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Microsoft Office

EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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I've recently got a new laptop with a trial of Microsoft Office installed, and I want to get the full version so need to buy a product key. However, I can only find Microsoft 2010 product keys for sale and the version installed on my laptop is 2007.

I went into PC World and asked what to do and they gave me some instructions and told me to go on microsoft's website and download something to upgrade my version to 2010 so a product key will work, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to do it! I am considering phoning microsoft but thought I'd ask here first so does anyone know how I can get a 2010 product key to work on office 2007?

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    chrisjrchrisjr Posts: 33,282
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    You can download a trial version of Office 2010, or indeed pay for the full version, from the Microsoft office website

    http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/

    If you download the trail you can later buy a licence key to activate it so it does not eventually expire.

    But you probably won't be able to make a 2010 key work with a 2007 version. The keys are version specific.
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    mike1948mike1948 Posts: 2,157
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    Why not use Open Office which is free - legitimately so?
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    EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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    mike1948 wrote: »
    Why not use Open Office which is free - legitimately so?

    I wanted to make sure I can definitely open my work on another computer as I'm a student, so I need to be 100% I can get stuff to open on my university's networks too
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    EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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    chrisjr wrote: »
    You can download a trial version of Office 2010, or indeed pay for the full version, from the Microsoft office website

    http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/

    If you download the trail you can later buy a licence key to activate it so it does not eventually expire.

    But you probably won't be able to make a 2010 key work with a 2007 version. The keys are version specific.

    Thanks, so if I download this will it replace my office 2007 trial or will I need to uninstall that from my laptop?
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 40,102
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    EEfan24 wrote: »
    Thanks, so if I download this will it replace my office 2007 trial or will I need to uninstall that from my laptop?

    You will need to uninstall Microsoft Office.

    Open Office is not Microsoft Office. It's different. It's an "open source" office suite. Not many companies use is so if you're planning on working from home, for example, with Office and your work place uses Office, then Open Office might not be as great. It does save in MS Office formats but it's not perfect for that.

    However, if you're just using it for personal use - or to write essays etc - then Open Office will be fine. It's similar in the way it's set up and you'll adapt easily.

    I still prefer MS Office, though. Despite the £60+ price tag, it's still much better than it's competitors. I got Office with OneNote and I really like that program!
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    EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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    Sorry Carmen I meant if I download an office 2010 trial and then buy the product key will it replace my 2007 one or will I have to uninstall office 2007?
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    CruachanCruachan Posts: 7,211
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    You will need to uninstall Microsoft Office.

    Open Office is not Microsoft Office. It's different. It's an "open source" office suite. Not many companies use is so if you're planning on working from home, for example, with Office and your work place uses Office, then Open Office might not be as great. It does save in MS Office formats but it's not perfect for that.

    However, if you're just using it for personal use - or to write essays etc - then Open Office will be fine. It's similar in the way it's set up and you'll adapt easily.

    I still prefer MS Office, though. Despite the £60+ price tag, it's still much better than it's competitors. I got Office with OneNote and I really like that program!

    I think that the "this" in the post you responded to, Carmen, was MS Office 2010.

    EDIT: Snap!
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    c4rvc4rv Posts: 29,627
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    If you are a student then you can purchase a cheap copy of MS Office 2010 from

    software4students.co.uk

    You will need to uninstall 2007 before you install 2010.
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    EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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    Woah are they really selling Office professional edition for £38 when the RRP is over £400 :eek:
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 5,565
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    EEfan24 wrote: »
    Woah are they really selling Office professional edition for £38 when the RRP is over £400 :eek:

    The student offers are very cheap and genuine.
    The open source free office suite is excellent as well.
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    c4rvc4rv Posts: 29,627
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    EEfan24 wrote: »
    Woah are they really selling Office professional edition for £38 when the RRP is over £400 :eek:

    yep, its completely legit though technically there are qualifying conditions. From their faq, they vet 3% of their orders so obviously I am not suggesting that you just select a school near you on the list.

    Also you can install on one main PC and one laptop as long as they are both for the qualifying person.

    Personally I have a deal at work where I can get a copy for a tenner so there are very cheap copies out there. In fact nobody pays £400, even retail can be purchased for under £200.
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    EEfan24EEfan24 Posts: 2,942
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    Just ordering it now, as I am a student I am putting in my university's name so I assume this is right! thanks SO much c4rv :)
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,917
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    It's not just a case of selecting a school near you - when I got my Student Edition I had to supply an @xxx.ac.uk email address to get it properly, though this wasn't from the website listed above, this was directly from Microsoft.
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    That BlokeThat Bloke Posts: 6,352
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    It's worth checking your university intranet as well before buying. A lot of Universities have agreements with Microsoft which mean their students can use Office on their own computers either free or at a very reduced rate (usually around £10 rather than the general student offers)
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    c4rvc4rv Posts: 29,627
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    Dissonance wrote: »
    It's not just a case of selecting a school near you - when I got my Student Edition I had to supply an @xxx.ac.uk email address to get it properly, though this wasn't from the website listed above, this was directly from Microsoft.

    They are a licensed reseller, you won't be buying from Microsoft directly.

    The scheme is designed for parents of kids at school and you are actually buying the software under the premise that its primary user will be the child.

    If you are in collage or university then you can buy your own copy fairly cheaply from microsoft directly and that is when you would need a .ac.uk address.
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