Microsoft Office -2010
Microsoft Corp's next version of its Office
desktop programs will reach consumers next year, though not likely in
conjunction with the
Windows 7 operating system. Microsoft is
set to announce on Wednesday that Office 2010 will be finished and ready to
send to manufacturers in the first half of next year.
From there, it can take six weeks to four months
or more for the programs to reach PC users, said Chris Capossela, a senior vice president in
the Microsoft group that makes Office. The timing will differ for big
businesses and individual consumers, and for people who buy packaged software
versus those who download it. Some industry watchers had expected a new version of Office this year,
but Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer extinguished that rumor at a
meeting with analysts in February.
Office 2010, previously known by the code name
``Office 14'', will include slimmed-down versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote
that let people create and edit documents in a Web browser. Consumers will have
access to a free, ad-supported version, and Capossela said the company is still
hammering out what to charge businesses that want a version without ads.
Microsoft plans to let hundreds of thousands of
people test a technical preview of the new Office portfolio starting in the
third quarter of 2009, Capossela said. The company did not say whether average
PC users will have a chance to test a more polished beta version.
Microsoft also said a new version of its Exchange
e-mail server will be available for purchase in the second half of 2009. When
paired with the next version of Microsoft's Outlook e-mail program, Exchange
2010 aims to prevent e-mail faux pas and would warn people against trying to
``reply all'' to a huge distribution list. Microsoft said it can also be
tweaked to stop people from sending e-mail outside the organization, helping
businesses cut down on unnecessary e-mail and prevent leaks.A beta version of
Exchange 2010 was to be made available on Wednesday.
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