Customer Reviews

Microsoft Office Professional 2003 - Old Version

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(50)

 

 

O2k3 is Microsoft's latest iteration of their cash cow product, Office, and in some ways fully realizes their previous dreams of integration and utility.

For example, the taskpane that now appears stage-left (screen- right) does more than display a stacked clipboard; if you've been repeating a series of formatting commands, those too appear in the stack for easy access. This is what computers have promised to deliver for some time now. In this and other ways, Microsoft is finally bringing it to users in a usable, intuitive manner.

Previous features such as spellchecking, grammar, integration and smart cut-copy-paste operations are all present. Perhaps the best addition to the suite is Microsoft's OneNote, which promises to capture freeform notes and text in whatever way you like, digitizing tablet handwriting or keyboard entry; the killer app is how it recognizes the handwriting and indexes the text for finding your notes again. Call it system-wide Graffiti for Windows.

Still, this is Office and the usual bloat in disk space, system requirements, and price tag all apply. This is a release most-targeted for businesses that can afford to roll this out to many users under a favorable license. If a company such as GE had to pay $450 a seat, you can bet GE would be using a competitor's product tomorrow. So for an individual, Office is still a four-star player.

For anyone considering Office 2003, let me weigh in with a wet blanket on previous rave reviews: if you have Office 2000/2002/XP, you don't need this release. Honestly. This iteration does not contain a truly compelling feature set that will bring you to spend a few hundred dollars. Microsoft's OneNote is good, maybe even killer, but you've gotten along without it for quite some time now, haven't you?

To put all this in a single paragraph: if you're on Office 97 or earlier, and can score the upgrade, and have the bucks, this is a good release to use. However, if you don't have the bucks, Office 2002 or even Office 2000 are still viable alternatives that provide 95% of the features at 30-70% of the cost.

Perhaps I am jaded but again it seems that Microsoft has cranked out another product that looks and acts so much like its predecessor that you wonder at first if you loaded it onto your computer properly.

Office 2003 gives you what you already have in Office XP (and a few earlier versions) so learning how to use it is never going to be a problem. In virtually every way the program looks and feels like the previous Office versions.

There are improvements although I am not sure how much a home user will need the XML functionality. It may be a god-send one day but today it is still not a major factor and certainly does not demand a major update. The RESEARCH option is something to contend with and could be quite useful - it is almost like having Encarta loaded on your machine as well. I found it a bit limiting though; it is good as a thesaurus but there is no world atlas, quotation source, etc. Many people have applauded the new look and feel of Outlook. Again, it behaves just the same as previous versions of Outlook did.

Microsoft chose to retire the Office bar and that is a big mistake. They are trying to push the Quick Launch bar but most businesses and almost all Office users preferred the Office bar.

Don't get me wrong: Office 2003 works very well and with Word, Outlook, Excel, Access and Publisher you can literally do anything! It also preforms very well. But, again, unless Microsoft starts making major changes, these releases should not be heralded as new. If anything, they should be upgrades that former users should be able to download if they registered the original product - the cost is too prohibitive to justify upgrading. And, as your Office 97 or XP works just as well, you should think seriously before spending the money.

This is a justified upgrade for all Office 97, 2000 and some Office XP users. Office has evolved into a system of information gathering tools, a set of solutions for ideas, communication, connecting people and places. Intense XML (extensible markup language) integration for generating solutions that are compatible with today's, tomorrow and future standards. The updated applications integrate with the Windows XP experience featuring a bolder inviting interface. I am disappointed with the default use of the current theme in Windows XP, but with the new tool bar icons, it makes you forget about that. Overall it's a wonderful work experience with Office 2003. The suite offers improved reliability and stability, because of the integration with the supported operating systems. Once the suite is installed, you don't have to restart your computer, just start using the applications, the suite even has its own default programs group (finally), which keeps your programs menu less cluttered.

Word 2003 includes development tools that add dynamic features to documents making them powerful than ever. The power beneath all this is XML, allowing the user to embed components for updating data in documents such as stock quotes. Word 2003 offers simple, familiar yet improved features regular users are accustomed to. Majority of the features in Word 2003 are aimed primarily toward businesses and the Enterprise. But are still necessary for the average user because of the control over information across all the Office applications. Tools such as Information Rights Management (IRM), (this controls the flow of information to specific users), persons can be restricted on how they use your Office files; whether it's printing or sharing, very powerful! Reading view is an enhanced mode of print preview; documents are laid out in virtual pages reducing the need to print. The Task Pane is also improved by offering resources to look up information on a particular topic being typed; this is a feature across the core Office applications. Lots of other great features make Word 2003 a worthy upgrade.

Excel is a XML mammoth because of the integration with the language. The ability to migrate data between different storage sources and extraction of information to make it flexible in different scenarios. Tables can be transferred back and forth between applications such Word with ease. Excel can continually use the tables from documents as a data source for further expandability. It's the flexibility for data exchange that makes Excel 2003 very powerful.

Outlook, is so revamped, this alone is a worthy upgrade. Three panes in Outlook 2003 make e-mail an enjoyable experience. The Mail Pane holds all of the necessary tools found in prior versions of Outlook such as the Outlook Bar, and the different folders such as inbox, calendar, etc. The second pane gives an expanded view of the different items listed in the Mail Pane, like your incoming mail, contacts and calendar, which makes reading these information resources easier on the eye and productive by providing a better view. Reading your e-mail in the third pane (Preview Pane), the user views the message in portrait layout, more content is seen compared to prior versions. Its even better to view e-mails with "Clear Type" turned on for Windows XP users. Other features such as improved Virus and Spam protection makes Outlook 2003 a great upgrade. Outlook is not placed on the desktop by default, it can also be minimized to the system tray in Windows, for users connected to an Exchange Server, this displays all the network settings available.

PowerPoint 2003 offers the same features of version 2002, but what makes it an enticing upgrade is the package to CD feature that allows users to save presentations onto CD-ROMS. The PowerPoint Viewer included with each Package to CD allows it to be played on other computer systems even if PowerPoint is not installed. Windows media integration is also in PowerPoint 2003, which makes watching presentations more fun and exciting. The effects are fantastic when combined with these elements. The ability to integrate videos into Presentations to create home movies has long been a request of users, even if they have a DVD burner. For the PowerPoint 2000 user this is a worthy upgrade that provides simple yet Powerful tools to take presentation graphics to a new level.

This new version of Access is also XML integrated, enhanced features such as extraction of data from multiple tables, Access 2003 also improves Smart Tag integration. The ability to design solutions within the program makes web services a powerful resource for the enterprise; the flawless integration with Microsoft SQL makes information sharing a productive experience. This makes data storing and retrieval an easy way to control how data is implemented across many scenarios using personalized solutions, allowing your information to have a stronger impact across the Enterprise.

Publisher has become a mainstream Office application because of its integration with other Office programs. It connects to product databases; the Mail Merge feature is much improved because it's the same one as Microsoft Word, which offers greater ease of use. The Start Center is awesome, which makes starting publications an organized experience for the user. The interface is less cluttered and more customizable. You can rename pages like Workbooks for better searching, if you are typing large publications. The website features are easier to use; it provides satisfactory integration with FrontPage, for converting websites created in Publisher. With a total of 45 design master sets, users can create attractive e-mails that are fully compatible with many messaging services. The ability to merge data sources using text and images is great. Compatibility goes back to Publisher 2000, which is a draw back for users who might be using Publisher 98 or under.

Outlook Business Contact Manager is an application that offers features for Small Businesses for generating customer reports and e-mailing customers.

Picture Manager has replaced Photo-Editor; it has better image editing tools, more functionality and ease of use.

Office 2003 is a worthy upgrade for many users, especially persons still in an existing Office 97 or 2000 user base. The tools it provides offers a powerful productivity experience that makes information accessible, controllable and connected for you the user.

The suite and all the Office 2003 applications are supported only on Windows 2000 Service Pack 3, Windows XP all editions.

Microsoft makes the best office suite - period. However, I still do believe that the price is a bit of a rip-off. I have been using Open Office (...) which is developed by Sun Microsystems and is FREE. It is also compatible with MS Office - you can save the files in Word, PowerPoint etc. format. The more I use it, the more I wish I had it during my undergrad days. If money is not your concern - MS Office is definitely the best productivity suite out there. However, if you are a student and wish to make presentations or documents for school/university work I would definitely recommend Open Office as you simply cannot get anything better for free and it shall suit all your needs. I mean at the end of the day - you are graded on your work now how the slides come flying in. But Open has the flying slides too - thought the MS ones still look cooler:) I particularly liked exporting Word Files to PDF format within Open Office. For the record I am not anti-Microsoft - they have some good products - I just wish they would make them more affordable. I hope this helps.

I really like this new version of Microsoft Office. Like previous upgrades, there isn't too much of a difference in Excel and Word other than a few things, it is Outlook which has the largest improvements. I really like the new look as it uses "screen real-estate" much more efficiently. The Junk E-Mail filters are better than in previous editions (much better!) and I had no problems working with my previous PST files. Also, the ability to send busy and free times to people not on Exchange is really nice.

However, I do like the changes in Word and Excel, especially as it comes to sharing with other users. It is nice to have control over what is shared and what isn't shared. The improved digital signature is a fantastic benefit as well.

And Access. I use Access all the time for my personal databases. I was really concerned that this might be an upgrade like how 2000 was to 97 where you would need to convert everything over and it wouldn't be backwards compatible. Thank goodness everything is backwards compatible. That is a real life saver. The backup feature is excellent as well!!

My hats off to Microsoft for another great product!!

Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003 delivers on its title's promise -- it is the ultimate office/productivity suite for the computer professional. Microsoft Office Word 2003 is a great word processor, which can create print documents (the most popular type of document today), web pages (you can save in either HTML or XML format), and much more. With it, you can use tables, columns, mathematical equations (with Microsoft Equation 3), and any other accessories for print documents and web pages. Microsoft Office Excel 2003 is an excellent spreadsheet program, which lets you create spreadsheets, web pages (again, you can work with either HTML ot XML). With it, you can use forms for Web pages, and save information in tablular format. Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003 is a professional presentations application, which can be used to create presentations for print or for viewing on a computer, and save them as print publications or Web sites. With it, you can add tables, columns, hyperlinks, and more for presentations. Microsoft Office Access 2003 is a great database application, which can be used to create professional databases and save information in web pages. With it, you can work with tables, queries, forms, reports and much more for database use. Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 with Business Contact Manager is an excellent comminications/schedules program which can be used for writing and reading e-mail messages, calendars, using schedules and more. With it, you can use advanced formatting with e-mail messages and work with professional schedules and calenders and manage business contacts. Microsoft Office Publisher 2003 is a professional publications application, which can be used to create Web sites and print publications. With it, you can use advanced formatting and scripting with publications. There are also some common features, namely Microsoft Equation 3 and Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) 6.3 for writing scripts and macros. There is a disadvantage, however: Microsoft Office FrontPage 2003 (the best program for creating web sites) is not included in the package (but can be purchased seperately). Otherwise, Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003 is an ultimate Office suite, when used with Microsoft Office FrontPage 2003, which is explained earlier.

I decided to get this office suite after using it recently. I've usually worked on Office 97 and 2000, but the 2003 version has some pretty cool features not found in the older versions. The feature that I really enjoy is the Pivot Report feature in MS Access, which wasn't in MS Access 2000. This is a truly great reporting feature. You can now use Access as a front-end to slice and dice data stored on data warehouses in Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase and other enterprise-type databases. If you're used to creating crosstab reports, you'll definitely like the Pivot Report feature. Crosstabs are limited to 2 dimensions but there's no limitation on the number of dimensions in Pivot Report.

To me, the main drawback is the price. (I did get mine at around $370 at J&R, which is a great price.) I figure I can upgrade this in about 5 years time, which works out to about $70 to $75 per year (assuming that I'll be paying about $370 to upgrade in 5 years time.)

A big positive is that this is the industry standard. So the work you put into learning the multiple new features of Word, Excel, MS Access is not wasted because you can reuse the same skills in another job. Your time will be well spent. Note that the software may seem bloated but the intelligent user is able to choose and pick the most useful and relevant features of each application and ignore the features that are not useful. Different features are useful to different people...

Another positive: Each product in Office Professional is fully programmable using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) which you can use to build custom programs. This very powerful feature is sometimes overlooked when shopping for Office suites.

I am using Microsoft Office 2003 Professional Enterprise edition, obtained through an MSDN subscription.

Microsoft Office System 2003 will prove to be the best in its class. The Microsoft Office Family has been revamped to provide industry standard XML and .NET support. Files can be easily shared between applications in the Office System family.

Microsoft Office now includes a new research tool that allows you to easily search for information. You can search research books (thesaurus, dictionaries) and web resources. Third party developers are creating even more sources (like Google) that will make this an essential tool for anyone writing reports.

Microsoft Outlook has been revamped with a new and improved interface. It is now easy to categorize messages, calendar items, contacts and more. These items can then be sorted by category! Outlook 2003 is easier to use than any previous version.

Microsoft Office 2003 is a complete solution for the home and business user alike. It is an essential tool for students and developers. The wave of the future is XML and Microsoft is beginning to shape that future today.

If you are new to Microsoft Office this is an essential product. This is a nice upgrade from Office 2000 or XP, but mostly for developers and businesses. If you want to harness the power of XML or .NET this is for you.

Microsoft Office System 2003 will only run on systems with Windows 2000 or XP installed.

I've been using Word for more than 20 years,
and Office for as long as it has been around.
It just gets better and better.
All of modules integrate nicely.
Excel spreadsheet is created easily from Access database,
and sending mailmerge letters to a selected Access group
is a piece of cake. Mail merge even works with Publisher.
This is not a political view of Microsoft; I just like this product.
BNB ><>

Office 97 was a pretty good product. The programs were powerful, had a decent interface (maybe not as good as the Claris products of the early 1990s, but not bad), and came with a ton of features all on one disc. The Office 98 release for Mac was pretty much the same thing. The only thing that really got annoying for me was the office assistant (paperclip) but it is easy enough to turn off.

Office 2000 was a bit of a disappointment for me. I felt that the improvements were minimal (aside from a bit more stability in Word--anyone who has ever used Word 97 on a regular basis knows it's prone to crashing) and in fact detracted from the ease of use. One example is the clip gallery, which went from being one of the best organizers ever created to becoming a program that wouldn't have received decent reviews in 1988. Another is PowerPoint's outline feature. I always turned this off because it ate up monitor space and therefore made the actual slide smaller. When you use smaller displays like I often do this is a problem. The menus, which hide some functions until you go to the bottom of them, were also an annoyance. The manual went from being a nice thick book to one half the size.

Office 2003 continues making the program uglier. Now there are many tasks crammed onto one little panel on the right of the screen. Again, this eats into the workspace. The clip art system is even more cumbersome, and many of the clips are online only now. The help feature tries to point too much in the online direction as well. Now some people may not complain, but what if you're using a laptop in the middle of the country?

I feel that the program is basically an uglier version of the same thing that was first seen in 1997. In fact, the 1997 version was more pleasant to work with and almost as powerful. On my Macs, I've switched to Keynote for presentations and Pages for some of my word processing because the new Office versions on that platform are similar.

Some of the templates also look very 1997. Apple's programs are updated on a regular basis, and their templates look very modern. Now I know Microsoft adds some new ones now and then, but they should consider redesigning many of them--such as replacing the overused Arial and Times New Roman fonts with something a little more classy.

The program is bloated way too heavily. I can run Office 2000 comfortably on a 486 with sub-1GB hard drive, but can't even get 2003 on it.

A final gripe is that Access is not user friendly at all. File Maker is a better alternative, as it is easier to use and friendlier.