Which Microsoft Office Do I Need

There was a time when you had to pony up the high cost of the Microsoft Office suite in order to effectively exchange documents with others. But over the past several years Office has received lots of very appealing competition. In response, Microsoft reduced the price of Microsoft Office, but for many, the price is still a little steep. Before you spend the money on Microsoft Office take a look at these other options. Even without considering the lower cost you may find that some of these fit your needs better. But in the end, if Microsoft Office works better for you you can buy or subscribe to Microsoft Office here. Typically I recommend that if you need a license for a single computer you purchase, but if you need a license for multiple computers (or if you need it for mobile devices) it makes more sense to subscribe.

Here are some of the most popular alternative options available on the Mac. Apple iWork, Google Docs, and LibreOffice. Each one has its own advantages and disadvantages, so there is no one product that will work best for everyone. I myself use all of them depending on who I’m working with or the type of document I’m creating.

iWork

Do I need Microsoft office for the Excel Skills for business coursera course? I’m aware this might be a really stupid question. But I’m considering doing the Coursera course (excel skills for business specialization) and I don’t have excel on my computer. A Microsoft account is required to install and activate Office versions 2013 or later, and Microsoft 365 for home products. You might already have a Microsoft account if you use a service like Outlook.com, OneDrive, Xbox Live, or Skype; or if you purchased Office from the online Microsoft Store. If you don't have a Microsoft account yet, you’ll be asked to create one the first time you install or activate your copy of.

$19.99 per Mac app ($9.99 on iOS), or free with a new Mac or iOS device (the first user to log into the App Store on a new device gets the license added to their account) iWork is now free

Though I almost never see the name “iWork” anymore since Apple de-bundled the components, iWork is Apple’s very own competitor which is comprised of:

• Pages (word processor) Mac / iOS
• Numbers (spreadsheet) Mac / iOS
• Keynote (presentation) Mac / iOS

Idiosyncrasies. As you might suspect from an Apple product, these apps produce some of the most beautiful output with the least effort, since their templates are extremely high quality. Though their focus on CSS-like “Styles” can confuse people who simply want to highlight some text and change a font face or text size. Styles allow you to easily maintain consistency. Want your chapter headers to all be two points larger? Instead of going through each header manually you can just change the format of the “Header” style. Other word processors use this feature as well, but Apple makes it more prominent. So it’s common for people to use this quite complex (though efficient) formatting option and get in over their heads.

Collaboration. The major drawback is for those who regularly collaborate with non-Apple users. Each of these apps saves to their own proprietary format. Each time you want to send a file to a Microsoft Office user you must remember to export it to Word, PDF, etc., and email that output. In macOS Sierra, they added a collaboration feature that works similarly to Google Docs, though unless your collaborator is familiar you may meet some resistance from people you share to.

Privacy. The easiest way to keep your documents available on all of your Macs and iOS devices is to save your documents to iCloud. Apple doesn’t mine your data as you are a paying customer, and they use a very high level of encryption, but if it still doesn’t sit well with you you are able to save the documents to your own computer instead. Even if you do decide to save to iCloud Drive, your computer keeps a local copy for offline use as long as you have available storage, and these local copies also get backed up to Time Machine.

Mobile. Mobile versions of the app are available individually for $9.99, or free with a new iOS devicefor free. This allows you to edit any documents which you saved to your iCloud Drive folder. Create dmg image mac os x. As an added bonus, the Keynote app on iOS can serve as a remote control to a presentation on another iOS device or Mac. You can even use Apple Watch to control the slideshow.

Good for people who:

• need to create documents for themselves only
• collaborate with other Apple iWork users
• want to share their final product with others

Bad for people who:

• Regularly exchange and edit documents with people who do not use iWork

Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides

Free

Google runs one of the most popular alternatives to Microsoft Office. But their vision, as they are a cloud company, is that instead of installing software on your computer you visit a website and edit your documents in your web browser. It doesn’t have advanced formatting functions, but for most users, it is good enough. It includes

• Docs (word processor)
• Sheets (spreadsheet)
• Slides (presentation)
• Drive (file manager)

Collaboration. It really shines in collaboration features. You can invite other users to collaborate using a link, and as other users are editing and commenting, you see their changes in real-time. And you can simultaneously edit, with each user getting their own cursor. This is a dream for people who work with editors, because without emailing multiple attachments, everyone is always sure to be using the current version, and one person can jump in and make changes without having to worry about the other person finishing their edits first. This is really handy with Sheets, allowing multiple users to compile data into a single spreadsheet.

Mobile. The Google Mobile apps allow you to log into your Google account to view, edit, and share all of your documents.

Idiosyncracies. One thing that throws a lot of people is that there is no “Save” button. Instead, you are editing the document live. Much like a real pen and paper, you don’t save, you just create. If you want to go back, you can browse revisions that are saved automatically. So you are able to see who made what changes when, and roll them back if needed.

Privacy. Though the product is technically free, there is a cost. As we all know Google’s major source of income is through data mining and advertising. The documents that you create are part of your user profile that Google uses to sell you products. Now, that doesn’t mean that someone at Google is necessarily reading through your documents, but they get fed into an algorithm so that Google understands you. This is less of a concern for G Suite users (paying customers using Google on their own domain), because they have a much different user agreement, and can even sign up for HIPAA compliance.

No lock-in. Once you start editing documents in Google’s system you’ll likely always want to keep them there for convenience. However, you can download any document in Microsoft format, or you can export all of your Google data at Google Takeout.

Good for people who:

• Collaborate with people on many different platforms
• Want easy access to their documents on the go

Bad for people who:

• Have privacy concerns (if using a free Google account)
• Need sophisticated formatting options
• Need to keep local copies of documents

LibreOffice

Free. libreoffice.org

LibreOffice is a fork of the OpenOffice project and is preferred to its ancestor by many. It is essentially an Office 2000 clone, so many people find it to be much easier to use than the current versions of Microsoft Office with the “ribbon” bars. But it’s quite a full-featured program that most people will find sufficient.

File format. While LibreOffice has their own (open) file format, with a few tweaks you can change the default format to be Microsoft Office for maximum compatibility:

1. With LibreOffice open go to the LibreOffice menu > Preferences > Load/Save > General.
2. Near the bottom make sure “Document Type” is set to “Text Document”
3. Change “Always Save As” to “Microsoft Word 2007-365 *.docx”
4. Change “Document Type” to “Spreadsheet”
5. Change “Always Save As” to “Microsoft Excel 2007-365 *.xlsx”
6. Change “Document Type to “Presentation”
7. Change “Always Save As” to “Microsoft PowerPoint 2007-365 *.pptx”
8. Click OK.

Collaboration. What it doesn’t have a lot of are cloud and collaboration features. In order to collaborate you create your files, email them to someone. They edit the file and email it back. Very 1999. But if that’s the workflow that works for you then you’ll have no complaints. They recently announced the development of LibreOffice Online, a new project that is similar to Google Docs, where you have real-time collaboration through a web browser. But instead of going to a public website, they are offering the software that you must install onto your own server. This will be great for people and organizations who like the idea of Google’s suite but don’t want their data in someone else’s hands. Kids news sitesteam patton.

Near universal compatibility. This program has some surprising power for people who have ancient documents. It is even able to open documents from WordPerfect, StarOffice, ClarisWorks, AppleWorks, Microsoft Works, Lotus, and much more. You can then “save as” a more modern format.

Good for people who:

• have been using Microsoft Office since the 90s and don’t want to change their workflow.
• are concerned with privacy and don’t want their documents stored on a server

Bad for people who:

Compare Office Versions

• need easy access to their documents on mobile
• are in need of a more efficient collaboration workflow

If you are thinking of buying a new Dell PC or upgrading the software in your current one, you might want to know what all options you've got. Microsoft Office is one of the most extensively-used office suites provided by Microsoft. There are many versions available which come with useful applications. But before you finalize on your selection, have a look at the steps given below. Steps to choose Microsoft Office for your PC Step 1: Examine your needs. Are you a home user or a business user? Do you require Microsoft Office for single or multiple devices? Step 2: List out the features you require. What all do you wish to do with your Office suite? Step 3: Weigh all options. Compare the available choices and narrow down your selection. Which version of Microsoft Office should I buy? The new Office productivity software combines the latest Office applications with offerings like Skype world minutes and OneDrive online storage. In addition, Microsoft now offers subscription versions of Office for home and school, designed for the way you use Office today. When you’re deciding which version of Office to buy, consider how many computers or mobile devices you’d like to use the applications on and which applications you need. Multiple devices and all Office applications If your home has multiple devices and you want all the applications, choose the Office 365 subscription, which can be shared across 5 PCs, Macs and mobile devices. That way you can switch between devices and pick up right where you left off. 1 PC and essential Office applications If you want the latest versions of the essential Office applications for one PC, choose Office Home and Student 2016. If you want the latest versions of the essential Office applications for one PC, including Outlook to keep your home and work life organized, choose Office Home and Business 2016. Note: Office Home and Student 2016 is for noncommercial use only. Office Home and Business 2016 is ideal for commercial use.	Shop Laptops
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Microsoft Office suite vs Office 365 Home Premium: What should I choose?

Office Home & Student 2016	Office Home & Business 2016	Professional 2016	Office 365 Home
For households with students sharing one PC	For households and home offices sharing one PC	For home office sharing one PC and Business Office sharing one PC	Office for families. Get installed applications on multiple devices, online storage, and more
Licenses
Core Office applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint.
Digital notebook: OneNote
Email, calendars and tasks: Outlook.
Publishing and databases: Publisher, Access.
Office on multiple devices: Install Office on up to 5 PCs or Macs and on select mobile devices when available
Personalized experience: Always have your applications, settings and documents accessible when you need them.
Office on Demand: Stream full-featured Office applicationns to any internet-connected PC with Office on Demand
OneDrive® + 1TB storage: Save documents online to your OneDrive for easy access and sharing virtually anywhere.
Easy annual subscription: Includes ongoing access to version upgrades, multiple device installs and access to multiple languages.

What’s new in Office 2016?

With the latest Office, your favorite applications are even smarter.

Word Add pictures, videos, or online media to your Word documents with a simple drag and drop. Show your style and professionalism with templates, plus save time. Browse Word templates in more than 40 categories.

Excel Recommended Charts helps you visualize data quickly and effectively in Excel. In Excel 2013 each workbook has its own window, making it easier to work on two workbooks at once. It also makes life easier when you’re working on two monitors.

PowerPoint Reply to comments right next to the area you're discussing, so it's easy to see who's commenting about what in PowerPoint. No more eyeballing objects on your slides to see if they're lined up. Smart Guides automatically appear when your objects are close to even, and tell you when objects are spaced evenly.

Outlook See your Outlook schedule, an appointment, or details about a contact without changing screens. The People Card collects all the key details about a contact in one place: phone, email, address, social media, and more. From the card, schedule a meeting, send an instant message, or call – a one-stop-shop for all communication.

OneNote OneNote lets you capture, organize, and share all types of information — photos, web pages, and media–in a digital notebook that can be accessed virtually anywhere. Smoothly draw, erase, and edit with your finger, stylus, or mouse on any touch-capable device. If you need to share handwritten notes and care about legibility, OneNote can convert handwriting to text.

Publisher Publisher is the simple path to professional publications that make an impact. Use Publisher to search your online albums on Facebook, Flickr and other services and add pictures directly to the document, without having to save them first.

Access Access lets you build a database fast to organize data, accessible anywhere online. Never again get 'lost in the data.' A standardized app framework makes navigating apps familiar and easy.

OneDrive With Office 365, you get an extra 1 Terabyte of online storage per user so you can access your photos and documents from anywhere, on most devices.

Skype With Office 365, get 60 Skype world minutes per month to call phones in over 60 countries*.

Why use Office 365?

Difference Between Office Versions

Office 365 is a best-in-class productivity solution that allows your employees to work how they want with trusted applications like Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook on all their favorite devices (Windows, iOS and Android).

Which Microsoft Office Do I Need

Install full Office applications
Always have the latest versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access and capture your ideas however you work best--using a keyboard, pen, or touchscreen.

Word Word-processing application—create polished documents with Word. Do more with your Word docs: pop in an online video, open a PDF and edit the content and align pictures and diagrams with minimal fuss.

Excel Spreadsheet and charting application—sort and analyze your data with Excel. Flash Fill learns and recognizes your pattern and auto-completes the remaining data for you. Excel recommend chart and pivot tables that best illustrate your data's patterns.

PowerPoint Presentation application—build and present your story with PowerPoint. New alignment, color-matching, and other design tools help you create stunning presentations. No more eyeballing pictures, shapes, and more on your slides to see if they're lined up with Smart Guides. Improved Presenter View features let you control the presentation.

Outlook Email, calendar, people and tasks application—work smarter with tools that help you communicate, manage your schedule, and find what you need—simply and fast. The People Card collects all the key details about a contact in one place: phone, email, address, company info, social media updates, even whether they're available. From the card, you can schedule a meeting, send an instant message, or give them a call, making it a one-stop-shop for all communication.

OneNote Digital note-taking application—all your notes, on all your devices, always up to date. Type, handwrite, or sketch your notes. Clip links and webpages, insert photos and videos, embed tables, and attach files. Your notes are saved, searchable, and synced to OneNote apps on your other devices. For Mac users, OneNote is available as a separate download from the Mac App Store.

Publisher Page layout application—easily create great looking publications in very little time. Start with an assortment of templates or prebuilt building blocks of content. Choose from newsletters, brochures, postcards, brochures, calendars and more. Work with pictures more easily to add that eye-popping touch to your publications. Publisher is available for PC only.

Access Database application—easily build a database app in Access and then use and share your app on the web. Access is available for PC only.