      --
      Given enough personal experience, all stereotypes are shallow.
    12. Re:Discounted software by AK+Marc · · Score: 1

      Sure, but that doesn't mean you're not paying for it.

      So he is paying for it, but it is also free.

      --
      Learn to love Alaska
    13. Re:Discounted software by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As pointed out in the article, it is only through a volume licensing agreement that this is made available to SOME Australian universities. So these pieces of software are being paid for, one way or another. Microsoft isn't just handing out Office 2007 for 75 bucks, the universities (and students in turn, through fees) are already paying to make it available at that price.

  27. Here in Amerika we got GNAA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    and we get grabs for free

  28. Could it be by salesgeek · · Score: 1

    Microsoft is lowering the price because Open Office is a much better fit for the college student budget? Or maybe that Google Apps stuff... No.. couldn't be that at all...

    --
    -- $G
    1. Re:Could it be by EvanED · · Score: 1

      This deal ended at the very beginning of my freshman year of undergrad, but I got Office 2002, VS .NET 2002, Frontpage, and Windows XP for free.

      MS being "generous" to college kids isn't a new thing. They try to hook us young.

    2. Re:Could it be by CXI · · Score: 1

      Actually, no. Office has always been available at these prices to universities who know a thing or two about negotiations and contracts.

  29. 100% off with OpenOffice! by VincenzoRomano · · Score: 1

    That'd be better by far.

    --
    Maybe Computers will never be as intelligent as Humans.
    For sure they won't ever become so stupid. [VR-1988]
  30. Re:Discounted software; yeah, oh yeah by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    OMG, just think about it, those poor people might get exposed to the disgusting commie linux shit. That'd be fucking awful. Yech!

    Let's pray to god they too end up good honest microsoft bitches.

    Everybody and their dog knows that Linux is for the godless commie fuckers running 386s.

  31. First one's always free by Grail · · Score: 2, Insightful

    And then when the discount "Office Ultimate" software decides to lock you out of your Office documents, you have to pay the full price plus the unlocking fee.

    Read the EULA. Understand about DRM, and Microsoft's plans for the future. ORCON is fine and dandy until you realise that the provider of the control mechanisms is the real owner of the document.

    This FUD brought to you by the number 51 and a Tin Foil Hat.

  32. Not if you use a Mac by curmi · · Score: 1

    If you are an Aussie kid with a Mac, too bad. The Microsoft offer is only on the *windows* version of office. That will teach those free thinking uni students!

    1. Re:Not if you use a Mac by Ugot2BkidNme · · Score: 1

      If your a student Using a Mac are you really that concerned about money?

  33. Same as in The Netherlands (nothing new) by Arleo · · Score: 1

    What's new? Same kind of prices are accounted to students and teachers in The Netherlands. We can buy Office, XP, Vista, Visio, Project planner for similar prices. I cannot imagine that other countries do not have deals like this. So what's the news?

    Arleo

  34. It is a cool advertisement by LittleBigScript · · Score: 1

    The sleezy guy with a scooter, pocketpc phone, and a vista laptop. I am so glad I just graduated from college.

  35. College students can't afford that. by jonadab · · Score: 1

    I don't care *how* much below retail price it is, I would never have been able to scrape together $75 for software when I was in college. The people in the financial aid department have this down to a science: they figure out *exactly* how much money you and your parents can possibly scrape together if you run the full gamut of funding sources, and they offer you *precisely* the amount of financial aid that makes it just *almost* possible for you to attend, so tantalizingly close to enough that you go ahead and sign up for classes.

    Then you find out how much your books are, try to buy them used, and discover the publisher changed editions on half of them, so you scrape the bottom of the barrel getting the last of your books, and you've got about $10 left to get you through the semester. Your meals are covered by the room and board fees, so you figure if you don't buy anything else the $10 will just about stretch to cover doing your laundry in the coinfed machines in the dorm lounge. You'll have to let your car sit in the dorm parking lot all year for lack of gas, but you can walk around campus. I guess you'll make it.

    Then a group of guys approaches you about buying a $7 dorm shirt, and you start calculating how many times you can get mom and dad to come pick you up, so you can get home for a visit and do laundry for free, without buying any gas. Then you start figuring out exactly how many times you can wear each article of clothing, and how many you have, and exactly how many weeks that means you can go without doing laundry. Can you make it from fall break to Christmas? That would save you almost two dollars in quarters...

    There's no way that kind of budget will stretch to cover $75 for office software, no matter *how* much they say it's theoretically worth at retail. Okay, yeah, so 75 Australian dollars is less than $75, but still, it's not enough less to fit into a college student budget.

    --
    Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
    1. Re:College students can't afford that. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      what? all the students I know are out drinking 3+ times a week...

    2. Re:College students can't afford that. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sell your car... There's no reason a college student needs a car.

    3. Re:College students can't afford that. by joto · · Score: 1

      Ok, so back in 1810 when you graduated from college, maybe $75 was a lot of money.

      Today, $75 buys you either: rent for a week, two books, one night out, or food for almost a week. You get $75 by either saving it up, or simply by working one extra nightshift at your part-time student job.

      Any student can afford $75. Of course every student also has better things (beer) to do with their money than to give them to software companies, but sure as hell, they can afford it.

    4. Re:College students can't afford that. by jonadab · · Score: 1

      > Ok, so back in 1810 when you graduated from college, maybe $75 was a lot of money. Today,
      > $75 buys you either: rent for a week, two books, one night out, or food for almost a week.

      Several of my college books were over $75 individually. Very few of them were less than half that (new; of course the ones I was able to get used were typically rather less). Books were expensive. (This was back in the dark ages, before Wikitextbooks, when people still used NCSA Mosaic and, even, Gopher. Yes, I'm really that old. I've also used VMS.)

      > You get $75 by either saving it up, or simply by working one extra nightshift at your part-time student job.

      Anything you has saved up was taken into account by the financial aid department when they calculated how much of your tuition you could afford to pay. So it's gone. Student jobs don't have extra shifts. During the semester you get *at most* the number of hours the financial aid department says you can have, which was also taken into their calculations, so every dime has to go for tuition; otherwise, when the end of the semester gets close (about two weeks before finals), the business office will tell your professors not to let you into class because your bill isn't fully paid. I knew a guy who had this happen, because he foolishly spent some of his student job earnings on other things (probably food, but I don't recall exactly). Fortunately for him his parents were able to wire him some money and he was back in classes the next day, but it's nothing to play around with.

      > Any student can afford $75.

      You either went to a state college (where the costs are unnaturally low), ivy league (where all the students have unnaturally affluent parents who can actually afford to pay for their kids' college), or a community college (where the students don't have to pay room and board, just tuition). At any normal college, many of the students cannot afford $75 for anything that's not required for a class.

      > Of course every student also has better things (beer) to do with their money

      Beer? I think I know which of the above options apply to you. You went to a state college.

      --
      Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
  36. the really really sad thing by slashbart · · Score: 1

    The really awesomely sad thing is that I keep seeing people using Excel for serious data analysis. A lot of them don't even know that there is anything else with which you can make graphs.

    I'm running complicated thermal systems that generate large amounts of data, which I handle easily with Kst or Igor. And then the customer wants to have a look at a small section; it's hilarious to see how much effort it takes them to graph a subset from 2E6 samples of 80 sensors. Their productivity is easily 100th of mine with real tools.

    Ignorance rules, and Microsoft serves the ignorant.

  37. 75 bucks per CD or download is stupid by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    it costs little to produce a copy of Office

    selling it overpriced is unethical and immoral

  38. You'd think the state field in the checkout form by sholden · · Score: 1

    Might list Australian states rather than "Non-US" and the US states. What with the requirement of the offer being "for Australian uni student only" and all...

  39. So, what happens when they finish their studies? by advocate_one · · Score: 1

    Are they automatically pirates if they carry on using it... because technically they will be... Will the Office GA check their student status periodically to determine if they're still eligible... because it should...

    Yet another example of Microsoft pushing things on students to get them hooked...

    There's an awful lot of student packages out there in the UK for instance that aren't technically legal anymore as the person or family is no longer eligible.

    I'd love to see Microsoft get serious on checking continued eligibility for these packages... people would soon balk at getting proper editions when asked to pay the proper price. Perhaps OSS (such as Abiword or Openoffice.org) or other proprietary packages would then be more popular...

    --
    Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
  40. it's a trap! by chrwei · · Score: 1

    If this is a successful campaign then I don't think it take long until they offer the same kind of discounts high school students, then just home users, until all your spreadsheets are belong to Microsoft.

    A lot of shareware programs are $20 for home/non-profit use and $50 for commercial use so this concept certainly isn't new, and MS has offered discounts for students forever, though it's usually not lower than 20% of the retail price.

    --
    - Disclaimer: Information in this post deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
    1. Re:it's a trap! by timpaton · · Score: 1

      If this is a successful campaign then I don't think it take long until they offer the same kind of discounts high school students, then just home users, until all your spreadsheets are belong to Microsoft.

      I work for a multinational corporation. We were invited (about 2 years ago) to purchase MSOffice 2k3 for $35 on a home-use license deal. Your choice of shrink-wrapped CDs or DVD, delivered.

      The licence states that I must uninstall and stop using the software if I cease employment at $_big_corporation.

      Your future is already here, and has been here for some time now.

  41. But that last 1% can be a real pita by allegr0 · · Score: 1

    I'm the TA for a third year course in cyberethics and was marking papers this weekend past that students had uploaded to the class website. A few had used Office 2007 whose default file type turns out to be .docx. As of last weekend OpenOffice was unable to open them although a translator is in the works. I wrote about it here and here. Many people don't realize that there's a "save as type" feature, don't realize not everyone uses what they use, (and don't remember to include the plain text version like they're supposed to for this class). For the ones that forgot the plain text, I was able to read the content stripped of its formatting if I opened it with Konqueror or Ark. They've been given strict instructions for next time to upload their essays in rtf....and go figure it's a third year course for an IT minor but don't get me started on that...

  42. Parent not quite realising the truth here by mattsday · · Score: 1
    Well, I'm not sure about the drugs market in general, but talking tech you couldn't be more wrong, certainly in the case of Europe.

    Living here often means you end up paying nearly twice the price for software that our US counterparts pay. If we take the average price of Windows Vista in the US, it's clear that the cost is nearly double. It's the same for XBox 360 games, movies and most other software components.

    VAT and Tax are an element to it, but even with this excluded, it's a heavy price premium in Europe. Until recently, many manufacturers set pricing by taking the cost in USD and putting it in to GBP (i.e. if the cost was $100 USD then make it £100 GBP). Then convert the GBP value to the European currencies. In the case of the XBox 360 the Euro was used instead, but we still get absolutely ripped off here.

    Trust me, you're really not as hard done by as you may think.

    --
    Now there's one hoopy frood who really knows where his towel is!
  43. M$ dealers on the playground by lucidityZ · · Score: 1

    I would say that comparing M$'s tactics to a heroin dealer is very insulting to heroin dealers everywhere.

  44. as far as medicine is concerned... by spectrokid · · Score: 1

    you get exactly the price you want. New Zealand pays back part of the medicine cost to their patients. For each type of medicine, they put out a bid and only the manufacturor with the lowest price gets his medicine subsidised by the government. They have about the lowest medicine prices on the planet. Pharma companies, just like anybody else, steal what they can get away with.

    --

    10 ?"Hello World" life was simple then

  45. Cirke! by Stopher2475 · · Score: 0

    Crike! Why couldn't they show that love in the states.

  46. Same at our Univ. by Aslan72 · · Score: 1

    Purchase rights for students under our contract state that they can buy office for $75. Frontpage is a separate $75.

    1. Re:Same at our Univ. by crossmr · · Score: 1

      They're not offering them the student version of office for $75. This is an entirely different version which normally costs much more. Student pricing often comes in the form of student editions for things like office.

  47. 95%? Man, Microsoft must hat Aussies by krunk7 · · Score: 1

    We got all microsoft development products and OS's for free at my university. (yes it was a sanctioned and legal program)

  48. This is news? by -kertrats- · · Score: 1

    At the University of Minnesota, students have been able to buy copies of Windows XP and Office 2003 for $4 each...for several years. Starting in a few weeks, this is going to be changed to Vista and Office 2007. How is this new?

    --
    The Braying and Neighing of Barnyard Animals Follows.
    1. Re:This is news? by HikingStick · · Score: 1

      Any college or university that runs one of Microsoft's academic programs (or some other select agreement) typically has an option to seel copies of Office for a nominal fee. I purchased one when I completed my degree a few years ago. I was surprised that the license was not severely limited. It was a fantastic bargain to pick up MS Office Professional for $10 (USD). I agree with many other posters that this is MS's "free crack" sample. The idea is to get the students hooked today, so they will buy an upgrade (or purchase a full version) in the future. I don't know if it works for them in the long run. I won't pay retail/OEM prices for an office suite, and I won't be looking to make any changes until my current laptop dies. Then, if I can't find a refurbed Dell with Office already installed, I'll just load Open Office when it arrives.

      --
      I use irony whenever I can, but my shirts are still wrinkled...
  49. It's about getting hooked. by jshriverWVU · · Score: 1

    This is like giving someone a cigarette for free to get them hooked or used to it. Besides students can't drop that much money for software so they're more likely to use openoffice. If MS can get them to use OFfice, they'll eventually get used to it's features and after 4 years be proficient in it. So when they get out of college and hopefully get a decent job they'll needs some kind of office suite. Oh and MS has just released Office 2011, only $700. Then they'll start thinking, should I pay the $700 and use what I'm used to, or switch for free and have to possibly relearn something.

  50. I wonder how much slashdot was paid for this by Blymie · · Score: 1

    Certainly, two stories about cheap student pricing for Microsoft products will help M$ quite a bit... even with the humour assigned to the first story. Microsoft _really_ _really_ _really_ wants students to buy their products, and then use them for the rest of their lives.

    What better place to advertise than on slashdot?

    Alternatively, perhaps we've seen some monkeying with the new story posting moderation system? How many M$ employees does it take to get news stories in place?

  51. Really a 95% discount? by arachnoid · · Score: 1

    Having read a sampling of the posts so far, I think there's something odd here. Either the author of the original post isn't accurately computing what a "95% discount" represents, or (based on the listed price of AUS$75) the full retail for Office 2007 is AUS$1500.

    What is a 100% discount? Doesn't that mean "free"? Therefore a 95% discount represents 1/20 of the normal retail price.

    Unless, of course, Office 2007 Ultimate really is AUS$1500, in which case I strongly recommend that students look at Open Office, which really is offered at a 100% discount, for any price you care to name.

  52. dumping by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    isn't selling something for much less than in your own country called dumping? aren't there fines for that?

  53. lying on your CV by thegnu · · Score: 1

    I'm computery enough to just put office 2007 on there. I've used Office 97, 2000, XP, 2003, and I think I'll be able to figure out the freaking interface. Because, as Microsoft points out, it's so goddamn intuitive.

    But I suppose the computeriness doesn't apply to the population as a whole. But I wouldn't really hire someone who couldn't figure out a freaking office application immediately, anyway. Not that they have to have full proficiency right off the bat, but once you know how to use a spreadsheet, you're unlikely to have to relearn the whole deal when you switch from one office suite to another. Formulas are formulas. Math is math. Logic is logic. Signal flow is signal flow. Must I continue?

    And word processing? I mean, come on. Align left, align center, align right, add a header, add a footer, landscape the page, change font size and color, bold stuff. What else is there to know? Oh, word art. I think a practical education in reading what the screen says is far more important.

    Mail merge would probably set me back a good 15 minutes, but that's because I've never done it. And what does Office 2007 proficiency mean? Does it mean proficiency in creating relational databases in Access? Probably not. Either one of these more advanced examples is very likely to be mentioned and searched for specifically by people looking for workers.

    Plus, if you use OpenOffice, then are forced to interoperate with Office 2007 and use it in class, you're way way way ahead of the game as far as competency goes.

    --
    Please stop stalking me, bro.
    1. Re:lying on your CV by bkr1_2k · · Score: 1

      Not that I disagree but we use word constantly where I work to build documents that contain linked tables of contents, diagrams, tables that are linked to excel spreadsheets and many other "non-standard" functions. One of our most competent software guys who is very familiar with MS Office back through early versions spent almost 15 minutes finding the print tool. Eventually he used Control P and then went and found the tool later, but the fact that he, a windows application developer and expert user of previous versions of Office had to do that says an awful lot about the differences in the interface.

      I'm certainly not looking forward to the transition since I think the last decent version of Office was 97. Then again, the new interface may be good for me considering my bias.

      --
      "Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional."
  54. clippy's been phased out by thegnu · · Score: 1

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clippy

    You of course meant "world-class support" is worth much more. Of course.

    --
    Please stop stalking me, bro.
  55. You deserve what you get if... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You deserve what you get if...as a hiring manager you allow your HR dept to dictate the resume review process. In my experience (15+ years large corp experience) you will get deluged with 300+ marginally relevent resumes that you could have just gotten on Monster.com and done it yourself if that is what you were looking for.

    IMHO most HR depts are not well skilled or staffed to handle this type of task well.

    This is one of the few places that a good recuiting firm is a good thing. Once you find one that understands your needs as a hiring manager, they will weed out the 97% of resumes that do not fit the job description, company culture, etc.

  56. And... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    BitTorrent students can get Office at 100% off retail!!!

  57. Nothing special by Val314 · · Score: 1

    Here in Austria, Students can get Office 2007 Enterprise for 8 Euros, so thats not really special.

    Similar prices are available for several other products.

  58. mac version too..? by davortech · · Score: 1

    Does that include MS Office Mac too or just MS Office for Windows?

    --
    Davor
  59. IE6 + IE7 ? by Max+Romantschuk · · Score: 1

    I have IE7 installed along with IE6


    From a developer to another: On the same machine? If so, by virtualization, or how?
    --
    .: Max Romantschuk :: http://max.romantschuk.fi/
    1. Re:IE6 + IE7 ? by Fozzyuw · · Score: 1

      From a developer to another: On the same machine? If so, by virtualization, or how?

      Actually, there's this sweet program out there called Mulitple-IE. To use it, install IE7, then install Multiple-IE. Multiple IE installed IE3 through IE6. How? Well, the website explains it. They add IE numbers to the title bar, which, for whatever reason (I think it has to do with the registry keys) keep the programs separate. However, the Multiple IE version do not have full capabilities, though I've not run into any problems yet, but I simply use them for CSS design checks, not for Active X plug-ins or the like.

      (note, this is for Windows machines)

      Cheers,
      Fozzy

      --
      "The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became truth." ~1984 George Orwell
    2. Re:IE6 + IE7 ? by Shai-kun · · Score: 1

      Very good, but not 100% correct: adding the IE version number to the title bar is so *you* can keep the versions apart, but the Windows feature called "process specific subroutine library" is what makes the IE stand-alones, well, stand alone. Read more about it here, and get prepackaged IE stand-alones here.

      Now I have IE6 stand alone next to normally-installed IE7, and really the only difference is that IE6 can't use ActiveX plug-ins. Unfortunately that doesn't help when you have a layout heavy with transparent PNGs and are trying to fix it for IE6 :-)

      --
      ...or so I've been told.
  60. Re:Reality check by Achromatic1978 · · Score: 2, Insightful
    Huh? How do you extrapolate from "the ribbon interface is better for usability" (and I believe it is) to "Oh wow, hey, gotta pay MS another $1000 just to use said ribbon interface"? People upgrade to keep current and to have new things. Nowhere did the GP say, as you imply that a UI trick is worthy as the reason for an upgrade.

    that will evaporate when Microsoft dangles a new shiny.

    Nice ad hominem. I love the implication that your move away from Microsoft is some kind of intellectual philosophizing and of scholarly merit, and that someone who likes a product released by Microsoft is some immature child, dazzled by a new toy and "blind to the ways of the world".

    I know Exchange admins who would kill to escape Microsoft

    That's their problem. I know I wouldn't keep working at something I detest. Let alone say that it's someone else's fault. I know plenty of people who are happy administering Exchange (though personally I find its admin to be cumbersome and unintuitive).

    Frankly, your post reads like you just received your first month's check from Microsoft for astroturfing Slashdot.

    Why, because he has the unmitigated gall to have a differing opinion from you on the subject? I happen to think O2007 is a vast improvement in usability to O2003. The ribbon is far more contextual and I spend less time menu-hunting/surfing. HOWEVER, I will admit that there is a significant effort in becoming familiar with this new system. For some people, myself included, the usability of the product once this has been overcome is worth this initial expense. For you, it may not (above and beyond the fact that you imply you've never used it).

  61. Endnote: not an excuse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    here in the University of Melbourne, we use a program called End Note X to manage our bibliographies and references when writing articles. Guess what word processing program it integrated with? (hint: not OOo).
    Although not quite as comfortable as with W*rd, it's totally possible to manage your bibliography with almost any word processor, including OOo. Select your references in Endnote, Copy them into your document at the desired place. When you're done, save as RTF and process the RTF file with Endnote.

    1. Re:Endnote: not an excuse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      But if you're writing a thesis, why not shell out $25 to make your life that much easier? Having seen how well Endnote integrates with Word, whereas it doesn't at all with OO, I'm going to be parting with my $25 and it's going to be a good investment.

  62. One reason these dupes are happening... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...is the desperate determination by the Australian 'editors' to get their country mentioned as often as possible on Slashdot. Zonk, samzenpus, ScuttleMonkey, kdawson, et all post any Australian nonstory which even remotely qualifies as "News for Nerds" without bothering to check if it has already been posted. Since there are so few newsworthy items from Australia the chances of it being duped are extremely high, but that doesn't matter, since the aim is to mention Australia on Slashdot.

    Welcome to www.slashdot.com.au!

  63. Rip off. by insomniac8400 · · Score: 1

    I think students at Ball State can download and install Office 2007 and Windows Vista right now for free.

  64. Re:Reality check by alienmole · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Why, because he has the unmitigated gall to have a differing opinion from you on the subject?
    No, because he claimed that he "hates Microsoft as much as the next guy here", and then went on to indulge in some fanboy drooling, concluding with some more material attempting to bolster his non-Microsoft cred. As I pointed out, he clearly doesn't "hate Microsoft as much as the next guy here", and if he had left out that comment and his attempt to be taken seriously as anything other than a Microsoft fan, I wouldn't have bothered to respond.
  65. Spoofing? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    telnet myschool.edu 25
    helo myschool.edu
    mail from:spoofer@myschool.edu
    rcpt to:whoever@wherever.com
    data
    Subject: surprise!
    From: spoofer@mydomain.edu
    To: whoever@wherever.com
     
    This is the body of the message
    .
    quit
    Truely tough stuff, that [believing that a /.er doesn't know SMTP].
  66. what a minute- how much off???!?! by VolciMaster · · Score: 1
    If $75 AU is 95% OFF the retail price, that means the full retail is $1500 A! That's about $1165 USD.

    Damn, but that's friggin' expensive

    --
    antipaucity
  67. MY $0.02 & On another note... by Slotty · · Score: 1
    Yes OpenOffice 2 is free. Office 2007 is cheap (for now) In terms of word processing, spreadsheets and presentations they're both simple and easy to use suites and very powerful. Assuming we'll be using a common format lets say Office XP/2003 format because as much as /. members would love it to be ODF we'll take real world scenarios. The only thing on the surface that's left to distinguish the two is the user interface. Office 2007's interface is pretty and as Apple has already proven eye candy sells! I mean come on fancy looking OS wrapped around unix and everyone loves it!

    Also

    Don't type in a wrong e-mail address and confirm it.

    I've never used my student e-mail address and foolishly typed mine in as firstname.surname@mq.edu.au rather than the required firstname.surname@students.mq.edu.au

    *queue laughter at me now*

    Unfortunately the only method of contact this 3rd party e-retailer is through a web form and I haven't had any reply in over 4 days. Very willing to take my money but not respond if I have a problem. If I haven't heard anything by COB Friday (Sydney time) I'll be taking the owner of the Australian domain to fair trading YAY for .au TLD's that require an ABN

  68. So what.... by sven_kirk · · Score: 1

    I got Windows XP Pro, and MS Office 2003 Pro for 20 buck each while working at an office supply store. Both full install, retail discs. Yes they were %100 legit, and straight from Microsoft. =P

  69. What's really interesting about this by Master+of+Transhuman · · Score: 1

    In the US, Microsoft has an academic program that allows students in computer science classes to pick up Windows Server 2003, Project, SQL Server and other software for FREE. I got all that stuff while taking classes at Community College of San Francisco.

    HOWEVER, the Microsoft "cash cow" - Office - was NOT offered in this US program.

    So it's interesting that Microsoft is offering Office to Australian students for $75. Basically, Microsoft is trying to make a killing here by selling a product to students who normally could not afford to buy that product at its retail - or even a discounted educational store - price.

    Not to mention that Microsoft also gets to condition students to using its Office product - as opposed to OpenOffice, which probably would have been the students first choice.

    I doubt Microsoft will run the same program in the US - unless it discovers that Office 2007 is so bloated and so different in its interface that sales are seriously slower than expected. Then they may try to rope in students and sell a few more copies by discounting it as in Australia.

    --
    Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
  70. They are all over the place by geekoid · · Score: 1

    you just need to look a little..like ask someone at the student store, or some of the mom and pop shops will have a deal for student.

    Hell, I bought a 1 year subsription to masdn a few yaers ago. Came with all the MS products, 100 bucks plus 50 bucks it cost me to sign up for a class.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  71. Woohoo, trolling career begun! by alienmole · · Score: 1

    Parent is my first -1, Troll post ever. So it's taken me a while to get started (years!) but now I finally figured out the trick. To be modded down to "-1, Troll" on Slashdot, you have to criticize Microsoft, or Microsoft fanboys, I'm not sure which. Who woulda thunk it? I remember the old days, when Slashdot wasn't crawling with MS fanboys, apologists, toadies, and astroturfers...

    Am I being too obvious now? This is all so new to me!