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Microsoft To Try Works As Adware

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the penny-for-your-eyeballs dept.

Several readers noted that Microsoft has announced plans to pre-install an ad-laden version of Works on some manufacturers' PCs in coming months. Works is Microsoft's lightweight docs-and-spreadsheets software. The manufacturers involved were not disclosed. The adware Works will come with a pre-installed cache of ads that will be refreshed when the machine is online. Microsoft will decide by mid-2008 whether it can afford to forgo the $40 normally charged for Works.

29 of 246 comments (clear)

  1. Switch! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    [...]Microsoft has announced plans to pre-install an ad-laden version of Works on some manufacturers' PCs in coming months. [...]

    Can't think of a better reason to try Linux or Mac.
    Thanks, Microsoft!

    1. Re:Switch! by nine-times · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Or OpenOffice, for christ's sake. I mean, come on, MS Works doesn't even read MS Office documents. It doesn't have the features of a full office suite. There is absolutely no good reason to continue using this crap, even if it's free.

    2. Re:Switch! by Kpau · · Score: 4, Funny

      I've heard tell legends of small cults of people who actually use Works but during my decades of travels as an IT wizard, I've only encountered one who actually *used* it. Typically people only use it until they figure out it is mostly incompatible with the rest of the freaking world... even within Microsoft's world.

    3. Re:Switch! by jellomizer · · Score: 3, Funny

      I am usually an opponent for the use of OpenOffice stating it is a sub-par replacement for office... But as a replacement for MS Works. I would say use OpenOffice even without the Adds over Works. The only advantage I found with Works in College was a lot of Girls who wrote their paper in works needed it converted to a Doc or even .TXT format went to us geeks.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    4. Re:Switch! by catbutt · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I don't like defending Microsoft, but in this case....that's a reason to switch platforms, because you don't like an application that you don't have to use?

      Is it the ads that bother you? Slashdot is adware, you know.

      Personally, I'm happy to see Microsoft finding separate revenue streams for their apps, rather than just bundling them with Windows and claiming they are free. That would have been typical Microsoft....kill Google Docs by bundling something with the OS and covering its cost with the price of the OS.

    5. Re:Switch! by Bluesman · · Score: 5, Funny

      "a lot of Girls who wrote their paper in works needed it converted to a Doc or even .TXT format went to us geeks."

      Yeah, I've got a life size picture of that:

      Girl: "Can you convert my files for me? I have to go fool around with my boyfriend."
      Geek: "Sure!"

      --
      If moderation could change anything, it would be illegal.
    6. Re:Switch! by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 3, Funny

      Sleeping with her boyfriend behind her back is better still tho. ;)

      --
      What if Tetris was invented by Nazis?
    7. Re:Switch! by Inner_Child · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Say I did use MS Works. Why should I switch just because of the new adware? So that I may lose the use of other software thats not on Linux? If you use MS Works, chances are you don't use anything that can't be easily replaced in Linux. How many dedicated Photoshop users - to use your example - would actually drop back to something as crippled as MS Works to do anything?
      --
      Today is red jello day - all workers must eat all of their red jello. Failure to comply will result in five demerits.
    8. Re:Switch! by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 5, Funny

      Well, if a girl won't cheat on a guy with me, he must be hotter than me, and I gotta say, that's pretty damn hot.

      --
      What if Tetris was invented by Nazis?
  2. Why would anyone want Works anyway? by Sh00tingstar · · Score: 5, Interesting

    given that it's not a particularly functional package, and Open office is mature enough to offer most of what you need anyway. I think the adware-laden 'free' trials are one of the most irritating things about buying a new PC!

    1. Re:Why would anyone want Works anyway? by Tom9729 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      A lot of people just don't know about OpenOffice. People will use this because they don't feel like paying for the full thing (MS Office). Sure, they'll mumble and groan about the ads and etcetera, but they'll use it.

      This is a great time for OpenOffice to get out there and let the common person know about them. Firefox had ads in the newspaper, why couldn't OOo?

      My only question is how long before we see ads in Windows.

    2. Re:Why would anyone want Works anyway? by misleb · · Score: 4, Interesting

      A lot of people just don't know about OpenOffice. People will use this because they don't feel like paying for the full thing (MS Office). Sure, they'll mumble and groan about the ads and etcetera, but they'll use it.


      They'll use it until they find out (the hard way) that they can't share the resulting files with others. WEll, technically there is a Works to Word converter, but Microsoft, for some "strange" reason didn't see fit to include it in Office by default. I don't think Microsoft really wants people to use Works at all. They just want to get people using some Microsoft product and annoy them (with ads and document incompatibility) into "upgrading" to Office. Works is a gateway application.

      -matthew
      --
      "THERE IS NO JUSTICE, THERE IS ONLY ME." -Death
    3. Re:Why would anyone want Works anyway? by bilabrin · · Score: 4, Funny

      IMHO Works is garbage. Here's a list of progams I'd use as a text editor before I'd consider using Works again.

      Wordpad
      Notepad
      Paintbrush
      Pencil and paper.
      A sandy beach, a stick and a camera!

      Seriously, Works is a puchline!

  3. Just what the world needs... by rbochan · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Even more people using a program that saves to proprietary formats that can't be used by other programs.
    Sigh.

    --
    ...Rob
    The American Dream isn't an SUV and a house in the suburbs; it's Don't Tread On Me.
  4. Works sells for 40$? by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Has any one actually shelled out money to buy works? It is installed as crapware by the vendors. How out of touch with reality is MSFT really?

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
    1. Re:Works sells for 40$? by Zarhan · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Actually...Back in old days, when it was MS Works 2.0 (DOS version!). Early 90's. I really liked the darn thing.

      The target segment for Works, I suppose, is to use it for "home accounting". For that purpose the 2.0 worked very well due to one nice fact:

      It came with it's own teaching program! No annoying clippy. No gazillion menus, and indexed helps where you cannot find anything. Basically a self-running tutorial for elementary word processing and doing some spreadsheets - some basic formulas (doing sums, etc). And it worked. Even my somewhat-of-a-luddite parents changed their home accounting from pen&paper to Works. It would nicely show off some examples, allow you to try it yourself, checked your input, and really taught how to do things.

      These days they are using Openoffice. So am I.

      What went wrong?

      Well, basically, at around version 4.0 Works became bloatware. So, might as well go for Excel/OOO. And the teaching functionality is no longer there in the basic package so it's no longer even useful as a "my first spreadsheet". (Ok, I don't know about the absolute latest versions).

  5. who wants this? by huckda · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The manufacturers involved were not disclosed. So as not to hurt the sale of said systems...

    --
    "Just Smile and Nod." --Huck
  6. Just guessing by OpenSourced · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Microsoft has announced plans to pre-install an ad-laden version of Works on some manufacturers' PCs

    Lemme guess... Perhaps that offer will be done to the manufacturers that were "thinking about/already intalling" Open Office for free in their naked PCs ?

    --
    Rome taught me patience and assiduous application to detail. Virtues which temper the boldness of great, general views.
  7. Re:Have they ever managed to sell works? by NickFortune · · Score: 4, Funny

    Exactly. Now instead of just bundling office software that no one wants and no one uses with new PCs, they're going to bundle sotware that no one wants, no one uses, and that advertises at you.

    Of course, this being MS, they're going to try and sell this as an added value proposition: "seventy five percent of all the sock puppets that responded to our market research all said that they felt the lack of advertising was a serious lack in Microsoft Works"

    --
    Don't let THEM immanentize the Eschaton!
  8. Same as Google apps by JeremyGNJ · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is no different than Google Documents & Spreadsheets. It's just ad-supported office applications. However, the fact that it's locally installed is nice, because it allows for more advanced functionality than AJAX. I think Microsoft has a winner with this one. Not just because of the ad revenue, but because of the user lock-in. Users of works would be more likely to upgrade to MS office. smart move.

  9. Do they censor the ads? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Excellent. Now how do we purchase adspace for Open Office and KOffice in this wonderful program?

  10. OpenOffice needs to step up by computerman413 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Maybe OpenOffice should try and arrange to have their products put on Windows computers. It won't cost manufacturers anything, and it won't have annoying ads.

  11. Ad-Laden? by Shadow+Wrought · · Score: 4, Funny

    Isn't he the number three Al Queda guy these days?

    --
    If brevity is the soul of wit, then how does one explain Twitter?
  12. Brilliant... by msimm · · Score: 4, Funny

    but only so long as they use Clippy to present the ads. It would be like life in hell in a great cuddly way.

    --
    Quack, quack.
  13. Oxymoron! by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 3, Funny

    Microsoft Works

    --
    Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
  14. Re:Works?!?! by bumby · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...and I then delete it because it's a WORTHLESS piece of shit.

    works or windows?

    --
    Hey! That's my sig you're smoking there!
  15. Wait...what? by Control+Group · · Score: 4, Funny

    Microsoft still makes Works? And they charge money for it? Is it still one of the best document-encryption tools around?

    I haven't even seen a Microsoft Works installation since the days when I'd carry around a floppy with Norton Utilities on it - and use it often.

    --

    Reality has a conservative bias: it conserves mass, energy, momentum...
  16. Oxymorons!!!! by Pojut · · Score: 3, Funny

    #974: Airline Food

    #632: Civil War

    #232: Microsoft Works

    --
    Living With a Nerd
  17. I think it's unfair! by garry_g · · Score: 3, Funny

    By bundeling ad-ware with Works, it gives Ad-Ware a bad name ...