The particular version of Office ships with basic versions of Microsoft Word and Excel, the two most popular programs. It is basically free but comes with advertisement to make up for that.

Office Starter 2010 is not available as a public download. The only way up until now was to buy a PC that ships with it to use it. Caschy now discovered that Microsoft stores Microsoft Office Starter 2010 on their servers. Downloads are publicly available and install the product on compatible systems. Compatible currently means that they will install on Windows Vista and Windows 7, but not on Windows XP or Windows 8.

Here is a list of available versions that you can download:

• Microsoft Office Starter 2010 English
• Microsoft Office Starter 2010 French
• Microsoft Office Starter 2010 German
• Microsoft Office Starter 2010 Spanish

I only tried those four country codes. It is likely that Microsoft Office Starter 2010 is available in different versions. Just replace the LCID string in the web address, e.g. en-us with another one. You find a list of strings on this page.

Office Starter 2010 can be installed and used without entering a product key. Also interesting: It is possible to create a portable version of Office Starter 2010 from the program’s start menu listing.

Office Starter does not offer all of the functionality that a “full” version of Office offers. It is however a suitable alternative for users who only need to do some light editing and reading.

There are definitely comparable solutions for users who do not want to use Microsoft Office. Among them Open Office, Libre Office or Google Docs.

Update: Microsoft has removed the download links from their servers. You may still find the program on software repositories.

The first thing any Windows user would think to do is uninstall Microsoft Office 2010. This doesn’t work. Files still do not open. This is Microsoft’s way of goading users into buying the Office 2010 suite, which is fine if you want to do so. For users who do not, more steps need to be taken to regain control over the Office suite that you paid for.

When a file association is missing between a file and a corresponding application, various problems occur and the file cannot be opened. This is what happens when the Microsoft Office 2010 trial expires and you do not purchase the suite.

Click the Start menu and open the control Panel. Select Uninstall a program.

Scroll to find the instances of Microsoft Office 2010. Uninstall all instances of Office 2010 and you should be prompted to restart your computer. Restart as suggested.
The problem will most likely remain unsolved due to the instance of the Microsoft click-to-run application. Use the same steps to uninstall click-to-run (you don’t need it) and restart again.

Try opening a .doc, .docx, or .xml file and see if you get the same error message. You probably will because the default application to open the file has not been changed. Open the Control Panel again and click on Programs (indicated in green). This will open the Programs options. Under Default Programs, click “Make a file type always open in a specific program”.

A list of all file associations will be presented. Scroll down to .doc, .dochtml, .docx, etc.

The screenshot above shows the default applications to which you will need to change the file type to. This demonstration uses Office 2007. Change doc, dochtml, docm, docx and docmhtml files to Microsoft Office Word as the default application. Do this by double clicking each one individually and changing the file association. Change docxml, dot, dothtml, dotm, dotx and dqy file associations to the appropriate Microsoft Office component, which would be Office 2007 in this case (ideally in any case).

Files should open properly now. The process is slightly different for XP and Vista, but this should give you a good idea of how to approach this issue. There is absolutely nothing wrong with switching to Office 2010 if you want to. If you do, all of the above steps will be unnecessary. However, Windows 7 users who have encountered this problem will find this useful.

The description of Office 2010 SP1 page details the new features and updates of the service pack. Here is a short list of the most promising new features, fixes and updates.

• Stability, Performance and backward compatibility of Excel 2010 has been improved.
• Office 365 support has been added to Outlook 2010
• PowerPoint Viewer is now included when selecting the Package for CD option
• Fixes the following error message in Word 2010: Microsoft Office Word has encountered a problem and needs to close.
• Fixes Word co-authoring issues and conflicts.
• Open OneNote notebooks from Windows Live SkyDrive
• OneNote synchronization improvements with SharePoint and Windows Live SkyDrive.

As you can see from this list and the official listing at the Microsoft KnowledgeBase, there has not been many feature additions. A lot of the features improve cloud connectivity or fix minor issues. That is, apart from all the updates, especially security related, that the majority of Office 2010 users have probably downloaded before.

Last month’s Technet blog post announcing the upcoming service pack 1 for Office 2010 offered additional details on feature additions.

• Office Web Applications are not officially supported under Google Chrome.
• Outlook Web Application Attachment Preview (with Exchange Online only)
• Backup and restore has been improved for SharePoint Server

The very same blog post lists the fixes and updates that have been previously released by Microsoft and are included in the service pack.

Microsoft Office users can download the service pack from Windows Update, Microsoft Update or via Microsoft’s Download Center.

The 32-bit Service Pack 1 for Office 2010 has a size of 361 Megabytes, the 64-bit SP1 one of 439.

Microsoft Office 2010 SP1 Download Links

Here are the direct download links of Office 2010 Service Pack 1, helpful if you want to update more than one Office 2010 installation without downloading the update multiple times.

Service Pack 1 for Microsoft Office 2010 (KB2460049) 32-bit Edition [link]
Service Pack 1 for Microsoft Office 2010 (KB2460049) 64-bit Edition [link]

This is a major move for the company and is intended to bring Windows Server services to a much broader client-base, these being small to medium-sized companies that cannot afford to run their own IT department and who, as a result, may not even have features such as an intranet and exchange support.

It’s a powerful suite too, and you need to look no further than Lync to see just how powerful.  This one product brings telephony, instant messaging and online video and audio conferencing into the mainstream.  When you compare this suite to Google’s offering with its web apps it’s already far in the lead.

About those web apps too, they’re good generally but limited and just as frustrating to use in general usage as the Google equivalent.  Microsoft’s subscription model does bring full versions of Office 2010 into the mix though, which their web apps sync with seamlessly.  In all it’s extremely polished and comprehensive.

But what is this going to mean and will it, indeed even can it change the world of business?  To be honest I believe it can and that, by not even attempting to play catch up, Google and other competitors will fall so far behind, and quickly, that they may never regain lost ground.  Let me explain why.

I’ve been watching Office 365′s development and as an MVP I’ve been privy to online meetings and demonstrations from the team behind it.  The very fact that Microsoft have a product that’s able to reach out to every single company that isn’t already running Windows Server or an equivalent product is astonishing.  The chances then that something critical would be missed were high, but right out of the starting blocks Office 365 seems to include everything the small business needs.

The trick will be if people find it as easy to use as Office 2010, indeed this will be the clincher.  I’ve played with Office 365 and I’m confident that this won’t be a problem.

Now we need to look at companies that do already have their own IT infrastructure and ask whether they can and will switch to this hosted service.  Businesses that run their own servers are well known to be cautious about any new product.  General uptake of Office 365, should it even happen, will take three to five years.  Companies being what they are though will look at this on a purely cost basis.  IT staff are expensive and the hardware required to support organisations is even more expensive.  The per-seat pricing for Office 365 may tempt a few chief financial officers to call Microsoft in for a pitch.

But what about Office 365′s biggest flaw, the simple fact that you need a live Internet connection to be able to use it?  I don’t believe this is a problem either to be honest as most offices will effectively stall when the Internet or their internal network goes down.  At least with Office 365 there’s the option to keep working with the desktop versions of Office 2010.

Office 365 then is polished, pretty much complete and ready for the mainstream.  Business has always been Microsoft’s biggest market but the company has been in the doldrums for many years now.  Office 365 will put Microsoft firmly back in the top spot and probably keep them there for at least another decade.  Here is a company that’s got its mojo back and that’s now producing some genuinely cutting edge products.

It is in this regard even more specialized than the getting started guide, the audience limited to IT workers and administrators who manage Office 2010 in a computer network.

The guide has been made available in doc, pdf and xps format, with a total file size of between 226 Kilobytes and 522 Kilobytes.

operations guide for microsoft office 2010

The guide has been written by the Microsoft Office System and Servers Team. It consists of 23 pages that guide the user through various Office related tasks, including:

• Office 2010 Administrative template files
• Group Policy settings, and preventing conflicts with earlier versions of Group Policy settings
• Applying updates for Office 2010
• Uninstalling Office 2010 and installing a previous version
• Adding or removing languages after deploying Office 2010
• Managing and changing user configurations for Office 2010
• Customizing an existing Office installation

The relatively short size of the guide could convince some system administrators to skip it completely. The guide is however filled with hyperlinks to Microsoft websites that contain detailed information about concepts addressed in the guide.

All three versions of the operation guides for Microsoft Office 2010 can be downloaded from the official Microsoft Download Center.

The book’s core audience is mainly IT personal, help desk, deployment staff and consultants even though it contains valuable information for end users as well.

The Office 2010 ebook has a size of 258 pages that are divided into various chapters of interest, among them the following chapters:

• What’s new for IT professionals in Office 2010
• Overview of the Office user interface in Office 2010 including User interface differences in Office 2010 from earlier versions of Microsoft Office
• Changes in Office 2010 including what’s changed and what’s removed sections
• Migration considerations
• Changes in Access 2010
• Changes in Excel 2010
• Changes in InfoPath 2010
• Changes in OneNote 2010
• Changes in Outlook 2010
• Changes in PowerPoint 2010
• Changes in Project 2010
• Changes in SharePoint Designer 2010
• Changes in SharePoint Workspace 2010
• Changes in Visio 2010
• Changes in Word 2010
• Technical diagrams for Office 2010
• System requirements for Office 2010
• Assessment tools for Office 2010
• Office Environment Assessment Tool (OEAT) user’s guide for Office 2010
• Microsoft Office Code Compatibility Inspector user’s guide
• Office Migration Planning Manager (OMPM) for Office 2010
• 64-bit editions of Office 2010

office 2010 getting started

Some chapters of the book contain information that are not available in all Office 2010 suites, users who have purchased Office Home and Business 2010 for instance do not have access to modules like Publisher or Access.

Most chapters contain what’s new, what’s changed, what’s removed and migration information which can be used to quickly compare the new Office 2010 with previous Office releases.

Getting started with Microsoft Office 2010 is available for free at the Microsoft Download Center. The document is provided in doc format.

Office 2010 users can also access relevant information about Office 2010 on the official Office website. There they find help sections for every Office module available including free guides and training opportunities.

getting started guide

Microsoft Excel 2010 example:

The website offers the following information.

• Learn where menu and toolbar commands are in Office 2010
• Basic tasks in Excel 2010, e.g. creating a new workbook, format numbers, applying cell borders and shading, finding and applying templates, sorting data, creating formulas, charts and printing worksheets.
• Make the switch to Excel 2010 training, a 30-45 minute free training course available online and offline.

Have you been working with Office 2010? Let us know what you think of it in the comments.

Office 2010 displays a “Welcome to Microsoft Office 2010 screen” on the first start of PowerPoint, Excel or Word in which the user is aksed to select a default file type.

Available for selection are Office Open XML formats, the standard Microsoft Office formats, or OpenDocument formats. Selecting Microsoft’s own format ensures full compatibility with all Office 2010 features while some contents or editability may be lost if the ODF format is selected instead.

Selecting a default file type simply means that Microsoft will save the documents in that format. It is still possible to select a different format in the Save As dialog whenever it is needed.

default file types

Microsoft has created a table for Excel, Word and PowerPoint that outlines the level of support for the ODF format.

Available support levels are supported, meaning that the ODF format supports the feature, partially supported, meaning that formatting or usability might be affected but text or data is not lost, and not supported meaning that saving the document in the ODF format could lead to losing content, formattting and usability.

The selection of a default document format could affect, to a certain extent, the manner in which you can use Microsoft Office and the way you exchange documents with users of other productivity applications. Document formats were initially developed to reflect the features and behavior of one or more applications (the features and behavior of productivity applications can be quite different). For example, OpenDocument Format (ODF) was originally developed to reflect the features and behavior of OpenOffice-based productivity suites and

OpenXML was originally developed to reflect the features and behavior of Microsoft Office. Microsoft Office now provides support for ODF and gives Microsoft Office users the opportunity to save their documents in ODF. However, because Microsoft Office and OpenOffice features are not exactly the same or are not implemented the same way, Microsoft Office users who use the features that are not fully Supported (see below for a list of links for these features) in ODF may experience changes in the editability of the document and sometimes see a loss of content when saving their document in ODF.

• What happens when I save a Excel 2010 presentation in the OpenDocument Spreadsheet format? [link]
• Differences between the OpenDocument Presentation (.odp) format and the PowerPoint (.pptx) format [link]
• Differences between the OpenDocument Text (.odt) format and the Word (.docx) format [link]

Office 2010 users need to make a choice when the screen appears before they can start working with the software. It is possible to change the default file format at a later time. This is done the following ways:

Here are the steps for Excel 2010.

• Click the File tab.
• Under Help, click Options.
• Click Save, and then under Save workbooks, in the Save files in this format list, click the file format that you want to use by default.

Here are the steps for PowerPoint 2010.

• Click the File tab.
• Under Help, click Options.
• Click Save, and then under Save presentations, in the Save files in this format list, click the file format that you want to use by default.

Here are the steps for Word 2010.

• Click the File tab.
• Under Help, click Options.
• Click Save, and then under Save documents, in the Save files in this format list, click the file format that you want to use by default.

Many people say that subscription software is the way we’re all going but I’ve been making significant savings for years now by subscribing to Microsoft software, and there’s an ever better way to save money, as Paul Thurrott has written this week.

The Microsoft TechNet subscription costs from £134 (£100 renewal) a year and you get a whole lot for your money.  Copies of every version of Windows and Office, and for the more expensive subscription, Server versions too.

These are for evaluation purposes only, which would preclude installing them across a business, but there’s nothing stopping you using them at home.

As with the Action Pack the software never expires either.  Paul says…

Each product key can be used to install up to 10 versions of the OS or application, for the most part. But that’s actually 100 (yes, 100) installs for each Windows 7 product edition, because you can activate each key 10 times. So you get 100 installs of Windows 7 Ultimate, 100 installs of Windows 7 Professional, 100 installs of Windows 7 Home Premium, and so on. That’s an incredible value, though it should be noted that this program is designed for a single person. You can’t share the product keys with others. What you’re getting, essentially, as an individual is multiple, unlimited installs of the products that are included with the subscription … for yourself.

You also get added perks not in the Action Pack such as access to beta software, e-learning courses and managed forums.

This is simply stunning value for money and works out significantly cheaper than the £30 you’ll pay for new a copy of OS X each year.

Office Home and Student 2010 is the basic Office edition retailing for $149.99. It includes the core Office modules Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.

Next in line is Office Home and Business 2010 which retails for $279.95. It includes Microsoft Outlook on top of the modules offered in the basic edition.

Top of the line product Office 2010 Professional retails for $499.95. It is the only retail Office edition that includes Access 2010 and Publisher 2010.

office 2010 edition comparison

Some customers, especially those that have not participated in the Office 2010 Beta might want to download trial versions of Microsoft Office 2010 before deciding whether to buy the new version or not.

Trial downloads are available for all three retail Office 2010 editions. Office 2010 can either be downloaded directly from Microsoft after logging in with a Windows Live account. The Office 2010 product key that is generated after logging in will activate the software for 60 days.

Below are the direct download links for all Office 2010 editions. Please note that these versions are the English versions.

Microsoft Office 2010 Direct Downloads

Microsoft Office Home and Student 2010 [download]
Microsoft Office Home and Business 2010 [download]
Microsoft Office Professional 2010 [download]

The downloads can be initiated right away. The trial product key can be requested on this page over that the Microsoft Office website.

The try it now button leads to a Windows Live login form. It might be necessary to fill out the first and last name as well as the country before the Office product keys and download links are displayed.

download microsoft office 2010

Product keys are displayed on the same page after the login. System requirements for all editions of Office 2010 are nearly identical.

Computer and processor: 500 MHz or faster processor
Memory: 256 MB RAM; 512 MB recommended for graphics features and certain advanced functionality.1
Hard disk: 3.0 GB available disk space
Display: 1024×576 or higher resolution monitor

Will you be buying Microsoft Office 2010? Let us know in the comments.

Office 2010 users who want to test the new version for more than 60 days should take a look at the Office 2010 rearm instructions to do so.

It is possible to log into Office Web Apps from other locations in the world and use all of the features offered. The only downside currently is that it may not be presented in the local language but in English as those updates will be rolling out later this year.

A Windows Live account is required to use the service. Office Web Apps allow a logged in user to upload documents, edit documents and create new documents. Supported are Office Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote documents including the 2007 Office formats docx, xlsx and pptx.

The official homepage of the Office Web Apps service can be accessed by loading Office.live.com in the web browser of choice. Documents can be simply uploaded by using the available file uploader or by uploading them with third party software like the Windows Live SkyDrive Explorer.

office web apps

The main Office Web Apps window displays recent documents, document editing activities of friends that have been added by the Windows Live user and options to create new Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote.

Hovering the mouse over a document displays links to edit it right in the web browser, share it or check the version history, properties and download it to the local computer system.

A click on edit in browser opens a new screen that looks similar to the Office 2010 interface. New documents are converted automatically by Office Web Apps so that they can be edited in the browser. Most text editing and manipulation controls from Office are also available online. Documents are saved automatically, it is however possible to download a copy, share the document with other users or save it under a different name online.

excel document online

Office Web Apps on SkyDrive supports other features including work collaboration, mobile access by browsing to the same website and instant messaging.

messenger web

Office 2010, the new version of Microsoft’s document management software, offers Office Web Apps integration. It is for instance possible to send local documents to SkyDrive so that they can be edited from Office Web Apps.

The newest version of CCleaner, which was just released, adds support for Microsoft Office 2010 next to several other program and feature additions.

CCleaner 2.32 introduces Opera search field history and favicons cleaning, Real Player SP cleaning and better support for Media Player Classic next to the support for Microsoft Office 2010 cleaning.

Users of 64-bit operating systems will experience better shortcuts cleaning. Not all of the changes have been to programs and temporary files.

* Added support for Microsoft Office 2010.
* Added Opera search field history cleaning.
* Added Real Player SP cleaning.
* Added “Analyze” and “Clean” context menu options to rule tree parent nodes.
* Added “Restore default settings” button to Advanced Options.
* Improved Opera favicons cleaning.
* Improved support for Media Player Classic.
* Improved cleaning of shortcuts on 64-bit machines.
* Improve localization support.
* Fixed bug with Russian translation.
* Minor bug fixes.

CCleaner can be downloaded from the developer’s website. The software displays an Check for updates link in the program interface which however only leads to the developer website as well.

Users who install the new version should pay attention to the items that the application wants to install as it includes the Yahoo toolbar.

The Office suite will automatically activate reduced functionality mode after this grace period reminding the user that the software needs to be activated.

Rearm describes a concept to extend the grace period by 30 days. Office 2010 can be rearmed five times which means that it is possible to use Office 2010 for a total of 180 days before the product needs to be activated.

Rearming Office 2010 requires some knowledge of the command line as outlined in this article.

The Office 2010 Trial Extender application can be used to execute the rearm command which results in a safer and more reliable experience.

Microsoft Office 2010 needs to be activated after 30 days. It can be rearmed 5 times, every rearm gives you additionally 30 days to activate.
If you always rearm it on the last day before it has to be activated that makes a total evaluation time of 6 * 30 = 180 days.

The portable software program displays the Rearm button in its interface upon launch. Pressing that button will rearm the installed version of Office 2010.

Office 2010 Trial Extender is a free program for the Windows operating system. It requires the Microsoft .net Framework 3.5 and can be downloaded directly from the developer’s website.

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 is the top of the line edition of Office 2010. It is the only edition that contains all Office modules and therefor best suited for testing and evaluation purposes.

The Office 2010 evaluation version comes with restrictions that everyone should be aware of before downloading it.

• Office 2010 installs only on clean systems meaning no other version of Office can be present on the PC.
• The evaluation version will deactivate itself in 60 days with no way of making it a full version. This means that it has to be uninstalled before another version of Office 2010 can be installed on the computer.
• A Windows Live ID is needed to register for the Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 evaluation

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 empowers your people to do their best work from more places – whether they are using a PC, phone or web browser. It can maximize existing investments and help people accomplish more by bringing server capabilities to everyone through familiar and intuitive applications. Office Professional Plus 2010 provides smart, simple, time-saving tools to help everyone do more with less.

Contents

Microsoft Access 2010
Microsoft Excel 2010
Microsoft InfoPath 2010 (not included in any Retail edition)
Microsoft OneNote 2010
Microsoft Outlook 2010
Microsoft PowerPoint 2010
Microsoft Publisher 2010
Microsoft Office Communicator 2010
Microsoft Word 2010

Microsoft Office 2010 Download

• Download Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010 [link]
• Download Microsoft Project Professional 2010 [link]
• Download Microsoft Visio Premium 2010 [link]

Direct Download Links for Office 2010

Microsoft Office 2010 32-bit English [link]
Microsoft Office 2010 64-bit English [link]

Office 2010 System Requirements

• Computer and processor -500-megahertz (MHz) processor or higher; 1 gigahertz (GHz) required for Outlook with Business Contact Manager
• Memory – 256 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher; 512 MB recommended for graphics features, Outlook Instant Search, Outlook with Business Contact Manager, Communicator, and certain advanced functionality
• Hard disk – 3.5 gigabyte (GB) available disk space
• Display – 1024 × 768 or higher-resolution monitor; 1024 × 576 or higher for Excel 2010, OneNote 2010, Outlook 2010, PowerPoint 2010, and Word 2010
• Operating system – Windows XP with Service Pack (SP) 3 (32-bit), Windows Vista with SP1 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit) with MSXML 6.0 installed, Windows Server 2008 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit). Terminal Server and Windows on Windows (WOW) (which allows installing 32-bit versions of Office 2010 on 64-bit operating systems) are supported

Ribbon Hero is an add-on for Microsoft Office that can be used to learn new features of Microsoft Office in a playful way. The Microsoft Office add-on offers two modes. The first mode is basically showing a score that can increase or decrease depending on the user’s command of the Office program. Formatting text for instance will raise the score.

That alone is an interesting feature but not the core of what Ribbon Hero is about. The Office add-on comes with challenges which are small tasks that it asks the Office user to complete. It displays a document to the user and asks the user to edit that document in a certain way, e.g. changing the orientation of it to landscape mode.

Many Office users might feel helpless at this point but help is directly available on the same page in Office meaning that every step of the process of editing the document is explained to the user, if necessary.

Every completed step is visualized to the user who receives a congratulations message upon finishing the task. Ribbon Hero uses an achievement page, like one used in many computer games, to show the overall progress to the user. New tasks can be selected from that screen to increase the tasks that have already been completed.

Ribbon Hero is being offered for Office 2007 and Office 2010 users who run a 32-bit or 64-bit edition of Microsoft Windows Vista or Windows 7 or a 32-bit edition of Windows XP. The Office add-on is only offered in English currently and integrates itself into Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

The process works the following way:

• Purchase Office 2007, or a new PC with Office 2007, and activate it between March 5, 2010 and September 30, 2010.
• Have, or create a Windows Live ID.
• Redeem your Tech Guarantee before October 31, 2010 by visiting www.office.com/techg.

The Microsoft Office 2010 upgrade will be delivered to the user as a download or by DVD for a fee. It has to be noted that not all retailers are part of the free Office 2010 upgrade program and that there is a limit of 25 upgrades per customer.

Upgrade Paths:

Office Ultimate 2007 – Office Professional 2010
Office Professional 2007 – Office Professional 2010
Office Small Business 2007 - Office Professional 2010
Office Standard 2007 - Office Home and Business 2010
Office Home and Student 2007 – Office Home and Student 2010
Office Basic 2007 – Office Home and Business 2010
Word 2007 – Word 2010
Excel 2007 – Excel 2010
PowerPoint 2007 – PowerPoint 2010
OneNote 2007 – OneNote 2010
Access 2007 – Access 2010
Outlook 2007 – Outlook 2010
Outlook with Business Contact Manager 2007 - Outlook 2010
Project Standard 2007 – Project Standard 2010
Project Professional 2007 – Project Professional 2010
Publisher 2007 – Publisher 2010
Visio Standard 2007 – Visio Standard 2010
Visio Professional 2007 – Visio Professional 2010

Eligible Languages:

Brazilian, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simplified, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English/International English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Russian, Turkish

Note: The language of the qualifying Office 2007 purchase will determine the language of the Office 2010 product.

Check out the faq to read up on all the frequently asked questions. It is recommended to check with the retailer to get a confirmation whether the Microsoft Office 2007 copy is eligible for the free upgrade to Office 2010.

Microsoft will release four different versions of Microsoft Office 2010 with the core difference being the programs (like Word, Excel or PowerPoint) that ship with each Office 2010 edition. Here is a list of the editions and the programs they come with:

• Office Home and Student (Not for use in any commercial, nonprofit or revenue-generating activities, or by any government organization.): Word 2010, Excel 2010, PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010
• Office Home and Business: Word 2010, Excel 2010, PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010, Outlook 2010
• Office Home and Business: Word 2010, Excel 2010, PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010, Outlook 2010, Publisher 2010, Access 2010
• Office Professional Academic (2 Office Professional Academic 2010 is available through authorized academic resellers only): Word 2010, Excel 2010, PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010, Outlook 2010, Publisher 2010, Access 2010

The prices to buy Office 2010 editions:

Microsoft lists boxed products and product key cards in the table above. Product key cards are a new way of distributing Microsoft Office 2010. This product key card is only available if the consumer is buying a new PC from selected major PC manufacturers.

For consumers who purchase a new PC, Microsoft is working with major PC manufacturers and our retail partners to make it simpler than ever to try and buy Office 2010.

Through our retail partners, Microsoft is introducing an all-new Product Key Card to help consumers more easily access and experience Office 2010 on new PCs that have been pre-loaded with Office 2010. The Product Key Card is a single license card (with no DVD media) that will be sold at major electronic retail outlets.

An added bonus: The card’s packaging is smaller than the full package (DVD) product, and is eco/retail-friendly. The key number contained on the card will unlock Office 2010 software that has been pre-loaded by the PC manufacturers on their PCs, and enables a simpler and faster path for consumers to begin using any one of three full versions of Microsoft Office – Office Home & Student 2010, Office Home & Business 2010, or Office Professional 2010.

Other useful information about the Office 2010 purchase:

• Microsoft will offer an Office 2010 Family Pack that allows usage on three PCs in one house
• Purchase rights for Office Home and Business, Office Professional, and Office Professional Academic boxed product allow for usage on two of your PCs.
• The Product Key Card is valid for a single installation of the product.

Microsoft has reduced the number of editions of Office significantly. Office 2007 Small Business and Office 2007 Standard seem to have been removed from the portfolio to make it easier for customers to select the right Office edition. Prices on the other hand seem to have remained the same for comparable editions.

The following article will walk you through the download of Microsoft Office 2010. Interested users need to have a Windows Live account which is needed to join the Microsoft Office 2010 beta program. Lets start with the most important information about Office 2010 beta:

• Expiration: Office 2010 beta will expire on October 31st, 2010. It will become non-functional at this point
• Multiple Versions: Previous Office versions can be upgraded to Office 2010. It is also possible to select customize during installation to install Office 2010 in a separate location.
• Hardware Requirements: Microsoft Office 2010 has the same hardware requirements as Office 2007 (Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista or Windows 7, 500 Mhz or higher, 256 Megabytes of computer memory or higher, hard disk 1.5 Gigabyte
• Languages: English, Chinese Simplified, German, French, Japanese, Russian, Spanish

Microsoft is offering two Office 2010 editions for download: Microsoft Office Professional 2010 and Microsoft Office Home and Business 2010. The main difference between those two versions is the number of applications that are made available to the user:

• Office Home and Business 2010 beta – Includes: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, and Office Web Apps
• Office Professional 2010 beta – Includes: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Access, Publisher and Office Web Apps

Both editions of Microsoft Office 2010 can be downloaded from the same website:

A click on the Download Now button (there are two on the page) determines which version of Office 2010 gets downloaded to the user’s computer. A Windows Live login window will be displayed after making the selection. A new account can be created in the same window if necessary. A web installer will be downloaded in the final step. This installer has a size of a few Megabytes and will download the full Office 2010 package. The Office 2010 product key is displayed on the same page containing the download link to the web installer.

Office Home and Business 2010 has a total size of 600 Megabytes while Office Professional 2010 adds another 200 Megabytes on top of that.

Microsoft has released a free e-book a few days ago to further promote the upcoming release of Microsoft Office 2010 and provide users from around with an solid overview of some of the new features and changes that have been implemented into Office 2010.

The e-book is divided into three parts. Part I, “Envision the Possibilities,” walks the reader through the changes in Office 2010 while part 2, “Hit the Ground Running,” focuses on the individual applications and part 3, “Next Steps with Office 2010,” provides interoperability examples.

Envision the Possibilities

• Welcome to Office 2010
• Express Yourself Effectively and Efficiently
• Collaborate in the Office and Around the World

Hit the Ground Running

• Create and Share Compelling Documents with Word 2010
• Create Smart Data Insights with Excel 2010
• Manage Rich Communications with Outlook 2010
• Produce Dynamic Presentations with PowerPoint 2010
• Organize, Store, and Share Ideas with OneNote 2010
• Collaborate Effectively with SharePoint Workspace 2010
• Create Effective Marketing Materials with Publisher 2010
• Make Sense of Your Data with Access 2010

Next Steps with Office 2010

• Putting It All Together
• Security in Office 2010
• Training Made Easy

The e-book offers 183 pages of information about Microsoft Office 2010. Even better is the fact that Microsoft is offering that e-book to anyone without prerequisites like registrations. It is freely and publicly available at the Windows Live Skydrive hosting service

The following article contains an overview of Microsoft beta releases that have been made available yesterday. Each item will be introduced with its name, a small summary and a link to the official project page at the Microsoft website which contains additional information and the downloads.

Microsoft Office Web Apps (Beta)

Microsoft Office Web Apps are new web-based tools that extend the Microsoft Office 2010 experience to your browser. Office Web Apps enable you to view, do light editing, and share your Office documents from virtually anywhere. With these online companions to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote you’ll always have the tools you need, wherever you are.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows Server 2008; Windows Server 2008 R2; Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2
Hardware Requirements: Processor – 64-bit; Dual Processor; 3 GHz, RAM – 4 GB for standalone; 8 GB for farm, Hard Disk – 80 GB
Software Requirements: Microsoft SharePoint Foundation Server or Microsoft SharePoint Server
Size: 177.8 MB – 1367.7 MB*

official Microsoft link

Microsoft Office 2010 Professional Plus Beta

Microsoft Office 2010 gives you powerful new tools to express your ideas, solve problems, and connect with people. Applications include Word, Access, PowerPoint, Publisher, Outlook, InfoPath, Excel, SharePoint Workspace, OneNote, and Communicator.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows XP with Service Pack (SP) 3 (32-bit), Windows Vista with SP1 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows Server 2008 with SP2 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit)
Hardware Requirements: 500 MHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor or higher, 256 MB of system memory or more, 3 GB of available disk space, 1024×768 or higher resolution monitor, DVD-R/W Drive
Software Requirements: None
Size: 700 MB

official Microsoft link (registration required)

Business Contact Manager for Outlook 2010 Beta

Business Contact Manager for Outlook 2010 provides contact management, sales, marketing and project management for the small business or small team.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows 7; Windows Server 2008; Windows Vista Service Pack 1; Windows XP Service Pack 3
Hardware Requirements: Computer and processor: 500 MHz processor or higher, Memory: 256 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher, Hard disk: 2.5 GB; a portion of the disk space will be freed after installation if the original download package is removed from the hard drive, Display: 1024×768 or higher resolution monitor; 1024×576 or higher for Excel, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word.
Software Requirements: Outlook 2010
Size: 366.9 MB

32-bit download page | 64-bit download page

Microsoft Visio Premium 2010 Beta

Microsoft Visio 2010 Beta takes diagramming to a new level with dynamic, data-driven visualization tools and templates, enhanced process management capabilities, and advanced Web sharing. Bring real-time data together from multiple sources, including Excel and Microsoft SQL Server, in one powerful diagram using vibrant graphics like icons and data bars. Manage processes with sub-processes and rules and logic validation to ensure accuracy and consistency across the organization. Create SharePoint workflows and export them to Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 for real-time execution and monitoring. Share refreshable, data-linked diagrams over the Web with anyone, even those who don’t own Visio.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows 7; Windows Server 2008; Windows Vista Service Pack 1; Windows XP Service Pack 3
Hardware Requirements: Computer and processor: 500 MHz processor or higher, Memory: 256 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher, Hard disk: 2.5 GB; a portion of the disk space will be freed after installation if the original download package is removed from the hard drive, Display: 1024×768 or higher resolution monitor; 1024×576 or higher for Excel, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Word.
Software Requirements: Certain inking features require running Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition or later. Speech recognition functionality requires a close-talk microphone and audio output device. Information Rights Management features require access to a Windows 2003 Server with SP1 or later running Windows Rights Management Services.

Connectivity to Microsoft Exchange Server 2000 or later is required for certain advanced functionality in Outlook 2007. Instant Search requires Microsoft Windows Desktop Search 3.0. Dynamic Calendars require server connectivity.

Connectivity to Microsoft Windows Server 2003 with SP1 or later running Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services is required for certain advanced collaboration functionality. Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 is required for certain advanced functionality. PowerPoint Slide Library requires Office SharePoint Server 2007. To share data among multiple computers, the host computer must be running Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows XP Professional with SP2, or later.

Internet Explorer 6.0 or later, 32 bit browser only. Internet functionality requires Internet access (fees may apply).

Actual requirements and product functionality may vary based on your system configuration and operating system.
Size: 296.5 MB

32-bit download page | 64-bit download page (registration required)

Microsoft Project Server 2010 Beta

Project Server 2010 Beta ensures organizations select and deliver the right projects, while gaining greater visibility and control of resources leading to improved productivity and better business performance. Participate in the Microsoft Project Server 2010 Beta and be the first to see how the innovative new capabilities can help organizations to:

• Capture all types of work in a centralized demand management repository
• Select the right project portfolios and maximize resource utilization
• Build and conveniently update project schedules online
• Create powerful dashboards and project reports

Supported Operating Systems: Windows Server 2008; Windows Server 2008 R2; Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2
Hardware Requirements: Processor: 64-bit, dual processor, 3 GHz, RAM: 4 GB for stand-alone or evaluation installation, 8 GB for single server and multiple server farm installation for production use, Hard Disk: 80 GB.
Software Requirements: SharePoint Server 2010 Beta is a required prerequisite for Project Server installation, SQL Server 2005 SP3 CU4 or SQL Server 2008 SP1 CU3, SQL Server 2008 AMO objects.
Size: 22.1 MB

download link (registration required)

Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 Beta

For organizations looking to help users find information and expertise quickly and easily through a search capability able to address their most challenging needs – includes all the search features and integration capabilities of SharePoint Server 2010, plus a more engaging and conversational search experience, use of context to provide specific search experiences for different needs (such as departments or geographies), advanced content processing capabilities that create metadata and add structure to unstructured content, and deep platform flexibility, scalability, and extensibility. For use with SharePoint Server 2010 Enterprise Edition.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows Server 2008 R2; Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2
Hardware Requirements: Processor Minimum: 64-bit, 4 CPU cores, 2.0 GHz, Recommended: 64-bit, 8 CPU cores, 2.0 GHz, RAM Minimum: 4 GB, Recommended: 16 GB, Hard Disk
Minimum: 50 GB, Recommended: 1 TB RAID* across 6 spindles, Other DVD Drive.

In general, RAID5 configurations with 128 KB stripe size provides a good combination of performance and reliability as content storage for FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint. Different RAID controllers have varying sweet spots for operation. SAS disks are recommended over SATA. Within a fixed power and cost budget, performance will be better with a larger number of 10k RPM disks compared to a smaller number of 15k RPM disk.
Software Requirements: Windows Server 2008 SP2 x64 or Windows Server 2008 R2 x64
Size: 651 MB

download link (registration required)

Microsoft Project Professional 2010 Beta

Microsoft Project Professional 2010 Beta gives you powerful, visually enhanced ways to successfully manage and deliver a wide range of projects. Easier and more intuitive, Project Professional 2010 Beta provides flexible choices to simplify planning, collaboration and resource management.

Supported Operating Systems: Windows 7; Windows Server 2003; Windows Server 2008; Windows Vista; Windows XP Service Pack 3
Hardware Requirements: Computer and processor: 700 MHz processor or higher, Memory: 512 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher, Hard disk: 1.5 gigabyte (GB); a portion of this disk space will be freed after installation if the original download package is removed from the hard drive, Display: 1024×768 or higher resolution monitor.
Software Requirements: Microsoft Windows Server 2003 SP2 or later running Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 Enterprise is required for certain advanced collaboration functionality. Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 SP2 or later required to use the Import Outlook Tasks feature. Visual Reports require Microsoft Office Excel 2003 SP2 or later and Microsoft Office Visio Professional 2007 SP1 or later. Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010 is required for Project Professional 2010 Beta task list synchronization.Project Server 2010 Beta is required for enterprise project and resource management capabilities. Exchange 2007 SP1 or later required for importing tasks to the Outlook tasks list.
Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 Enterprise Beta (installed as part of Microsoft Project Server 2010 Beta) is required for publishing projects, Windows Workflow Foundation, and Project Tasks List. Microsoft.Net Framework Version 3.5 is required for the Resource Substitution Wizard.
Size: 651 MB
download link 32-bit | download link 64-bit (registration required)

Users need to log into a Microsoft Live account and fill out a short form before they are able to download the beta of Microsoft Office 2010. Downloads are available for 32-bit and 64-bit editions and various languages. The product key for the beta will also be displayed on those pages. The key is required to activate the beta.

Step 1: Open Microsoft Word 2010 Beta and click on the “File” tab. This will take you to the Backstage view. Next click “Help” in the set of tabs on the left.

Step 2: Click “Change Product Key” on the right side of the screen.

Step 3: Enter the Multiple Activation Key (MAK) displayed above. Please check the box to activate automatically or restart the app to activate using the activation dialog box.

Step 4: That’s all you need to do. Entering the MAK key in Microsoft Word 2010 Beta automatically activates all the Office Professional Plus 2010 Beta applications. Click on the “File” tab to return to the Document view.

New features in the beta include:

New features in the beta include:

• Outlook Social Connector (blog)
• Deeper integration between Office client and Web Apps allowing users to save directly to Windows Live Sky Drive or SharePoint 2010
• Improved navigation, visual design and icon update
• New Office logo
• Increased performance and stability

The 32-bit English beta has a size of 700 Megabytes which can take some time to download depending on the Internet connection. Users who want to follow the development of the beta can subscribe to the #officebeta Twitter channel to do so.